Show us your vintage home!

[donCarlos]

Dinerman - My god, I´ve never even dreamed about house so big! To be honest, the middle section connecting the two palaces would be enough for me. And now, when you know it, may I move in?

 

[Dinerman]

There'll be about 15 or so other college students in there as well; still, like you say, it's a lot better than one of the monstrous dorms.

this one's not my room, I don't know what mine will look like yet, but these are rooms in the house, just to give a general idea.

 

[dhermann1]

I can foresee by the end of the school year there will be about 15 or 20 other Canadian college students sporting fedoras and bow ties up there in Nova Scotia.
Anybody got pics of vintage college dorm rooms to help our friend Dinerman? For sure there will be diner tags on the wall, and maybe an ancient clock?

 

[Atomic Glee]

Oh, Atomic Glee: a bungalow with plans for a square foot garden and native plantings?! Can I move in? What if I weed? lol

Heh - you'd have to get conditioned to weeding in the Texas heat. Motivation to do yardwork can be a bit stifled when it's 107.

Seriously, while I can see the current "ugly duckling" issues, your vision sounds really great, and this house has so much potential . I'm curious, though, how old are the old appliances? I can see wanting energy efficiency but if its actually original... I might make up the energy costs other ways. That's just me talking of course, and I have an unreasonable attachment to '30s-'40s stoves.

So do I - but these aren't vintage appliances. They're from 2004, when the house was built. If they were vintage, I'd be hanging on to them. Rather, they are the cheapest of the cheap sort of things - as I said, for a while the house was a rental property and they didn't stock it with quality. I've already got a new Frigidaire suite of appliances on the way.

Incidentally, there was an actual vintage house I looked at that I really wanted, but the seller wouldn't budge on the price - and it *did* have a gorgeous vintage stove in the kitchen that worked. Sigh.

I can't see the front door in that picture, are you planning on going more Arts and Crafts or more mid-century?

Here's some mid-century ones I like, I don't know what the site's prices are, I just looked for ideas. The front door is such an important element in a home's style. http://www.crestviewdoors.com/designguide

I've been thinking more Arts & Crafts with the front door in keeping with the neighborhood, though I love the doors on that site. I still haven't quite made my mind up yet.

I will be closing this week. I've got the appliances coming, the new windows are ordered, will be ordering the concrete stain soon (going with a soy-based stain instead of acid staining), and I'm getting the paint today. Finally in the home stretch...to the beginning of the longer stretch of actual work.

 

[Atomic Glee]

Oh, and incidentally, these are the colors I'll be going with for the interior. They are from the Sherwin-Williams '50s Modern historic palettes, which seemed to fit this house inside better than others.

(All samples are approximate - I have big physical swatches that are more accurate.)

Master bedroom, third bedroom: Stratford Blue

Master bathroom: Burma Jade

Living room: Plymouth Green

Second bathroom: Appleblossom

Kitchen, second bedroom/office: Holiday Turquoise

One wall in dining area (same physical space as kitchen): Radiant Lilac

 

[Viola]

I love '50s color schemes, they're so cheerful and fun. I think my guy wants me to stick to more Deco stuff, though, so I'll have to admire from afar...or use your pictures when you're done to convince him... lol

I had no idea your house was so new. I guess that's the benefit of a classic exterior style, you can't date it precisely and have to take all your cues from colors and accessories.

I really get the thing about appliances now though. I was thinking your home was older than it is.

It's so funny you say that about the weather; I'm moving to Australia in a year or so and I will have to completely change my gardening style and reeducate myself. I mean, I'm staying organic, but the climate is a lot more like what you have than anything I'm used to. I could have olives. Citrus! All kinds of hot-weather craziness.

And I'm totally gathering decor tips from you all.

 

[Atomic Glee]

Also got my concrete stain ordered - "Desert Mountain" color, which I think will be nice but manage to go with just about anything.

The stain I'm using for the concrete floors is SoyCrete, by Ecoprocote. It's an alternative to the usual acid stains that is made from soybeans. It's safe, puts off no toxic gasses, doesn't require hazmat disposal, is easier & quicker to use, and as it turns out is cheaper as well.

http://www.ecosafetyproducts.com/SoyCrete-Concrete-Stain-p/s1-1000-1.htm

 

[Josephine]

The stain I'm using for the concrete floors is SoyCrete, by Ecoprocote. It's an alternative to the usual acid stains that is made from soybeans. It's safe, puts off no toxic gasses, doesn't require hazmat disposal, is easier & quicker to use, and as it turns out is cheaper as well.

Interesting. Let us know how well it goes on, and how well it wears, please? I have a front porch that could use some sprucing up.

 

[olive bleu]

I LOOOVE the holiday turquoise! I painted my last kitchen a similar colour, thsi time,i am not allowed to pait( rented) I bet your house will be gorgeous.please post pics when done!

 

[millbrookmusic]

I don't have a vintage home to show for myself but I'm working on it. There's a home built in 1920 thatI am absolutely ga ga over. I keep imagining future Christmases and dinner parties there - but alas, I think this one will be one of my lifelong one-that-got-way homes.

 

[CherryRed]

Oh, and incidentally, these are the colors I'll be going with for the interior. They are from the Sherwin-Williams '50s Modern historic palettes, which seemed to fit this house inside better than others.

(All samples are approximate - I have big physical swatches that are more accurate.)

Master bedroom, third bedroom: Stratford Blue

Master bathroom: Burma Jade

Living room: Plymouth Green

Second bathroom: Appleblossom

Kitchen, second bedroom/office: Holiday Turquoise

One wall in dining area (same physical space as kitchen): Radiant Lilac

Those are great colors! My den is in a color similar to the Holiday Turquoise only I had mine color matched from a dish I had in the color I wanted. I want to do my bathroom in a pink also (someday). I will have to look into their colors.

 

[J. M. Stovall]

I've been thinking more Arts & Crafts with the front door in keeping with the neighborhood, though I love the doors on that site. I still haven't quite made my mind up yet.

You definitely need an Art & Crafts door. It drives us crazy in our historic neighborhood when someone is fixing up a bungalow and they pull the original door and replace it with what we call a "Home Depot Door" (you know, one of those metal doors with an oval glass window...terrible). The front door has to be the most important, single element of a house's character.

 

[Atomic Glee]

You definitely need an Art & Crafts door. It drives us crazy in our historic neighborhood when someone is fixing up a bungalow and they pull the original door and replace it with what we call a "Home Depot Door" (you know, one of those metal doors with an oval glass window...terrible). The front door has to be the most important, single element of a house's character.

The house has a Home Depot Door now. Trust me - I am a staunch preservationist here in the city. I'll do the right thing.

 

[Forgotten Man]

A friend of mine picked up a swell little paint chip set from the early 30s... it has six cards and has four colors, two on each side. Contrasting colors... what looks good with what. Anyway, there also are two clear cards, one has different rooms and the other is of different homes... and you can put whatever color you want under the card and see what your room or home would look like in the color you like most. And most of the colors are bright!

If I can, I'll get some pictures of the little paint chip set my pal has and I'll post them.

 

[Big Man]

A friend of mine picked up a swell little paint chip set from the early 30s... If I can, I'll get some pictures of the little paint chip set my pal has and I'll post them.

That would be great. I'm in the process (the s-l-o-w process) of trying to get my old house back to the colors it was in the late 20's to early 30's. Between what I remember my grandmother and aunts telling me about what room was painted what color and doing some :house archeology" (ever so gently scraping off layers of paint), I have a fairly good idea of the colors that were used in the past.

Seeing a paint chip set like you described would be another tool to use in the quest for "getting it right."

 

[Atomic Glee]

DecoPix also has some nifty Art Deco color swatches scanned:

http://www.decopix.com/New Site/Pages/Image pages/Color_Scheme_pages/Paint_Sampler1.html

http://www.decopix.com/New Site/Pages/Image pages/Color_Scheme_pages/Paint_sampler2.html

I'll have to post a few photos later this evening from the most recent Fairmount Home Tour - Fairmount being the neighborhood I'm moving to. The old houses there are simply gorgeous examples of classic American bungalows in a middle-class streetcar neighborhood. One we toured was all original - it has never even had air conditioning installed.

 

[John K Stetson]

Sherwin Williams Paints

They are from the Sherwin-Williams '50s Modern historic palettes,

I have nothing but good things to say about the quality of Sherwin Williams paints. After a disastrous try with Behr (faux texture, from Hope Depot) - I
mean, I've never had to call tech support for paint before - we've used nothing but Sherwin Williams. And the people and the local store are very knowledgeable too.

 

[Big Man]

Old paint colors

I found another "clue" in my on-going quest to get my old house back to its late 20's to early 30's color. The picture below is from a 35mm slide that was taken in 1958. I discovered this slide in a box of old pictures just yesterday, and do not recall ever having seen it before. I have the vaguest of memory of this room in the old house being blue, so this picture really helps me to focus in on the color. The original from the slide is a much brighter blue than this copy shows, almost what I would describe as "Carolina Blue" (as in UNC).

Now, the question is when was this room painted blue to begin with? Since it has been painted an egg shell color basically all of my memory, the blue in this picture must have been painted over relatively soon after this photo was taken. The last time the house was painted inside (other than work I have done recently) was about 1970, when it was repainted the same egg shell color it had been since the late 50's or very early 60's.

Thinking along the lines that the inside of the house may have been painted every 10 or 15 years, it is possible that this blue color could indeed date to the late 1930's or 1940's.

Any thoughts from the experts out there ...

 

[Viola]

I have nothing but good things to say about the quality of Sherwin Williams paints. After a disastrous try with Behr (faux texture, from Hope Depot) - I
mean, I've never had to call tech support for paint before - we've used nothing but Sherwin Williams. And the people and the local store are very knowledgeable too.

I'm really happy to hear that the Sherwin Williams historic paints are considered a solid choice by a number of Loungers.

A couple colors in "Jazz Age," and especially "Streamlined," and "Suburban Modern" looked pretty great to me, especially because I sometimes I have trouble visualizing balanced historic palettes (too many black and white movies!) and I was having trouble picturing what colors would go with the look I really like, which is sort of a vintage medley with Art Deco as the strongest component.

Usually when I was picturing Deco I would start with the wood furniture and metal accents, then get lost.

I really like some of the shades in those DecoPix links Atomic Glee posted too. I love green, though.

 

[Forgotten Man]

That would be great. I'm in the process (the s-l-o-w process) of trying to get my old house back to the colors it was in the late 20's to early 30's. Between what I remember my grandmother and aunts telling me about what room was painted what color and doing some :house archeology" (ever so gently scraping off layers of paint), I have a fairly good idea of the colors that were used in the past.

Seeing a paint chip set like you described would be another tool to use in the quest for "getting it right."

Well, things like this take time and there's no need to rush things... that's how things are done right... with time!

I'll see if I can get a few photos of those chips for you the next time I see my friend wich should be soon.

I think what you're planning to do is great! I'd love to paint my house in mid to late 20s colors... my home I rent is about a 1912 period... but, it has really no original fixtures and a number of windows have been changed out and so have all the doors except for one or two... so sad But, if things get better, I hope to find a better, more preserved home from the 20s to move into... then, I'll go nuts with period colors and such!

Good luck!