Helloooo to one and all you vintage appliance-o-philes!

Automatic Washer - The world's coolest Washing Machines, Dryers and Dishwashers

Help Support :

D

deathefrog

Member
Joined
Aug 14, 2007
Messages
12
I have been reading posts on this site since 2003 and just now decided to become a member. My husband and I just moved into a gorgeous house in February, built in 1950, and we are the second owners. The house came complete with a GE Stratoliner Deluxe stove, Whirlpool Princess Series fridge, old Fridgidaire dryer, Kenmore Series 80 washer and an old boiler the size of a Univac. Mrs. Cunningham (no kidding) kept all her appliances beautiful, and the house hasn't changed a thing since it was built (pepto bismol pink bedrooms and a mint green bathroom whoooo!!). Of course hubby and I are a bit more modern, but the chrome and white kitchen charmed our socks off.

I grew up with a Southern granma from Oklahoma, and she kept EVERYTHING. I miss her old Electrolux cannister vac, and the Maytag 3 tub swivel arm wringer system in the old washhouse...but the thing I miss most of all is her old Procter Silex percolator. The very first ever cup of coffee I was allowed to drink was lovingly made by that coffee workhorse. She still has it, and I believe it was a wedding gift to her from her mother-in-law. I firmly believe the BEST coffee I ever had was the Folgers she used to make every morning for the family. My eyes would gravitate to the coffee gurgling in the glass thimble on top, the gleaming chrome body and I loved the chugging-wheeze-sigh it would make. Today's percs just don't cut it....I must have my granma's perc or possess one like it to teach my yet unborn daughter the happiness of noisy coffee making.

*sigh* now I'm homesick :) AND I wanna cup o'joe...

Anyone collect percs?

-ck
 
I've got a pyrex glass stovetop perc, as well as two CorningWare electric percs and two stovetop CorningWare percs, too. Everytime I use one, it brings back memories of years ago. We have some other perc collectors on here too.....
 
Hi deathefrog!

I noticed you're offering what appear to be appliances from your new house for sale. Can I offer an opinion?

You have bought some things and a house that are absolutely irreplaceable the way they are. There are many, many people out there who appreciate the era in which it was built (called the Mid-Century period), and who'd die for a house like that.

Your house sounds like it represents an era that is gone forever. Why not do a little sprucing, and leave it as intact as possible, for this and future generations to enjoy? I promise you that if you use '50s appliances and fixtures, you're not going to go cold, or hungry, or be eaten alive by your washing machine. You'll have BETTER reliability than most people enjoy nowadays. And you'll have something worth remembering. Quick- what new appliances were in your house before last? Betcha can't remember. And betcha they're not all still working, either.

As someone who appreciates and writes about the Mid-Century era, I try to spread the word that this is a period whose houses and artifacts are worth saving. Yes, it's possible to make something very fashionable out of a Mid-Century house, but then you lose some very important history, of a time when America was the most fantastic place on the planet.

You have to do what you think best- I just wanted to offer an alternate view to the ones you'll pick up from today's "do it over" remodelling culture.

Best wishes, whatever you decide.
 
When the appliances in my 1961 house die, I'm going vintage. I don't have the heart to help them die, though. Mid-Century-Modern rules!

8-15-2007-21-45-15--63getelevision.jpg
 
I do love the kitchen just the way it is!

Just not some of the appliances....although the stove is groing on me. We don't plan on touching the cabinets. Just redo the linolium floor and put in an island. I mean, c'mon...how cool is this kitchen??

8-24-2007-15-03-2--deathefrog.jpg
 
I grew up in

a vintage house (1915), and they did not generally have islands.

An enamel topped table would be period, and in some ways, far better than a fixed island.

However, it is your house, to do with it what you will.

Lawrence/Maytagbear
 
I'll agree with Lawrence

'Period-style island' is an oxymoron.

I personally think islands are a terrible idea, but a nice work table would be both appropriate and functional.

Again, just an opinion -- for what it's worth.

(BTW: I love the stove and the curved shelving!)

-kevin
 
I would not put an island in a 1915 kitchen, either. I would almost bet, at least one free thinker in 1950, deathefrog's house vintage, stuck an island in their kitchen. I know in at least the late '50s, they existed. Seriously, that would be an interesting question to answer, when DID islands get introduced into kitchens?
 
Kitchen Islands

I don't recall having seen any kitchens or pictures thereof which featured islands until the late 1960s or early 1970s. For the most part, kitchens before then were fairly large, eat-in affairs.

In my (not-so-humble) opinion, backed up by such experts as Alexander Phipps (see the short subject, 'A Young Man's Fancy' at archive.org), the ideal kitchen layout allows for striaght-line production. If at all possible, the kitchen should have the following laid out along two walls: Pantry, refrigerator, countertop (dishwasher below), sink, countertop, stove, countertop (with plates and glassware above).

With this layout, you have a convenient countertop space to allow for easy loading and unloading of the refrigerator and pantry.

You also have the ability to prepare an entire meal without ever having an open container of food being carried over the floor. The only time that an un-covered dish of food is carried across the floor is when you take the prepared meal from the preparation area to the table, and when you clear the table after eating. Any kitchen design which requires that you carry wet dishrags or open containers of food over the floor is inferior.

Straight-line production is more efficient, safer, and easier.

Not that I have strong opinions on such things.

-kevin
 
Better Homes and Gardens

This Decorating Book is dated 1956,'61, and '68. I think the photo leans more to '68. Here is an island and a long table in this kitchen.

8-26-2007-07-54-7--63getelevision.jpg
 
Our kitchen is a straight line affair

The kitchen is pretty straight-forward as you can tell. The kitchen sinks are HUGE and cast iron covered in thick enamel. I know for a fact this kitchen was built in 1950 and has not been changed or remodeled....no island. However it is huge, and has a lovely bay window nook for eating in.
We need an island, however, because we need someplace to put the dishwasher without messing up the vintage cabinetry.
We will try to make it fit in the best we can, since we love the 50's styling (bright, big and airy) of the kitchen!

I promise we won't screw up the kitchen too much :)

-ck
 
Christian,

Very nice kitchen. Normally I prefer gas ranges, but that one is certainly classic and in excellent condition. It's a keeper.

Have you considered a portable dishwasher? These can be rolled to the sink and hooked up to do dishes, and then rolled back to a storage spot when it's not in use. I have two kitchens - the second one is on an enclosed patio, with no provision for built-in dishwasher. So I got a 50's portable KA and stuck it between the fridge and the countertop. I extended the hoses so that I could hook it up to the sink without moving the DW.

9-4-2007-03-03-12--sudsmaster.jpg
 
How frigging cool is THAT dishwasher!!!

Holy cowbeans! That would look great in our kitchen. We actualy have a 2007 Kenmore portable DW with a butcherblock top that we are kinda using as an island. I needed a DW, hubby loves to cook and produces waaaay too many dishes for this VERY pregnant lady to wash. But that KA dishwasher is the bees knees!

Unfortunately, I do not do the appliance buying in my household. And since electricity is so expensive here in NH, anything energy star compliant will be bought before anything else is really considered. Kind of a shame because I saw a pic of a washer that had a waterspout that recirculated the water (I think is may have been one of Lawrences?) that I thought was better than sawmill gravy on fresh biscuits.

But hey, I can admire other people's antiques! :)

-ck
 
Waaaay cool...

Thanks, Christian, yes, I considered myself very lucky to have been able to acquire the KDS-2P. It was really fun restoring it, as well. I confess it's a bit more awkward to load/unload than a front loading type, but its charm quotient can't be beat.

There are some more shots of it in my collection page.

When is your baby due?

 

Similar threads

ilovewindex
Military Base Housing.. Did any one else grow up around it? Do you remember...
Replies
7
Views
8
passatdoc
P
W
Me selling 2 vintage percolators and the stuff of a house
Replies
2
Views
3
whirlpolf
W

Latest posts

Back
Top