For my first story of the second decade of Retro Renovation: A love story. Amy bought her grandparents’ time capsule “city” house, a place full of happy memories. Now she is making the house her own — preserving all the basics and slowly mixing the old with the new.
Amy writes:
Hi there – Love your sites! I wanted to share a bit about the house I live in and see if it’s of interest to your readers (and get any of their tips for my continued decor experiments).
My grandparents built a modest brick house in 1959, where they lived for the next few decades. It was their move to the “city” (actually a small town north of Atlanta) from the farm about 15 miles away.
I bought the 3BR/2BA house from the family after my grandparents’ deaths in the early 2000s because I had always loved the style + had many fond memories there.
While my grandmother redecorated a bit every few decades, most of the house remained as it was from 1959. And when I bought it, I kept it mainly as it was, too — partly out of financial necessity at the time and partly out of love of things vintage.
I still have most of the original living room furniture from 1959 as well (they built things to last!)
First, pink bathroom! This is all the original tile, fixtures, shelves, toilet and sink in the bathroom off what was then my aunt’s bedroom. It’s now my guest bathroom (and guests always get a kick out of it!). Growing up, I loved the lavender curtains on the shower and windows and purple towels. When I moved in, I got rid of those, but decided the pink was unique and embraced it.
Next, the kitchen, which is one of my favorite rooms. No all-white open kitchen here — a kitchen to me needs COLOR. Original cabinets built by local builders, original Formica countertops, original vinyl floor, original fixtures — just about everything including the phone nook, which I now use as a charging station for devices. The stove is also original and everything still works including the little oven light to check on things without opening the oven door. My grandma made some excellent food there!
The old diner table and chairs are NOT original to the house — my grandparents had something similar but replaced with a small wooden table in the late 1960s. I found this whole set for $80 at a junk shop in 2001 or so, a few years before they became popular — and expensive!
The refrigerator also has a story. This was my grandparents’ fridge (a Westinghouse from 1941, I believe) that is even older than the house! They had this at their farm house, moved with it (I think) to this house, and then when my parents were married in 1969, they took it. After my parents established a household, they used the old fridge as a “second” fridge in the laundry room for extra milk, food, etc. When I bought this house, I got rid of the 1970s avocado green fridge (if only I knew they would come back in style!) and asked my parents for the 1941 fridge for the house. I only needed to buy them a budget new fridge for them to use as their “second.” It was a bargain! My new old fridge only needed a coat of appliance paint as it had gotten a little scratched up over the years. But it has been IN CONSTANT USE SINCE 1941!
Next, the dining room and living room, which is one long room (including an entry way). The sofa, 2 matching chairs, coffee table and end tables are original to the house. My grandmother had the sofa and chairs recovered about every 15-20 years. I wanted to return it to a retro feel but without it looking too staid or too trendy. The dark green polka dot fabric and the wavy stripes I thought hit the right balance (from Hable Construction fabric).
Side note: Over the sofa, I hung framed quilt pieces from my great-grandmother. Funny how something so old looks modern!
My dad carved the wooden bowl/sculpture on the coffee table. The console is original and still works great, with a big sound today’s devices can’t touch. The red oak floors in the living room once had gold carpet added on them in the late 1970s, but I tore that up and polished up the floors to their original beauty. The rest of the house has wood floors as well that have never been covered, and that are still waxed the old-fashioned way, with decades of “patina” on them that can never be replicated. They also make excellent run-and-slide fun when you’re in socks!
The curtains are from the past few years but in the same material and style as my grandmother always had, just different colors. I love green, while she had originally a pale beige and then a 1970s tannish color. The gas fireplace replaced the regular fireplace sometime in the 1980s — I still haven’t figured out what to do with it. I’d like to remove it and return to a wood-burning fireplace, but open to any of your readers’ thoughts.
In the dining room, I have grown to love the overhead light (when I first moved in, I just didn’t like it and longed for the “sputnik” lights) and the mural, which I was originally so-so on.
The mural was added sometime in the early 1970s. It used to be a blank wall and while my Dad was serving in Vietnam, my grandparents had a huge map of the country pinned to the wall where they would listen to the news and track locations mentioned and where my dad was.
I’ve included some other photos of the bedroom (nothing too vintage-y in there except light fixtures, floors, closets and cedar chest). It was originally painted pink with pink curtains and then wallpapered later with pink stripes/roses.
And the main bathroom next to it. The bath still has all of its original fixtures, tile, toilet and sink as well. It was originally painted a light pink and then wallpapered with a pink background and dark pink flocked flowered wallpaper in the 1960s. Can you sense a pattern here? My grandma loved pink! I looked on the wallpaper with fondness, but it was something I just couldn’t see me living with on a daily basis. Plus, the wallpaper was getting so old, the flocking was rubbing off. Note – the inside of the bathroom closet and the bedroom closet are still in their original shades of pink. The other bedroom (my study/storage room) was my dad and uncle’s. It’s still light blue with the original blue curtains.
There are a couple of inconvenient things about an older house, but overall, I find that older design holds up better and is more efficient for daily life. When I first moved in, I didn’t have tons of money to completely renovate or redecorate, and now I think that was a blessing in disguise. I learned to appreciate some things over time and for the things I did want to change or invest in, I had time to think about what I truly wanted so that hopefully some of this will last another 60 years. One question I’m curious to get your readers’ takes: What’s their advice on balancing the old with the new?
Anyway, that is most of it. My house is not perfectly staged, but I hope you or your readers might find it interesting, warts and all. I know I love perusing your readers’ photos — the more real and lived in, the better. Thanks for the wonderful site, the continued inspiration and the whole reason I’m on Pinterest.
Thanks!
Well, first off, Amy, it doesn’t seem that you need any decorating advice from anyone — you are doing a terrific job! Indeed: I love the framed quilt pieces, and that dining room table, oh my. The refrigerator story! The sofa that’s still there — and I think you did a great job with the upholstery! All your family photos!
All that said, the big messages are: Thank you so much (1) for sharing your story and (2) for being a wonderful example of how taking care of what we have pays off. Not just financially/economically, but also emotional. That is: Seems to me that after providing shelter, a house’s big opportunity is to make us feel: Loved. Your house is brimming with it. Thank you. xoxoxo
Marilyn says
I love your pink bathroom and a lot of the furniture you have kept. I also adore those telephone nooks built in like you have in the kitchen. Aren’t those wood floors wonderful?
Melinda says
What a wonderful gift that you and your family were able to keep this house and so many of its treasures all these years. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Boy, they sure don’t make appliances like they used to!
Beth says
I echo Dan….check beneath the bones and make sure the electric is good….my darling 1954 home probably needs a good “once over.” My neighbor selling had to have an electrician come in and update a bunch of things before they could close ????. My bathtub has a funky holding tank “thingy” that needs to be removed and attached to the mainline. That said this home of a year is more solid than anything I could have found “new.”
Karin says
This charming home exemplifies the Danish concept of “hygge”. I love the cute kitchen vignette. I see Amy loves Fire-King dishes. I’ve had mine for years. Great story, thank you for the pictures.
Drew says
Thanks for sharing! I love the mural, it certainly even looks original. I’m interested in the use of ceiling tiles throughout the house – I often have seen them in basements, but not on the main level.
To my untrained eye, I would have guessed the house dated from the late 40s/early 50’s, which makes me think of something I have been ruminating on lately – that homes are often not 100% reflective of the trends of the year in which they were built – they are often a blend of 5-10 years of building trends.
Furthermore, things are going to be added to the house (especially in terms of furnishings) in the first several years that a house is “new”, which leads me to the conclusion that when attempting a “period correct” home/project/decor that we probably have a much broader period of time (say built date +-6-7 years) to work with than I previously considered. That is, if you are attempting to replicate how a house would have felt in it’s “heyday”.
Ranger Smith says
My Grandparents had a house in N. California that had ceiling tiles throughout. It was built in 1963.
Amy says
Good point, Drew — that is something I’ve struggled with. My grandparents certainly weren’t building/decorating with the latest trends at the time necessarily. Their style was more 1940s/50s “colonial revival” and not “atomic ranch”!
And I don’t want to replicate exactly what they had nor do I only want “correct” pieces in the house. Most homes — even 1950s ones — had a mix from all time periods, right? It’s one of the things I keep trying to balance and would love any other insights.
Dan says
The only advice I could offer is something you are already doing – honoring the history of your home and family without turning it into a shrine or mausoleum. You are keeping what you truly love and changing what you don’t.
I would suggest a professional assessment of the electric, plumbing, and HVAC. Not everything old is good!
I’d keep the gas fireplace. Though not as romantic, they are much more efficient and cleaner than wood.
All in all, a charming story with which to start the day.
Amy says
Thanks, Dan! Yes, about 10 years ago, my plumbing was totally re-done as I was starting to get rusty water from the galvanized pipes. It was a major project that is one of the downsides of old houses. Luckily, my dad was a retired plumber so he helped get it in top shape. And the HVAC is now from the 1980s, so I know that will probably be next to go. Ugh.
For electric, I had an electrician recently come out and look as that has been something I’ve worried about. He said to replace the panel but everything else looked in good shape. He also mentioned — and I have not confirmed this at all — about new wiring + vintage appliances does not always equalling fun. Has anyone else experienced problems? Have they had to re-wire vintage appliances to “handle” updated power?
Pam Kueber says
Hmmmm, on the wiring issue, you know what I will say: Consult with a pro.
Douglas Camin @ House on Rynkus Hill says
Thanks for sharing Amy! I too bought my grandparents 1960 mid-century house. I don’t quite have the extensive collection of old and original furniture, though I do have some key pieces like the living room couch and some dining room pieces. Awesome being able to see what some folks do and don’t have from their similar houses.
I keep a chronicle of my place on a home blog with lots of pictures at http://www.houseonrynkushill.com (though I have been a bit slow on updating, particularly since our second kid came along. ;))
Amy says
Douglas! Your house is amazing and so jealous of your fireplace. And love that you too have old photos of the house and the people who lived there. My grandfather also worked at Lockheed (but in Georgia) — small world. Question: Do you try to buy vintage pieces that look like what your grandparents had? Or do you just buy pieces you like? Or both?
Douglas Camin @ House on Rynkus Hill says
Amy – Thanks! The fireplaces are some of the best features – incredible workmanship throughout, particularly the stacked stone one upstairs. I’m really fortunate that my grandfather had the desire to build a place this cool.
To your question: I do both. There were some pieces that my grandparents had that were just incredible, such as the dining room and the living room furniture. Then there was stuff that just never held up well aesthetically over time so if it was taken I didn’t replace it with the same. The sputniks are a great example – originals were all brass, but I wanted chrome and an aunt took them so it made it easy for me to swap it without feeling bad. In the living room, I inherited the sofa from them along with the Heritage end table. But another family member took the Heritage cocktail tables (used as a coffee table set) and the dining room furniture. But, I have the original catalog of the furniture line (Heritage’s Perennian line) to know what my options are, and I have kept an eagle-eye on eBay and Etsy and other sites and with patience found replacements. In the dining room that gave me the ability to choose alternatives – I got the exact same buffet they had, but omitted the hutch and got a table that we like much better anyhow (square vs. oval.)
More broadly – I first try to see if an actual vintage item is appropriate (or available) and then if not I move on to a modern replacement but generally keep an eye towards making sure it harmoniously fits with the style of the house – advantage to “modern” styling is that new “modern” often fits well with it. Ideally I shoot for people coming in and saying they can’t tell what’s original and what’s new.
G. Davis says
I’m sitting here trying to take it all in. Houses today are not built like they were when your parents built this house and the floors are beautiful. I, personally, could not live with the pink bathroom, although I love pink. I would add something over the bed. I love decorating. We are in the process of having a new, much smaller home built, right next to our two story home. I am not using the same theme in each room, but I love retro, so our children found us a kitchen set, similar to yours, in a Thrift Shop, table was in excellent condition, with a leaf, but someone had left the chairs to be exposed to the sun and, instead of red, they were orange, but luckily, we found a man who reupholstered them in the bright red with a much better fabric and my husband went on line and ordered the little tacks to match the original ones. Everyone loves it, also wants to buy, but no way would I part with it. I am going to use the Vintage Fiesta dishes that I have packed for a granddaughter who presently does not have space, plus I am picking up different retro dishes, etc to decorate. The center part of the house is open so I am going to incorporate all this with what I have on hand. We will have an all white kitchen, which I’ve never had, even appliances, but there will be so much color to compensate. Hopefully, we can send pictures once it is completed. You are so lucky to have been able to purchase this house with so many memories and so well built. They do not stay on the market very long. Take your time, go to Thrift Shops, consignment, etc to find your treasures. Unfortunately, the majority of our children and grands do not appreciate these kinds of homes; it seems to be more of the late 30-40’s who do. Enjoy that home forever. Let me add, that the appliances, made today, was told they are not being built to last like the old ones.
Amy says
G. – Good idea on adding something above the bed. I’ve thought about hanging a quilt or maybe a set of mirrors??
And good luck on your new house. Thrift stores are the best things in the world!
Jay says
Had to laugh about “wondering if anyone was interested in seeing pictures”. Pristine time capsules are the holy grail of RR. The house is beautiful. I like the green upholstery and drapes. That kitchen!!!
The floors are beautiful but you might want to consider two large area rugs, one to anchor the dining table w/chairs and the living room seating area. Thanks so much for sharing pictures of a wonderful house full of great memories.
Amy says
Thanks, Jay! I go back and forth on the rugs — I love color and patterns and I always seem to be drawn to those, and then I think it will be way too busy. But solids seem a little blah. I will add it to my list to look at again. I like your suggestion about adding it to the dining area, too!
Tracy says
Very nice. Love the table.
G. Davis says
They are very, very hard to find, but if you want one and can find, there are people out there who will put new padding (which I didn’t mention in my comment) and reupholster. The man who did ours runs a shop that does overheads in cars, but said, in the past, he had reupholstered many of these. We got a reasonable deal on the table and chairs, but by the time we had the chairs reupholstered, we have a little money tied up in them. Trust me, I do not leave these chairs to be exposed to the sun.