the midcentury ranch for a new generation
6 min readMid-century designers loved showing off the gorgeous grain of natural wood. They used it to clad their walls, floor and ceiling, as well as for cabinets and furniture. Looking for a great mid mod material? Look no further than warm-toned wood.
When you’re a proud owner of a mid-century home considering updates, start by taking stock of what mid mod characteristics you have on hand. While you catalog the mid-century features your house has to offer, note all the parts made from natural wood.
If your home turns up short on mid-century charm, you can take action and improve it. Start by adding more natural wood elements. Think: Continue reading “Mid-Century Materials: A Valentine to Natural Wood”
10 min readWhen you’ve just bought a house, the new responsibilities can be overwhelming. Don’t worry. All you need is a great plan!
The right plan can help you figure out what will make you happiest and what is the best solution for your home. You are in the driver’s seat with a road map, once you roll up your sleeves to fully plan a mid-century renovation.
Be confident you’re making the right choices for the right reasons!! Continue reading “How to Plan a Mid-Century Renovation you’ll Love”
6 min readLong before the millennial Mid Mod craze for grey painted houses with color pop doors, the color people chose to say “I’m in with Mid-Century architecture In-Crowd” was a particular shade of dark brick red. Â
Searching for a bold Mid-century Color? Cherokee Red (with a few variations) was the signature color of the early mid century period.
Cherokee Red defied the soft-spoken powder blue and baby pink color schemes of milder and more traditional post-war homes. It made its mark before the 60’s Mod drive toward bright orange flowers and avocado appliances. Cherokee Red was the color of choice especially among the mid-century architects who trained with Frank Lloyd Wright at his Taliesin schools. Continue reading “Exploring Mid-Century Color: Cherokee Red”
3 min readGetting the glass in these windows took me three months of waiting for the right weather conditions (and free time) and about three hours of work to install!
I am SO EXCITED that they are finally in!
Remember back in OCTOBER, when I posted about putting up this fun cedar slat wall? Well, the project is still ongoing.
Getting these DIY windows in was such a simple job that I’ve been waiting to get wrapped up for SO LONG now. It took a few moving parts: having the glass cut to size and having the right weather conditions to caulk it into place. Plus I’ve been crazy busy on all previous good-weather work days working INSIDE the garage to build the mudroom part of the project.
Technically THAT progress update should be Part 2, but I forgot to post about it in November and now I just want to shout from the rooftops about my brand new DIY windows!
Continue reading “Progress: Transforming the Breezeway into a Mudroom (Part 2)”
5 min readI’ll bet you love mid-century house hunting as much as I do – you’re reading this, after all. Here are some handy tips to find more mid mod fun all around you!
Wondering how you can find a Mid-Century Neighborhood or houses near you? Whether you are hoping to buy a mid century dream house of your own, or are just scoping for fun and inspiration, this will set you on your way.
If you found me through my instagram, you already know I collect the mid-century ranches that I spot and love in my travels and daily life. Check out my page on Mid-century Neighborhoods for some snippets of the mid mod hunting I’ve done recently!
Continue reading “How to find a Mid-Century Neighborhood”2 min readThe big chunk of work for this fall is transforming the long narrow breezeway into a cosy and effective mudroom plus a little bonus garage storage. Â
This is phase one of … well many. I’ve pushed the project a little late in the season so before I get started on constructing the new mudroom structure within the existing breezeway I’ll be closing off both ends. To the street side, that means the new and permanent extension of the garage wall. On the back yard side I put up a quick temporary wall of translucent plastic to secure the garage and keep it somewhat weathertight. Continue reading “Progress: Transforming the Breezeway into a Mudroom (Part 1)”
2 min readI’d thought my next move was to start framing in the new mudroom between the house and garage but then I remembered … it will never be easier to move the pavers from front to back than right now. Â
I did a quick about face and prioritized putting together my (mini) patio project. I’d had something like this in mind for a while but had to make some quick executive decisions about size and proportion. Continue reading “Progress: a (pretty painless) mini patio for the back yard”
2 min readProgress continues in the basement with the final plumbing work. Its about to go on hiatus, however, when I turn my attention outside for fall.
The basement isn’t quite finished but I made some great strides forward to prep for the final plumbing work down here. I also introduced myself to the Ikea kitchen system which gave me a few moments of confusion and then turned out to be even more straightforward and hackable than I’d hoped. Continue reading “Progress: Basement Bath and Bar Sink”
3 min readHave you ever felt an overwhelming desire to just drill a hole in the side of your house. Maybe not. And that’s for the best. But since I have, you can share in the benefit of my experience.Â
When we installed the exhaust fan for the new basement bathroom, the most direct exit route was right through the rim joist of the house. Dad got out his trusty hole saw with the largest (4 inch diameter) attachment and got to work on it.  Continue reading “What stands between you and the world, or Taking a Hole Saw to House Walls”
3 min readShutters once had a real function. They were a security measure, a way to close up houses safely at night or when the occupants were away. But they serve no purpose on a modern house. Please don’t glue fake shutters to your siding!!!
So here’s the thing. Almost nothing makes me eye-roll harder in recent, residential design than badly-deployed fake shutters. Fake shutters on ranches are even more irritating: not only don’t they work properly, they contradict the mid mod aesthetic!
