50s coppertone kitchen fixtures on eBay NOW

Less than two days to go on these items, which I just spotted on ebay. A GREAT light-clock-range hood set for your 50s kitchen! In particular - I rarely see the vintage Nutone range hood available. And this one has a backsplash - which I've never seen! I'd snap 'em up if I wasn't all set.

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZteresadryer

Heywood Wakefield furniture - made new - still available

It's fantastic that you can still get original-design Heywood Wakefield furniture, built new. In 1992 a Miami company bought the rights to the HW furniture line and began producing it to original specifications.

Heywood Wakefield "blonde" furniture was the epitome of 40s and 50s decorating. If you need a sofa - they have several models from which to choose, and a number of fabric choices. You can also provide your own fabric. I'll do a post on Maharam and melinamade.com fabrics tomorrow - they both have great designs from documented vintage patterns.

Of course, it's still great to buy original vintage pieces - if you can find them. Regarding vintage sofas - it's been my experience that it's very expensive all costs in -- what with the need for the piece itself, the fabric and the upholsterer. In addition, if there have been smokers or pets, you've go to rip the whole thing down to the springs. Perhaps better, with sofas, to buy the reproduction and start fresh.

http://heywood-wakefield.com/

Retro fireplaces, from Malm - I can't believe they still make these!

I've moved: Please see my dramatically impoved site: RetroRenovation.com

These are fabulous beyond belief -- I am blown away that they still make these great, cone fireplaces! Okay, we're now into 60s style...but I think one of these Malm Fireplaces will look great on the screen porch we're planning out back. Alternatively: In the attic, when we get around to finishing off the space as an all purpose open space for yoga, reading, my daughter's sleepovers and a spare guest room.

You can find cheaper versions of these, originals, on eBay. A company called "Preway" also made them, including in the famous orange. But, I think that buying this classic design but new is a great idea - including going with the gas logs!

http://www.malmfireplaces.com/

Out with the new, in with the old - Rejuvenation Lighting puts retro in new lights

I've had great luck with finding vintage lighting on eBay. I think the prices are the best, and it's great to have true vintage lighting.

But I also love some of the lighting available from Rejuvenation Lighting, a Portland, Oregon-based company that creates reproductions from vintage stock. I've purchased some of their sconces for my bathrooms, and they were great.

As the years go on, they continue adding to their Modern America collection. The pieces featured here are particular favorites of mine.

http://www.rejuvenation.com/collections/Modern_America_Lighting.html

50s style NuTone Ceiling/Wall Fan solves your exhaust issues

Yes, vintage-style ceiling/wall exhaust fans are still available. We installed this model above our kitchen stove, in exactly the same spot we tore out an old, plastic one. The finish is a brushed stainless-style -- and it looks fantastic!

There are enough CFM's (exhaust of air) to meet current code in our state - so we didn't need a range hood, which would have looked out of sorts. Also - this exhaust fan was much less expensive than a range hood! Great find!

Also - I've seen these installed in the wall, where they can also look great. And, they can be installed in bathrooms, but not above the tub/shower, the instructions say.

http://www.nutone.com/product-detail.asp?ProductID=10179

"Acorn" forged iron exterior hardware for retro style

My brick, ranch-style home has a colonial feel, especially on the exterior. I am dressing it up with black-iron hardware and lighting -- and it looks terrific. In fact, if you look at a lot of the classic "California ranches" you see these kinds of colonial touches, with the black forged iron really making the wood and brick "pop."

"Acorn" hardware appears really well made and just what the doctor ordered. Van Dyke's Restorers has a great selection -- you can see it best by browsing their Catalog (rather than online). In their Fall 2007 catalog there are 8 pages of Acorn products. Call 1-800-558-1234 for a catalog. Their url is vandykes.com, but again, the catalog is the way to go.

For the most complete listing of Acorn products, you can go to the Acorn website -- http://www.acornmfg.com/index.php. However, it is a bit hunt-and-peck, not really oriented to consumers. Looks like you can buy closeout items direct from them, but otherwise you must go to a retailer.

More great 50s style kitchens!

It's an abundance of kitchen designs this week! Starting soon I will be analyzing each kitchen and pointing out great design features and ideas to consider for your own 50s restoration!

What's not to like about these retro kitchens?

Come on, how can you not LOVE LOVE LOVE these kitchens?

In our collective American memory, we may think of 50s kitchens as kitschy -- and maybe that is one word you can use. But, in my view, these kitchens are full of great style... daring, exuberant and non-conformist. In addition, there's a lot we can learn from layout and use of materials in these designs - which benefited from learnings from time/motion and efficiency studies that went earlier in the decade and post-WWII, were being brought into the home.

St. Charles Steel Kitchen Cabinets: Sold for $500 on eBay

This looks to be a terrific set of vintage steel kitchen cabinets now on eBay through October 5. I like the color - and the glass fronts look really great, I've never seen that before.

Also - grab the stainless steel and laminate counters, the two sinks, the stovetop, warming oven (!), backsplash and hood, and the built-in ovens.

What a find! If you're near Lake Forest, Ill., and want to create a great vintage kitchen - here's a great set!

For those of you simply interested in retro kitchen design, there are lots of great tips in this kitchen - a nice one!

Update Oct. 6: This kitchen sold for $500. A steal!

Use this great 50s style retro paint palette

I've moved: Please see my dramatically improved site: RetroRenovation.com

I love the Sherwin Williams Suburban Modern paint palette. I've used a couple of the colors in my house, and they've always been spot on! Note, they have separate interior and exterior palettes - but don't let that stop you from using an exterior color inside your house, and vice versa.

Check out the web pages - and be sure to download the entire brochure - it's a great feature and let's you see good-sized color chips, I'm really impressed. When I buy their paint, I've always purchased the best quality possible. If you want to save some money, wait for a holiday weekend, it seems like there's always a decent sale.

Interior palette: http://www.sherwin-williams.com/do_it_yourself/paint_colors/paint_color_palette/color_themes/suburban/int_suburban.jsp

Exterior palette: http://www.sherwin-williams.com/do_it_yourself/paint_colors/paint_color_palette/color_themes/suburban/ext_suburban.jsp

Cast iron shower pan can be fitted for retro reno

I would have loved to use this cast iron shower base for my 50s bathroom renovations a few years ago. In two of my bathrooms I was forced to use Swanstone (fiberglass style) bases because I simply could not find any other materials. I've seen numerous vintage 50s bathrooms with these square style tubs/showers. The porcelain on cast iron finish is GREATLY preferable,. If you use this, though, do not use the Victorian feet. I'd set the base onto a tile base/surround/alcove with the tile base built out along one side created for a glass shower door. Use 4-1/4" tile. Look at Olympia Tiles for some great colorways. I'll do a separate post on that next.

http://www.vandykes.com/product/70011535/

Stainless steel edging for your laminate countertop

I've moved: Please see my dramatically improved site: RetroRenovation.com

My husband hunted down the only place we could find -- in Astoria, Queens -- that still made the exact stainless steel edging that we wanted. We installed this very easily and successfully on our new countertops. We purchased 1.5" U-style eding for the counter edge, a little piece that married the counter to the backsplash, and finally, 3/4" ss for the top of the backsplash. This is EXACTLY what we saw used on the 1963 countertops that we threw out, and the guy from Dave Sanders agreed - they've been making it since the 1950s!

The photo used is from someone else's kitchen that I saw on ebay. The edging is the same... Also see the final product in my kitchen post of 9/16/07.

Here is the url for the company. However, please note, the edging is NOT featured in the catalog, you have to call for information: http://www.davesanders.com/

To anyone near western Massachusetts - I have a lot left of this stuff, as we had to order in commercial quantities. If you're interested in buying the leftovers directly from me, post a comment and I'll be happy to sell it to you at cost.

Chemex Coffeemaker - in production since 1942!

This beautiful coffee maker is a must-have for any mid-century-modern home. Designed in 1942 and still in production today, the Chemex® Coffeemaker is found in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, Smithsonian and the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

According to the manufacturers: "This merging of form and function came out of Chemist Peter Schlumbohm's taste for fine flavor. Applying the techniques used to insure laboratory purity, he set out to brew what may have been the first cup of truly, clear, full-bodied coffee - free of undesirable fats, oils, sediment and most of all...bitterness."

For info on where/how to buy: www.chemexcoffeemaker.com/

SOLD! 1963 Geneva Steel Kitchen Cabinets, in Aquamarine

September 2007 -- I'm updating this post to reflect the fact that I sold my extra cabinets this summer. I sold them on eBay to L.P. of Milwaukee. He drove here -- 960 miles -- pick up the cabinets! Selling price was $2,500. While I'm glad they went to a nice home, I do have some regrets about even selling them, they are so beautiful!

Own a piece of history that will never go out of style, once installed in your vintage kitchen! Up for sale are 18 (total) vintage steel kitchen cabinets left over from a larger batch that I installed in my kitchen.

You can see how these looked cleaned up in my Sept. 16 post, below. They are in great shape -- it is really quite amazing. They came from a cooking school run by nuns for only 8 years so they have very little wear and tear and were kept in immaculate condition during their use. From about 1971 til now, they were not used at all. They clean up beautifully with auto body compound and turtle wax - their coating of NYC grime seems to have protected the original finish!

The cabinets are classic Geneva's -- one of the nation's great brands -- circa 1963. They are in a great Aquamarine color -- which goes perfectly with Formica's re-issue last year of their aqua boomerang laminate. (See my post on vintage stainless steel edging, too.)

Included are original chrome handles. The base cabinets all have great roll-out aluminum middle shelves. Available immediately are:

10 base cabinets. These are each 24.5" deep and 34.5" high:
- 36" wide: 3@
- 30" wide: 3@
- 24" wide: 1@
- 18" wide: 2@
- 12" wide: 1@
- Corner transition pieces: 3@

Sink bases are available in either 42" or 24" widths. Assume one of each comes with this sale. Use one for your main sink, one for a bar sink. I also have the original double sinks, porcelain, Kohler, nice. You may take one as well with this sale.

Note: These base cabinets and sink bases offer 26.5 linear feet of base cabinetry. To this, add: stove, fridge and dishwasher and you will see this enables a good-sized kitchen.

6 wall cabinets:
- 36": 4@. These are 13" deep and 30" tall.
- 42": 2@. These are 13" deep and 18" tall - meant to fit above the 42" sink base or above a 40" stove. They can easily be adapted to include a cookbook shelf if you want to use them to line up with the 30" tall wall cabinets. Total linear feet of wall cabinetry: 19.

I am located in Lenox, Mass., about 45 minutes west of Albany, N.Y. You pick up, or I have a friend who can deliver for you, let me know and I'll get you a price.

Available for sale via Ebay at: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=ADME:L:LCA:US:11&item=200104538320

2" Metal Blinds: The perfect treatment for 50s style windows

When I went to order window treatments for my kitchen, Colleen from my local hardware store took one look and recommended 2" aluminum blinds. "It's what we rip out of every other 50s home," she reassured.

We chose from the Hunter Douglas "Macro" line. The blinds are PERFECT. And I even see that Hunter Douglas has come out with a new color palette with circa 50s colors. I chose a soft neutral metallic, as my window is quite large and I didn't want the shade to overpower the room.

Other tips: I ordered "traditional" slat styling - that is, I wanted the holes in the middle of the blind to show. The alternative is "blackout" style, but that, I believe, is a too-new innovation. Also, I chose the "wand" rather than the cord to adjust the slats horizontally. Finally, you get a self-colored valance free as part of the order. Go for it. However, I am going to add a fabric valance, and will post on that later.

Great story on 50s style retro wallpaper

My new friend sent me this great story (url link below) on 50s wallpaper. The weblinks (in right hand column of page) to Melinamade ("Boomerang mushroom, left) and Interior1900 (right) are great -- for an arm and a leg you can get great vintage papers. Alternatively: try eBay or where I found all my stashes of paper -- in the basement of my local art supply/wallpaper store, a place that had been in business forever. Put your vibes out into the decorating universe: And what you seek will come to you!

Url to story and resources: http://www.oldhousejournal.com/magazine/2007/feb/atomic-wallpaper.shtml

And - be sure to see my previous posts on some Sanderson papers I thought would fit a true 50s house nicely. They're of the "small florals" referenced in the OHJ story: http://50sstyle.blogspot.com/2006/05/wallpapers-with-50s-style.html

Tulip Table by CB2 does 50s style affordably

I found this great buy on a reproduction Tulip Table - only $150 or so, from CB2 (Crate and Barrel's new retail endeavor) plus shipping. Note, this table has a matte finish - while the chairs that I posted on have a glossy finish. But the difference doesn't bother me. And the total price was quite right compared to buying the Saarinen original - as great as that would have been!

Direct to table on cb2.com:

http://www.cb2.com/family.aspx?c=202&f=1963&q=odyssey+table&fromLocation=Search&DIMID=400001&SearchPage=1

Tulip Chairs - great retro repro's

I bought these white (swivel, with red cushions) tulip chair reproductions from eBay - they're new, and so far seem great. Search Tulip Chairs", I paid $275 for a pair, plus about $80 in shipping. They came in just 2-3 days. The FedEx label said they came from : I&L Distributing Inc., 544 Park Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11205.

A friend of my husband pointed us to the other chairs, the "Case Study" fiberglass side chairs available in 12 colors @ $239 plus $35 shipping. I've certainly seen both of these styles (and there are more on the website) on ebay - these look to be terrific reproductions. From http://www.modernica.net/.