OMG! When did GE make Poppy RED?!!?

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Finally...

A shot from the dinning room looking into the kitchen, a lot of work yet to do....

I am in hopes of adding some mid 20th century items. Thanks for any input. A popper red hand mixer or blender might add some interest.

1-24-2008-09-59-35--oldhouseman.jpg
 
Greg:

If you would like a "look" that will bridge your early 20th-Century house and your Mid-Century interest, I have a suggestion.

Postwar appliances, with their rounded edges and bulletproof construction, would be a good start. Either GE or Frigidaire major appliances from the late 1940s/early 1950s would be what I'm talking about; the Frigidaire appliances of that period have the advantage of having been styled by no less than Raymond Loewy.

Your tile countertops appear to be dark green in the photos (at least on my kerosine-burning computer's monitor, LOL). That was a popular counter colour in the postwar era.

Armstrong's Excelon floor tile is extremely similar in appearance to the vinyl-asbestos tile commonly seen in the postwar period (without the asbestos, naturally). My grandmother's kitchen had white Youngstown Kitchens metal cabinets, red Formica countertops with metal edging, and a checkerboard floor of black-and-white vinyl-asbestos tile. Her kitchen curtains were red-and-white checked gingham. I cannot remember the make of her stove, but the fridge was a rounded-top Philco. It was a great postwar look, a little bit country and a little bit '50s rock 'n roll. I do think you're headed more in a country direction, though. For your kitchen, there are several greens available in Excelon, to coordinate with your counters, or you could also do ceramic tile on the floor if your flooring joists are up to the load.

Also, I write for two magazines that may be a good resource for you; they are Old House Interiors and Arts & Crafts Interiors. Unlike most "old house" magazines, which stick strictly to foofy Victorian looks, these two will sometimes touch on the Deco and Mid-Century periods, and have shown some kitchens with postwar looks.

I notice that your walls are plywood. What's your plan for them?
 
next

Thanks for your input. The tiles are beige, the walls are an exterior grade board used for a board and batton look. The kitchen was constructed just after the civil war and moved up and attached in 1910 when eletricity was installed. The house was built in 1797 and retains all original interiors except the kitchen and bath. I am sort of at a standstill about finishing the walls. I would like some post WWII applainces and that is the hold up, -trying to figure out how to pull it all togeather. The dinning room has a large fireplace and is pure Georgian in appointments and feel (1770's chippendale furniture). The entire house is furnished with period antiques. That's what makes the kitchen a big deal on what I do with it. I was heading down a path to give it the early appearance and want to make it look like it evolved from 1910 (when it as added to the house) forward. Taking out the poppy red kitchen and putting the old sink back in was a restoration of sorts. I know it was there (in that spot and size) from a ghost line on the wall when I pulled down the sheetrock, I gound an odd combination of victorian beadboard and wide boards. The current sheet board mimics that look. I had to take the original boards down for plumbing and wiring and they were not in condition to be re-used. The cabinets are also recreated from a ghostline found on the wall. The bakers table was a gift from the previous family that owned the house (in the same family since 1811 until I bought it). So it was there in 1910. Do you see why I wanted to keep some sort of connection to 1910? What to do, what to do?
 
Suggestion, Greg:

This is going to sound absolutely ka-razy, but please bear with me. What you're trying to do is to blend country, Federalist, and postwar modern elements all into one area. Well, it has been done, and here's where you can see it:

White Christmas. Yep, that old movie with Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, and Vera-Ellen. Late in the movie, when the General is having problems filling up his inn due to a lack of snow, most of the scenes are set inside the inn. At several points, there's a kitchen shown, with postwar appliances (it's not anything like big enough to service the mammoth hotel-sized dining room they show, but that's Hollywood for ya). You'll see all three of the elements you're trying to work with in that kitchen and the rooms adjoining it. While you should not take what you see as something to copy literally, I think you'll see that those formal/informal elements can mix just fine.

I suggest getting the DVD from Netflix or somewhere, and giving the movie a look. Maybe you'll fall asleep, counting your blessings... :-)
 
I agree that you shouldn't feel guilty about ripping out the red kitchen, for all the reasons cited above. Interesting that your research indicated the original kitchen sink was cornered. That seems like such a 60's or 70's thing to do--who knew?

Personally, I think you can even go pre-war with at least the stove. When I lived as a caretaker in a house built in 1936 which was all original and very upscale for its time (well, it still is as it's in a very high end neighborhood) it occurred to me that by the mid to late 30's, you could design and build a kitchen with nearly all of the modern conveniences found today (maybe they even made trash mashers back then--somebody here would know if they did). In this kitchen there was a beautiful Wedgewood trash & gas stove in cream with orange-red trim. It could do everything a modern range could do (except clean its own oven) and more, when you consider it would also burn trash or even wood--a very 1910 sort of characteristic. Powerful burners on an iron cooktop that you could keep entirely smooth if you wanted, and a thermostatically controlled oven. The design was typical of Wedgewoods from that era and it did have legs, but they were much more understated than legs on stoves from the 20's and earlier 30's. Easy to clean under. This type of stove may have enough of the design touches you're looking for in a post-war model, and they do show up even on Craig's List once in a while.

I think you might get closer to the old time feel you're trying to achieve if you went with an older stove like this. Your big cave-ins to modernity would be the fridge and dishwasher, if you decide to install one. But with some searching and help from AW members I'll bet you could find something like a GE combo fridge (or even a similar looking frostless model) and a sturdy old KA dishwasher.

Really when you get down to it, as long as the appliance has that timeless sort of quality and design, the vintage doesn't matter much, even if you went 60's on some things. And one thing to consider is that a 1910 vintage kitchen wouldn't likely have everything matching so that makes your job a lot easier. Find what you like and slap it in there!

Ralph
 
Another thread

I appreciate the last two posts. They are very informative and insightful. Great information. I think I should post a new thread to show respect for this one and gather information on my specific question.

I have really enjoyed this dialog from the start. What a great community!
 
Phone...

Jim, Unfortunately the wall phone was in pretty bad shape. I gave it to a friend that repairs old telephones for parts so at least it was not wasted. I do have a few old ones, my favorite being one from 1928 that looks like the one from Col. Klinks' office in Hogans Hero's. Right now I have opted out of a land line and just use the cell. With changing technology some of our older things like dial phones and vintage televisions are going to be hard to hold onto for everyday use. Good spotting, you must be a telephone guy as well as AW guy.
 
Using Your Old Phones

Greg,

If you are hesitating on getting a land line installed due to your local telco not supporting rotary dial anymore (I hear this is the case in some parts of the country) you can get a pulse-to-tone converter via the link below. It's a great resource for phone parts and the prices are reasonable. I got an adapter for my old 202 oval base phone's E1 handset that had a bad original 1931 transmitter. This adapter accommodates the later 302 model's "capsule" or "lozenge" type transmitter and is used with a companion cover piece which allows the old "spit cup" mouthpiece look to be retained. The transmission quality is far superior to the original type used on this handset and has turned my 202 into a viable phone again. The people there are very helpful and will guide you to the right parts for your particular phone.

 
I am looking for a poppy Frigidaire fridge like the one on E

I am looking for a poppy fridge....if anyone could help me it would be appreciated. I know this the wrong message board....I am also looking for a white 1960 Frigidaire Custom Imperial washer...working or not working...ideas? leads? please email me at [email protected] or [email protected]
 
You can also use a modern refrigerator-freezer with the door kit that would allow you to cover it with the same wood as the cabinets. If you went with a built in oven, you could create an enclosure for it in a cabinet with half doors that, when fully opened would slide back into the cabinet on each side of the oven. Years ago, before you could buy dishwashers that blended seamlessly into the cabinetry, some owners of historic houses hid the dishwasher behind folding shutter-type doors. Granted, they had to be open while the machine was in operation but, usually when dishes were being washed, guests or others who would be impressed by the kitchen's period charm were not present.
 
Oh Greg.......

It is a shame you did not have that wall phone restored.....a 554 with a straght reciever cord is a rare phone..... I believe that means it was made between 1956 and 1957. Correct me if I am wrong phone guys, but by 1958 I believe they were exclusivly using the coiled cords on 500's and 554's...is that not correct? PATRICK COFFEY

P.S. Ralph the trash compactor was not introduced until 1969. It was invented by Whirlpool and they touted it as being the first truly new appliance introduced in over 20 years.
 
Yeah, I've always wondered when the 500's got coiled cords as I've seen them with straight ones on some 50's TV shows and movies. I have a 500 model dated 1950 that has a different layout of its components than the later ones. I've always wanted to find a straight cord for that one, as I'm sure that's what it had originally. But I can't even guess on when they stopped using straight cords. Hopefully someone else here knows.

Thanks for the info on trash compactors.
 
Don't fret none.....

The phone did not get thrown out, it went to a collector friend. He told me the internalparts were a mess and what you can't see in the pic is that the other side of the housing is broken off totally from where someone tried to tear it off the wall attempting to steal it. The house was vancant for many years before I bought it. Right now the phone is in peices on a workbench getting cleaned up.
 

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