Welcome to Retro Renovation® — your regular dose of mid century and vintage renovation and decorating resources… design inspiration… fun finds… and an archive of stories from an enthusiastic community of people all interested in cherishing their mid century and older homes.
Our focus here, first and foremost, is to help you find the products and sources you need to help remodel, renovate and decorate your house in authentic mid century style. We feature some sources for pre-war and post-modern homes as well. We’re here to help you get the job done — doing the research so you don’t have to.
Note: After 15 years — 3,000 stories! — this site has entered a new stage. Today, my focus is working to keep existing resource stories up to date so the site remains a solid reference. And, I want to continue to improve the site as an historical reference around things like steel kitchen cabinets, a longtime passion. To make time, I don’t blog as much, and comments are closed.
How can you make the most of the blog and its archive of 3,000+ stories about resources & inspiration:
- Dive into all our categories (in the navigation along the top of the page) and you will see, we have lots of research into all the products you might need to remodel and decorate. Along the way, we have lotsa other fun, too — always showing great gratitude and respect for the houses — and their owners — who came before us.
- And, important for anyone taking on an older home:
Renovating, remodeling and living in our midcentury and vintage homes can be gratifying, but please always remember, there can be safety and environmental hazards in the surfaces, layers, materials and products in our homes. Anything old, even New Old Stock, that you buy also may have issues. We all care very much about managing safety and environmental issues properly, so when moving into a home … when undertaking cleaning, repair, remodeling or restoration projects … or when adding old materials (salvaged, used, new old stock, etc.)… be sure to get with your own properly licensed professionals to determine what you are dealing with/working with so that you can make informed decisions how to handle, become familiar with and use recommended best practices, and also learn about the proper disposal of debris, etc. Read more: See our Be Safe / Renovate Safe page … the EPA hosts a website on lead paint in the home and a website on asbestos in the home, etc. Consult professionals regarding these materials, and also about the proper disposal of debris, etc.
<– I’m Pam Kueber. That’s me with my crazy wallpaper office … that’s my kitchen above — and this my blog, oh I luv it so. Doing all the research to find products to backdate my 1951 colonial-ranch house in Lenox, Mass., is what got me into this online escapade. In the course of my endless hunt to find products and design ideas sympathetic to my house’s undeniable mid-century bones, I got…. obsessed… I learned a lot… and I figured, why not share all my finds with other folks undertaking the same journey. And now – you have arrived!
This blog has lots about *modest, mid-century, middle-class* homes — ranches, Capes, Colonials, split-levels, contemporaries, bungalows. I also write about sleek *mid-century modern homes*… I love them all, but admit that I tend to worry more about the modest homes (themselves full of charm) being at more serious risk of being gutted, with regrets to follow later. Interestingly, both mid-century modern and mid-century modest homes shared many of the same technological features and design cues (like pink bathrooms) inside. For further info see my Mid-Century Modest Manifesto and my micro-site SaveThePinkBathrooms.com.
What’s covered here? Well: The design aesthetic of retro interiors, exteriors, culture, people, steel kitchen cabinets, colors, pink kitchens, pink bathrooms, hudee rings, pecky cypress, illustrations with people playing accordians, wallpaper, pinch pleat curtains, mint-in-box items — and readers’ fabulous jewel box houses, too. Get ready to be sucked into the retro vortex.
More info:
Above: As featured in the New York Times — yup, read all about our escapades in this 2,200-word feature story that appeared on p.1 of the Home & Garden section on Aug. 18, 2011.
Fast forward 10 years and another New York Times story called me “…the godmother of midcentury kitchens and baths, steering a new generation of homeowners to the four-inch square tiles that dominated homes for decades.” teehee
Oh, and here’s me showing off one of my office remodel. My friend Denise and I pasted about 200 squares of vintage wallpaper on the four walls, creating a crazy patchwork quilt (note: there is method in this madness) of 18 different designs of wallpaper. We celebrated by getting all Love American Style Gothic with the photo.
Hey, see me talkin’ about Mid Century Modest in this etsy.com video:
Press Coverage
2018 … I kinda stopped keeping track
2017
- Wall Street Journal: Big story on time capsule houses. I am the “subject matter expert.”
- Washington Post: Hey, we got a shout out!
2015-2016…
- HGTV.com: In Defense of Pink Bathrooms — A Q&A with me
- Chronicle TV: Big story on my house and my kitchen and the Retro Renovation Revolution!
- Washington Post: The TV-watching public’s long love affair with tray tables
- The Times of London: Something is happening in smart bathrooms — Designers say pink is back after a long absence.
- WFMJ-TV: Effort to Bring Back 1948 Youngstown steel kitchen cabinets
- Ummm: I got out of the habit of updating press coverage of the blog…. I’ll work on it again at some point… maybe.
2014
- New York Times: “When Blogging Becomes a Slog” (but not for me — I am the wise old owl)
- Huffington Post: The 10 Best Renovation Websites for Living out your Dream Home Fantasies.
- Der Standard newspaper profiled the blog. It was in German, so I’m not sure what it said. But I asked on Facebook, and a reader told me it said that, “You are now as loved as David Hasselhof in Germany.”
2013
- Fixing to Die: Retro Renovation® and a reader remodel featured on the blog inspired the setting and story line for Elaine Viets’ “restoration comedy” murder mystery, Fixing to Die. The book debuted #9 on the Barnes & Noble paperback list.
- Yankee Magazine: Six-page story in Sept./Oct. issue — 1.7 million readers! — about the blog and my house. “Fifties and Fabulous.”
- Globe and Mail: Loud and proud 1970s chalet
- Columbus Post-Dispatch: Back to the bones: Restoring ’50s homes
- California Home + Design: Celebrating Midcentury Modest
2012
- Ft. Lauderdale Magazine: Midcentury Modern Architecture Makes a Comeback
- Minneapolis Star-Tribune: Vintage Vibe
- Hamilton (Ont.) Spectator: Kitchens Cook Down Memory Lane
- msn.com: What we can learn from 1970s homess
- The Daily Mail (London) online: Give your Home the Mad Men Look! How one blogger inspires retro renovating tips.
- Blog Aids in Renovation of ‘Mid-Century Modest’ Homes. Nationally syndicated story appeared in newspapers including:
- Akron Beacon Journal
- Seattle Times
- Miami Herald
- Detroit Free Press (twice!)
- Palm Springs Desert Sun
- San Antonio Express
- Baltimore Sun
- Kansas City Star
- Toledo Blade
- Eau Claire Leader-Telegram
- Ogden (UT) Standard-Examiner
- canada.com
- …and more.
Summer 2011
- New York Times 2,200-word profile about Retro Renovation and its readers: Restoring the Retro House
- St. Louis Post-Dispatch — Preserve the Pink (bathroom)
- msn.com — New Respect for the Ranch House
- Portland (Oregon) Monthly Magazine Online — Sofa Shopping
- The Oregonian/Oregon Live — The Retro Queen
Feb 2011
Jan 2011
- Minneapolis Star-Tribune: Bathrooms Still In the Pink
- Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Name that Home Fad
December 2010
October 2010
- AP interviews Pam for story, Used Building Materials a Hit Among Home Owners, that runs in news outlets nationwide.
August 2010
- Arizona Daily Star: That 50s Tile with Style
- Home is a Four-Letter Word: Penny Pinching with the Stars
- Home is a Four-Letter Word: Lovin’ the 50s
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
- Etsy.com video profile.
January 2010
- Knoxville News – Maribeth’s 1970s retro renovation
- Finalist and 4th place winner in Apartment Therapy’s annual contest to name the best home design blog of 2009
June 2009
April 2009
March 2009
- Eugene, Oregon Register-Guard on retro revival and home show talks
- Our tour of the St. Louis 1995 time capsule home covered by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
- Desert Living Magazine
Dec. 3, 2008
- Pam talks with the National Kitchen & Bath Association about retro kitchen design popularity
Sept. 29, 2008
March 2008
- Pam’s kitchen on Apartment Therapy
Winter 2008
Fall 2007
November 8, 2007 — News Release, PRWeb
Thanks and Credits: Many thanks to the many folks who have helped, and continue to help, make this blog possible. Including:
- The rockin’ readers who help feed the blog day in and day out with their tips and projects!
- All the advertisers who make doing this work fulltime possible.
- Margaret Roach, for all your support. AwayToGarden.com, Margaret Roach Media.
- Brad and all the Webdev and Maintainn team, for keeping the online bogeybots at bay. WebDevStudios.
- Erica Berger, for making me look good. Erica Berger Photography.
- Kit Latham, for helping me get into the dot.com world. KitLatham.com.
- Suzy Massey, for design support. PhoenixMassey Studio.
- WordPress, for a great blogging platform that has made it possible for so many new voices to find their communities. wordpress.com
Charlie Casserly says
Hi Pam, great site! Where can I sell a couple of glass-front St. Charles cabinets? They were in my mom & dad’s house for 50 years. We hate to see ’em go.
pam kueber says
Hi Charlie, I’d recommend posting them for sale on craiglist.
Kristy Giesen says
Hi Pam-
I just bought a home and it has an entire set of retro steel st. charles cabinets. We have decided to go with another look but wondered if you knew a good site to sell my cabinets? Thanks for your help!
pam kueber says
Hi Kristy, typically: Craigslist.
Claudia Neault says
Hi Pam, I saw you on Chronicle and loved your kitchen. I grew up with all of that and still love it. We have an old gas stove that may need to be retrofitted and wondered if you knew of anyone or company in MA that does that. Aside from that we have so much stuff around as well. Thanks for doing this website and I look forward to checking in regularly.
pam kueber says
Hi Claudia, nice to meet you! Welcome to the blog! Here’s a story we did on companies that do restorations; go through the comments too https://retrorenovation.com/2011/11/04/13-places-to-buy-restored-vintage-stoves/
Note, I had some personal experience about two years ago (?) trying to get a vintage gas stove for my home Massachusetts – and being stymied because of new requirements. I am not an expert, though — get with the company you work with to understand this fully. I am not an expert by any means on what’s required in our state or others and encourage everyone to get with their own properly licensed experts.
TJ says
I am trying to find white mosaic floor tile in the random pattern to patch an area of the bathroom that the original builders just didn’t complete because it was under the vanity. Any suggestions on where to look?
pam kueber says
Hi TJ, get to know and use our categories… all our tile research is under Bathroom Help/Tile Help and Ideas https://retrorenovation.com/category/bathroom-categories/tile/
Good luck!
tony Mariano says
I have been looking for a zinfandel colored toilet.
Any ideas? This will match our present bathroom
regards
pam kueber says
You will likely need to find this vintage. See this story, it may be of interest: https://retrorenovation.com/2016/04/06/red-bathroom-colors-midcentury/
Tracey Lytle says
Looking for lime green retro formica.
pam kueber says
See our Kitchen Help / Countertops subcategory for all our laminate research, Tracey. Good luck!
Eve says
I love your website. I see that you are in Lennox. Many of your sources and articles reference projects and business in the west. Have you had luck finding local (New England) sources and stories for those of us who live in MCM houses in the northeast?
pam kueber says
Hi Eve, We cover stuff when we see it… not with any particular geographic focus. Read all my stories about Royal Barry Wills – he was from Massachusetts!
Crewmom says
Pam, look! Awesome trove of MCM photos!
http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/cdm/landingpage/collection/p15799coll42
Spotted on Remodelista, of all places.
Have fun!
Rebecca says
Do you guys have any tips for removing a bad diy refinishing job from a pink tub?
The previous homeowners “reglazed” our cute little pink tub themselves but don’t appear to have etched the surface at all, so the paint on the inside of the tub peeled off pretty easily. I’m hoping that I can strip the rest of the paint off cleanly to avoid having to have the tub painted at all.
It’s the only original feature left in our bathroom, so I’d like to keep it since it’s pretty charming. Thanks!
pam kueber says
Hi Rebecca, I am not an expert on such questions. I recommend you talk to a company that has some scientific knowledge to back up their recommendations. For example, Rust-Oleum has customer service and if they have stripping products might be able to help you. You can also contact the company that make Citristrip Gel for their advice on whether that product would help. Good luck.
Ellen says
Hi Pam I absolutely love your site and I loooooove your kitchen. We just recently scored a set of St. Charles cabinets, chiffon yellow, in great shape! We are so excited to put them into our CT 1920’s colonial. I mention that because you don’t need to have a mid-century ranch to appreciate a mid-century kitchen! They will bring a really fun, whimsical element to our home, we love clean lines and COLOR, and I guess we are rule-breakers!
But I have a question for you: we plan to use one of the awesome retro laminates from home depot that we have seen on your site. We also plan to use the steel edging from NY Metals as we can drive there and pick it up. I believe this is what you used in your kitchen above. But the question is, these metal edges are for a counter 1 1/2 inches thick. I remember my kitchen growing up with these counters and I think they were thinner, maybe an inch or 1 1/4. Is there anywhere to getting a thinner edging that works the same way? Did the difference in thickness bother you? Anyway thanks again for the great resources and inspiration!!!
pam kueber says
We have an overviews story on where to get moldings from other companies, too. It’s at the top of Kitchen Help / Countertops subcategory, I think. Eagle Mouldings is another of our go-to places, they may have other sizes.