Ten weeks ago, my family found out that we would be relocating for my husband’s new career opportunity. Seven weeks ago, we made the exciting six-hour drive for a whirlwind house hunting trip. At that time, we had no intention of finding a mid-century home. We had a modest budget and pre-approval from two local banks. We also had a wish list- two car garage, between 0.25 and 2 acre lot, 3 bedroom house, 1.5+ bathroom, dishwasher desirable, and within 15 miles of my husband’s job. With the help of two wonderful realtors, we were able to find a wonderful brick home at the end of a quiet street that met all of our criteria.
Our new home also happened to be a mid-century ranch home, built by a contractor/concrete plant owner to be his forever home for his family. Because the first home owners intended this home to be their forever house, it has some amazing features, including marble window sills and a sunken garage with carpeting to keep snow and mud from being tracked into the house.
We loved that the home was built very sturdily. The home has also had very few owners- the original family, then the daughter and son-in-law of the original family (who lived in the house only part of the year), and the owner before us who never lived in the house. As a result, many of the home’s original features are intact, including the original kitchen cabinets, bathroom tile, and bathroom fixtures. These high quality original items added to the charm of the house. We also loved the fairly open layout. We knew nothing about mid-century design or architecture, we were simply attracted the quality and charm of the house. If you had asked us at the time what style the house was or if it was mid-century modern, we would have probably shrugged.
While we waited to close on the home, our blissful ignorance quickly changed. We began researching our oven, range, bathroom vents, and other features of the house and got a crash course in mid-century home features. We also started researching the design of the house. Having looked at mid-century modern homes, our smaller home without vaulted ceilings and a sprawling layout did not seem to be the quintessential mid-century modern home. However, being a roughly 1,900 square foot ranch (on the main level) with custom cabinets, a marble-topped built-in and window sills, original commercial grade air conditioner, whole house humidifier, two fireplaces, exposed beams, and custom-built cabinets, the house did not seem to meet the definition of mid-century modest. This house seemed to fall somewhere in between. There are mid-century modern touches, but it appears that the house was mostly decorated by a family who actually had tastes that leaned more toward Country Living and less towards Herman Miller.
As we moved towards our closing date, we agreed that because the home had been updated in ways that are not in-line with the original style of the house (dishwasher was added at some point, kitchen linoleum looks to be about 10 years old, carpet was poorly installed over hardwood), we wanted to update the home in the style of a RestoMod. For those unfamiliar, this is a term used in classic car restoration when a car has the wonderful vintage look and style with the benefit of the advances in technology and comfort. My husband has always been a “car guy” and had done a RestoMod before. The term seems to fit with our aspirations for the house. A true restore returns the house or the car to how it was originally. Because the house has been updated and changed slightly over the years, a true restoration doesn’t feel authentic to us. We would like to take the great bones of the home, add that mid-century style back into places where it is lacking, and hopefully create a home that is comfortable for our family and a tribute to mid-century design and architecture.
Thirteen days ago, we closed on the house and we hit the ground running with our projects and ideas. I hope you enjoy following along on our first adventure in home ownership.
Mid-Century Modsters 