No Pattern Required

Today’s post is from Renee at  Crash Pad Designs, a cool retro shop that offers some fantastic linens, textiles and homegoods. Renee was nice enough to answer some questions about her designs and her obsession with vintage, and send us some great pics.  Enjoy! 

Q: How did you get started designing? 

 

  Q: What designs/products do you offer?   

 

A: I design  earth friendly  retro textiles, and make lampshades,tea towels, dinner napkins, pillows and cocktail napkins. I will be adding wallpaper soon.  

 

 

 

 

Q:What was your inspiration for your line of retro textiles?

A: I was inspired by my obsession for everything mid century, finding my perfect house that came with my perfect(not really,it needs work) 1963 yellow & white Philco electric stove, but  mostly by my frustration with the cookie cutter options I found when I tried to decorate my new home. All I wanted was to fill my house with things that would make me smile. When I couldn’t find those things , I started making them myself.

Q: Which design is your favorite?

A: Right now homer is my favorite, but that always changes.
 

Q: Do you have any vintage or retro collections?

A: Of course!  I told you,  I’m obsessed.  My favorite and the biggest  is the one I share with my Beau,  it’s our colored plastic  radio collection. I also have a 50′s lamp collection and  lots of mid century barkcloth,oh and  rotary phones. 

 

Q: Have you always loved retro/vintage?  

A: Pretty much.  It all started in high school,  with vintage clothes.
 
Q: Describe your house right now. 

A: Cozy

 

Q: What is your favorite retro/vintage possession? What is the story behind how you came to own it?

 

A: I have to say it’s my Philco stove.  After searching for a house for two years and seeing over 150 houses I was discouraged and afraid that my dream house didn’t exist. I walked into a house I wasn’t very enthusiastic about and, as silly as it sounds my life changed. We had to enter through the kitchen,and I couldn’t believe my eyes. Yellow and gray plastic tiled walls, immaculate white metal cabinets, a yellow double sink and my stove. Unfortunately, it wasn’t smooth sailing from there,we made an offer that was not accepted and  had to walk away from my dream house. I had never been more dissappointed. Miracously seven months later my house was still waiting for me. I guess not everone was crazy about those yellow and gray plastic tiles. We made another offer and now it’s five years later. That first day in my kitchen, looking at that stove, I knew I was where I belonged. 

Check out Renee’s awesome stuff at Crash Pad Designs!

We interrupt our regularly scheduled craft post to bring you: MEAT!

Meat from Miss Marwood, to be exact.   I just received this heroic Mid-Century Menu recreation of the All-In-One Meat-Loaf Ring, so I thought I would share with all of you, so we could all bask in her bravery.  Miss Marwood writes:

Yum! The hyphenated-meatring-with-cascading-peas was delicious! My other half wholeheartedly agreed.

I quickly took a picture before it went in the oven, as I wasn’t sure it would not all go terribly wrong.

And it sort of did, it did not come out of the bundt-cake form without force, although it did stick together well, considering there was only one egg! Seems I do need a copper-ring!

 

We had it with oven roasted potatoes and chiccoree-salad with yoghurt dressing. Really nice! I will definitly do this again, but will probably stick it in a loaftin.

Thanks for the pics, Miss Marwood, and we all commend your bravery!  I am glad the ring turned out as well for you as it did for us. And by the way, love your tablecloth, toaster and dishes! Awesome.

Have you tried a MCMenu Recipe?? Take some pics and share the results with me at ruth@nopatternrequired.com.

Thanks for the great post, Sara!  This is amazing!!!!

Someone, I need smelling salts……..Ruth…….Jan…….somebody! I have fainted, and I am in need of serious resuscitation here because I have actually come across a time capsule house here in Tempe - built in 1959!!!! I mean seriously, coming across a time capsule here in the Phoenix area is about as likely as spotting a purple cow walking down the street – it just really ain’t gonna happen because most people here want NEW, NEW, NEW…………….wait, I think I see a purple cow!  This is a time capsule MCM house with pink bathrooms too!!! HOORAY!!! The reason I went to this house in the first place was because there was an Estate Sale going on there – that is why there are random people in the pictures and stuff all over the place. People were looking at me like I had dun’ lost my mind taking all these pictures. I am sure they were thinking, “Girl, don’t you know there is an Estate Sale going on here?” But, I had to get pics for you all to see how FAB this house is.

OMG! First up the the FAN-TAB-U-LOUS front entry/courtyard with the AWESOME open blocks! Who would not kill for this?????

And here is the inside of the courtyard with the cool MCM light!

I am totally OBSESSED with these type of fireplaces. I think it is Flagstone, I completely love it! I don’t know if you can tell from the pic, but there are 3 little stone ledge shelves built into the fireplace.

Onto the kitchen! It still had the original birch wood cabinets – unpainted! Hooray!

Cool built-in’s in the dining room area.

The original counter-tops were a light brown linen look Formica. So Cool!

OK Y’all get out your smelling salts now for the best part of the kitchen……………………………..

The AWESOME OVEN!!!! It is the same concept as the Frigidaire Flair – only these doors swing out to either side, not up. This oven is a Tappan. I wanted to pull the burner slider out, but I just knew if I did all the stuff would fall off.

These super cute wall sconces were all along the hallway!

This was a cool glass ceiling light shade in one of the bedrooms.

OH! MY! GOSH!  OK y’all get out those smelling salts once again because we are ready to enter pink bathroom territory! As you can see we have a double vanity with all pink tile and 2 pink sinks! The cabinets (and walls) were kind of a light aqua blue. I’m almost wondering if the cabinets originally looked the the wooden ones in the kitchen?

The original vinyl tile flooring, which I think is SUPER cool with all those different colors; and the pink American Standard toilet!

And finally the ultra cool angled pink tub!       

LOVE IT!

A retro dresser hides amongst the Estate Sale goodies up for grabs!

The original NuTone Doorbell and a cute little light in the laundry room.

This was the Master Bedroom. It was a little on the smaller side as you would expect for a house back then.

And…….here is the pink Master Bathroom!

Cool black and white vinyl tile in the Master Bathroom.

WOW! What a cool house!

Now, for the bad news kids. The house will be put up for sale, but unfortunately it is not the right size for Mike and I – otherwise I would be all over this place like white on rice! The Real Estate sales flyer said “Price To Follow Home Updates” …………..and we all know what that means! I called the agent to see if there was anything they would be willing to sell me but he has yet to return my call. I sincerely hope they do not just throw all of the cool retro stuff out in the garbage. HELP! Does anyone want to buy a time capsule house here in Tempe?

Meanwhile y’all, watch out for those Purple Cows – and let us all know when you spot one!

Interesting art, Sara!  Very cool find.  And is your picture ”before” you fixed the frame or “after”?  I need to know!

I bought this picture a few weeks ago at Goodwill for $6. I don’t normally go for images like this, I am usually more into to the kitschy weird 50s pictures like ballerinas and bull fighters  - but I was really drawn to this picture. I thought it was so cute with all the cherub angel babies! I searched ALL over the web for any info I could find on the picture, but came up with nothing. Has anyone out there in blog-land ever seen this picture before, do you know anything about it? I know it is old, maybe 1930s or 1940s. It kind of reminds me of those old Atkinson Fox prints, but this one has a different look to it. I opened it up and there was no name anywhere so I am at a total loss. The frame is really unusual, it was covered in a plaster/chalkware and then painted to look like wood. The frame was REALLY damaged, you cannot tell in the picture but there were big chips along the sides of the frame and a huge crack in the bottom – along with a lot of scratches all over the wood grained surface,  so I had to patch it and paint over it. If anyone can tell me anything about this picture I surely would appreciate it! Thanks in advance y’all!

Love this, Jan! Who knew station wagons could be so adorable!?!

This is definitely one cool book: how to camp in your Ford Station Wagon.  I found this book at an AAUW (American Association of University Women) book sale about 25 years ago and quickly snatched it up.  It was published in 1957 and has loads of helpful information on equipment, campgrounds and experimental camping gear designed for station wagon camping.

Was there enough room in the station wagon to live like a nomad?

You betcha.  You could easily sleep two people in the back.

If your legs are long and you don’t want your tootsies hanging out the back window, there’s even a “boot” to cover the back end of the wagon.

Or you could attach a tent to the car and commune with nature.

But if you don’t care to share your sleeping quarters with bugs, snakes and the occasional bear, use your rooftop tent to ward off intruders.

Traveling makes you ravenous and having a built-in kitchen in your Ford Station Wagon makes it convenient to stop whenever hunger strikes.

While on the road, you can stop at a roadside park and make coffee by plugging the coffee maker into the cigarette lighter.

A destination is important and although the campgrounds information in the book has changed over the years, here are the parks and grounds in Michigan that were  listed.  The red dot in the lower left corner of the state is Warren Dunes State Park in Bridgman, about 16 miles from my home.  Back in the early Sixties when I camped there with relatives the place was packed!

Thanks, Ford, for bringing modern day camping to the MCM nation!

Thanks, Jan!  These Better Homes and Gardens books are always such fun.  They sometimes go over the top, but I always love looking at them!

This week’s post is about the furnishings and decor of 1967.  Although the late Sixties are not one of my favorite times of Mid-Century Modern, I keep an open mind.

The pictures I’ve chosen is from Better Homes & Gardens Home Furnishings and Ideas Magazine of 1967.  You’ll see where colors become vivid, fabrics and draperies are heavy, darker woods are used and the trend is Mediterranean mixed with Modern, Colonial and “Early Orange Crate.”

Wow!  Who needs a morning caffeine jolt when you can get jump-started with an in-your-face shot of bold color!

 The headboard in this picture was made from the sides of a discarded bentwood rocker.  MCM fans do something similar by searching, finding, buying and recycling unwanted furnishings and decor into our homes.

Notice the modern coffee table in the midst of Queen Anne furniture and African statues.

Rugs and carpeting are colorful, plush and shaggy.

The heavy fabrics and dark woods are the complete opposite of the bold colors.  One could easily curl up on the sofa and fall asleep

This picture combines bold colors, patio furniture (the coffee table) and artificial grass (grass?) for the area rug.

The bright colors and mish-mosh of elements are a far cry of the simplicity of modern style. 

What are your thoughts, gang?

That horse light is crazy, Sara!  I love it!!

Sooooo, as promised here is part 2 of the vintage lights!

First up is a light I found at a local Estate Sale. I am guessing it is probably from the late 60s, possibly very early 70s. I just thought it was so cool with the different colored and textured curved glass. As you can guess, it weighs a lot – as the glass is really thick and heavy. It was very hard to get good pictures of this light, I think it actually looks much cooler in person but you get the idea. The light has 6 curved panels of glass. There are 2 green panels, 2 yellow panels, and 2 purple panels. It was only $8, so I thought it would be a good buy.

Here is the light with the bulb off.

Here is the light with the bulb on.

This light casts a really cool glow when it is on at night!

Next up is my other pull down light. I found this light at a flea market in Texas. I have no clue who made this light, as all the stickers have fallen off or were removed. This is a milk glass shade painted with diamond shapes in gold and black. I am guessing this was from the 50s, possibly early 60s. I really think this is a great light.

Here is the light with the bulb off.

And, here is the light with the bulb on.

Again, I have to say it was not terribly easy to get a good picture of the light – especially with the light on. I think they all look better in person. Gosh, how did the lighting catalog photographers do it???

My last light is my ‘Horse Head’ lamp. Anyone up for re-creating ‘Godfather’ here? I have to say I think this horse lamp is styled in a really cool way, it is not toooo weirdly horse like, yet you can tell what it is. I think this lamp is definitely 1950s! There is a signature embedded into the bottom of the lamp, but I cannot figure out what it says.

Well, that’s it y’all. Ruth, do any of your family members have any of these lights – maybe we could get more info?  I hope everyone enjoyed all these crazy lamps and lights.

I love it when you think pink, Jan!  Great post!  What do you think of Jan’s post? Leave her some feedback and comment!

When the color pink took hold of mid-century modern America, it really took hold!  Pink bathrooms, pink kitchens, pink furniture and even pink cars! 

So hooray for America’s automobile manufacturers for going with the trend and giving us something else in pink to swoon over!

The 1955 Ford Fairlane Crown Victoria adorned in pink and black.

The 1956 Pontiac Super Chief in coral pink and gray. 

A 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air coupe, pretty in pink and white.

The pink and white interior of a 1956 Mercury Monterey.  Love the pink steering wheel!

Finally, the creme de la creme of pink automobiles, the 1959 Cadillac.  And look at the mother and daughter gowns in the same pink shade!   They were designed especially for Cadillac.

Gooooooooorgeous lights, Sara!  I am dying!  Especially over those little jumprope girls!

OK, I’ll admit it, I am a total SUCKER for any kind of vintage light! It is really bad though, because I go to all these Estate Sales and Goodwill etc., and I find all these super cute lights I cannot pass up. I think Mike is going through a little light/lamp overload. He said he may try to send me to a Vintage Lamps Anonymous – if he can find one. “Hi, my name is Sara………. 

So, on with the show kids!

These first two pictures are of some lights I found at Goodwill. The first pic shows a 1960s ? (please correct me if I am wrong) Bathroom Light Bar. This was made by Progress Lighting, all the old stickers are still on the back! And, it was made in the USA!!! I thought it was really cool because of the funky lines running through it.

This next pic is not really a light, but a ceiling light cover. I thought these were SOOOOO cute, I could not believe someone had given them away to Goodwill. You can see there are little girls jumping rope and bows all over the shades. I am guessing these are from the 1950s or early 1960s. The shades are a really thick glass (much thicker than the glass shades available now at Home Depot, or the like) and they are a bit larger too.

I have not quite decided what to do with these items yet – keep them, sell them???  Hmmmmmm, decisions……decisions!

Up next is an old Pull Down I picked up at an Estate Sale. I was SO in love with this light, but I was also being stubborn that day and did not want to pay the $30 asking price. So, I waited until half-price day, and I got it for $15. It has a walnut plate for the wall to cover the mounting bracket, and a little walnut wedge on the bottom. There was a “Made In USA” “Union Made” sticker on this but nothing else that would indicate the manufacturer. I poked around a little on the web and found this light was probably made by E.J.S. Lighting Corporation, in the mid to late 1950s. It retailed for approx. $20 back then.

This light still has the original glass shade.

And the cool pin-hole light effect on the top.

One word of caution about vintage lights. Mike had to totally re-wire this entire light. See how the wires are REALLY brittle. We are pretty sure it was from super hot light bulbs crisping up those little ole’ wires. Anyway, Mike is an Electrical Engineer, so if he can’t re-wire a light – well that would be pretty sad wouldn’t it! I would DEFINITELY NOT recommend re-wiring your own vintage light unless you are super knowledgeable about wiring and the such (this light had a ton of really intricate parts inside that housing). He did a bang up job, and now the light works fantastically – without the threat of burning the house down!

At the same Estate Sale I also bought this Kitchen Pull Down. I could not leave it behind since I was already buying the other Pull Down, and they said they were remodeling the entire house after the sale. I could just envision them throwing it into a trash heap, and – well, I just could not let that happen! No, I am not planning on having this light installed above our fireplace , we have not installed this light into our kitchen yet…. Here you see it just hanging on a hook in our ceiling. This light still has all of it’s original stickers too, and this light is a MOE light!

This light also still has the original light shade.

OK y’all stay tuned next time for more vintage lights!

P.S. Happy (early) Valentine’s Day everyone! Even if you cannot spend the day with someone special, we love everyone around here at ‘No Pattern Required’, so here is a “big wet smooch” going out to all of ya!

Wow, so many great resources!  Thanks Jan!

Sometimes we have to bite the bullet and buy new for our MCM homes.  Thankfully, there are a lot of  ‘new’ MCM furniture and accessories out there, albeit the prices may be overboard for us on a budget. However, even if we can’t afford new, the following pictures can be used for free as a reference point in finding the real McCoy.

Roomandboard.com has some dandy MCM lookalike furniture and accessories, but, alas!  They are expensive.  This is the Reese sectional sofa that comes in different fabric colors as well as leather.  Button tufted furniture is very MCM.

Speaking of button tufted thingys, accent pillows also carried that design. SmithandNoble.com has them in a variety colors.

Replicas of George Nelson’s wall clocks are available, too from Bellacor.com.

Look at the lighting from Lampsplus.com!  The sconce  in the center is an exterior light.

Looking for one of those quilted fitted bedspreads?  Touchofclass.com has them in different colors and sizes and yes, matching button tufted pillows!

Aren’t these cat bookends cool?  Bellacor.com sells them and not on the cheap, either!  But for some reason, modern cat sculptures and wall decor were very popular.

For the MCM kitchen, here are some wonderful reproductions of those dish towels and square tablecloths courtesy of Retrobarn.com.

Did you know that our favorite MCM furniture, Heywood Wakefield, is making their Streamline furniture series again?  Visit their site at Heywood-Wakefield.com and check out the furniture.

There are even reproductions of classic toys like Slinky (in the brown box) and Lincoln Logs.  Wish Mattel Toys would re-issue their fabulous clown jack-in-the-box that came out in the late Fifties.  I would love to have one of them again and sit for hours turning the handle on the tin box, listening to Pop! Goes the Weasel and be surprised when the clown popped out!