Big Changes In Small Kitchens

The August 1962 Family Circle magazine included an article "Big Changes for Small Kitchens."I really liked this photo because it reminds me of the cabinets in our 1966 ranch.

Our original cabinets have copper hardware added by my folks in the 1970s, and the cabinets were refinished by my brother in the 1980s. I am told they are in wonderful shape. Otherwise the kitchen is all original.

Here is the kitchen 'work space' when we inherited it:

No dishwasher. The 'hood' over the range is just for lighting, there is no exhaust fan. The hanging light was made by Dad in the 1970s.

Ideas for making better use of a small kitchen in 1962:

This kitchen was made into an "L" shape with everything easily reachable for one person, obviously the lady of the house ruled the roost in this department. NO ONE ELSE was allowed in! I mean, where would they fit?

I lived in a house with this arrangement: corner sink with dishwasher and range flanking it, fridge next to the dishwasher. It was horrible to work in! Thankfully the parsonage underwent a remodel.

The next kitchen added a free standing range behind the half wall partition behind the seating area.

The next kitchen, the one I showed first in my post, has a U-shape. Note the cool hanging ceiling lamp over the breakfast bar and the wall oven. It even has pot lights!In the first photo you see the electric range top.

Gee, what is old is new again. These features are very popular today.

Except for the curtains. I don't see these little geometric prints right now. But I do have four or five pieces in my stash!

Yesterday we met with a contractor. We are going to gut the kitchen. No more carpeted floor. We will have a dishwasher. Good by soffits, hello 48" cabinets. We will have a real venting hood and under counter lighting. A new range. Drawers instead of deep cabinets that require kneeling to get to. A backsplash. A place for trash and recycling. A kitchen we can age in.

We will move the sink to the side where the stove is. The refrigerator has already been replaced and is against another wall. The new range will go in it's place. The pantry will go, and the cabinets will run the length of the wall. Here is that wall as it was a few years ago:

Retro Renovation fans would hate me for tearing out this original kitchen. We will have slab doors and Formica counter tops, keeping to a "retro" feel.

We have made many upgrades and repairs and improvements over the last six years, but now the best part comes: major remodeling for our needs!

The Latest in Kitchen Design...Circa 1962

The May 1962 issue of Family Circle featured six pages of kitchen ideas. Many of the design elements are popular again today, including the hanging pendant lighting, colorful clear glass, bright colors in kitchens, and open shelving and hanging utensils and pots and pans. We see islands with eating areas and integrated refrigerators. Plants hanging in the kitchen are also being seen now. Our 1962 kitchen looked nothing like this! but our kitchen remodel, still  in the planning, might have some of these features.

Today we have desks for computers in the kitchen,

I love the double sinks