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1950s House Plans for Popular Ranch Homes

By

Jackie Craven

Jackie Craven

Jackie Craven has been an interior design expert covering architecture, decor, and sustainability for 20 years. She has written two books on the subject: "The Stress Free Home: Beautiful Interiors for Serenity and Harmonious Living" and "The Healthy Home: Beautiful Interiors That Enhance The Environment And Your Well-Being."

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Updated on 12/08/19

Camerique Archive / Archive Photos / Getty Images

Ranch-style architecture can be found everywhere in the United States, from California to New England. By the time of the 1950s building boom, ranch homes symbolized America's frontier spirit and new growth as a modern country.

The ranch was developed for mid-twentieth-century America. This style was one of the most popular housing types built in the US.

During the 1950s, real estate developers were eager to sell dreams of family and homeownership to GI soldiers returning from WWII. As you look through these plans, consider the ways ranch-style housing remains a popular and practical choice. With no stairs to a second floor, a ranch home—new or old—can be an ideal choice for homeowners who want to age in place.

Projects to bring your 1950s house into the modern age

Perhaps you’ve inherited your grandparents’ house. Or, maybe the best house you could find was a 1950s place that looked like your grandparents’ house.

You may actually be lucky. A house built in the 1950s can be easily and fairly inexpensively remodeled into a home that looks modern. The recent rise in popularity of many of the 1950s aesthetics makes it even easier to make these changes to your home. Learn why your older home is in vogue, and what projects you can do to bring your 1950s house into the modern age.

How to modernize your 1950s home while keeping its retro charm

“Midcentury modern style is so hot right now,” says Olga Adler, an interior designer who operates Olga Adler Interiors in Westport, Connecticut, and Delray Beach, Florida.

The term is broad and can be used to describe design from the early 1930s to the late 1950s. Its signature is clean lines and natural forms, both in architecture and furniture. It spans several decorating trends, including the use of simple furniture lines with geometric patterns and bold splashes of color.

Because midcentury modern style is simple, it’s also easy to turn into a neutral space if your taste is more traditional or more modern. But it’s likely, no matter your preferences, that your 1950s house could use some updates after decades of use and tinkering.

In many cases, you may be getting rid of less-than-desirable updates made between the 1950s and now, including wallpaper borders, oak cabinets, heavy drapes and wall-to-wall carpeting. However, midcentury design has its own place in today’s decorating world, with geometric print wallpaper and Eames-style chairs as modern upgrades.

Frederick Wilson, partner at Morgante-Wilson Architects in suburban Chicago, turned a client’s home into a space that says “I live here now.” His clients elected to turn their living, dining and family room, plus the kitchen, into one large open space — no living room needed. They also replaced 2-foot windows with floor-to-ceiling glass and swapped out the traditional staircase for one with floating steel. Outside the home, they painted both the brick and the siding the same gray, adding black trim.

With any remodeling job, you can only do so much. So bringing your entire home into the modern era means starting with what you have and embracing its strengths. “You can’t fight the home and fight the low ceilings,” Wilson says. “You have to go with what the lines are for that era.”

Most homeowners will want to remodel kitchens and baths, unless they have already been updated. The choice of cabinets, tile, vanities, light fixtures and other materials can make a big difference, even if you want to stick with the midcentury modern style. Some retro wallpapers lend themselves to modern style, adding personality to the space.

In the kitchen, for example, slab doors and quartz countertops can provide a 1950s look that also fits the modern age, Adler says, especially if the cabinets are white. Stainless steel appliances and sinks also fit the style, but granite and marble do not.

For the baths, it’s possible to buy reproduction 1950s-style bath tiles or go with a more modern look that fits, like oversized subway tile (larger than the standard 3-by-6-inch variety), Adler says.

Projects to modernize your 1950s home

Here are eight home improvement projects to bring your 1950s house into the 2020s:

1. Change the flooring.

Many 1950s homes have mixed flooring, with tile in some rooms, linoleum in others and wood in others, sometimes covered with carpet. Today’s style is a unified look, with the same flooring everywhere but the bathrooms.

Hardwood is popular in many areas, though some homeowners in warm and humid climates prefer tile. Original hardwood can be refinished (best done before you move in) or covered with area rugs, but you will probably want to replace linoleum, tile or carpet.

2. Improve the lighting. 

Many 1950s houses are dark, without ceiling fixtures. Adding recessed lighting is one way to fix that. “If you have any kind of attic space, that’s generally a not very complicated thing and it’s not very expensive,” Adler said. You can also add ceiling fixtures or just bring in more floor lamps and open the curtains.

3. Take down walls. 

Houses in the 1950s often had separate kitchens, dining rooms, family rooms and living rooms. Removing some or all of the walls dividing those rooms can create the open floor plan that is popular today. “You actually can expand the feel of the house without going outside the walls,” Wilson says.

Plus, removing walls brings in more light. “If you have small windows in the home, any time you can open the space and allow light to travel from room to room, the lighter it will be,” Adler says.

4. Hang window treatments at the ceilings. 

Many 1950s homes have lower ceilings, and putting the window treatments higher creates the illusion of more height. “This allows the eye to travel up and give the impression of a higher ceiling,” Adler says.

5. Remove popcorn ceilings and textured walls. 

Many popcorn treatments done during the 1950s contained asbestos, so you want to test yours – using either a kit purchased from a hardware store or a test done by a professional – before attacking it as a DIY project and releasing the asbestos where you can breathe it. In lieu of scraping the ceiling or walls, you can skim coat over them, a job that is usually best left to professionals. It’s a messy project, so you’ll probably want it done before you (and your stuff) move in.

If your home still has wood-paneled walls, embrace them. You can paint the paneling, or the wood tones could work as a wonderful background to bright modern paintings and upgraded lighting.

6. Paint dark trim and doors. 

Doors, molding, baseboards and other wood trim were usually stained in the 1950s, a look that feels dated. Painting all those white can brighten and modernize the house. You can also remove or paint wood paneling or even drywall over it.

7. Replace doors or enlarge windows. 

Homes of the 1950s often had small windows or had windows where today we would put French doors. If your budget allows, enlarging window openings and replacing some windows with French doors can add light and modernize the look of the home.

8. Vault the ceilings.

If your home has an attic, you may be able to create a vaulted ceiling instead of the 1950s flat ceiling. That can both add architectural interest and make the room feel larger. If you don’t want to go to that extreme, paint ceilings a bright reflective white or other color and hang window curtains all the way up to the ceiling; this helps build an illusion of height.
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House in Scandinavian style with a colorful kitchen

Love for the Scandinavian style of the middle of the last century inspired the hostess to create this cheerful and temperamental interior

After long travels, Nina Etienne, an interior designer and decorator, settled in the historical center of Bordeaux. The old house she bought had been derelict for ten years. “It was very dark and there were carpets everywhere,” says Nino. “I had no choice but to redo everything here to make the house habitable.” While inspired by mid-century Scandinavian style, the overall interior is an intricate mix of styles and design trends from around the world dating back to the 1950s to the present day.

About the project
Location: City of Bordeaux, right bank of the Garonne, Aquitaine, France
Size: 251 sq.m; 3 floors, 15 rooms
Who lives here: Interior designer Ninou Étienne and her family

Fusion D

The lobby flooring sets the tone for the entire home. "It's tiled with a graphic
pattern that was very popular in the 1950s," says Nino.

Fusion D

When the family first bought the house, the kitchen was yellow. Nina really liked it, so during the renovation she tried to pick up a similar optimistic shade.

To make the yellow walls look even more expressive, the backsplash was covered with black tiles. A large ledge for the hood above the stove -
is one of the few elements,
, that remained from the original appearance of the house.

Fusion D

A hostess who loves all sorts of vintage sales has found a characteristic 19A 1970s furniture pair, a Formica laminate top with a Saarinen Tulip table base and a chair with a faux leather seat.

Fusion D

Black metal shelf by renowned 1950s designer Mathieu Mategot.

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“I like to be a little frivolous when decorating,” says Nino, commenting on the playful composition on the apron.

Fusion D

Nina found all the furniture and accessories in the living room at sales and flea markets.

Fusion D

The Vertigo chandelier, created in 2010 by Constance Guisse, is the star of the dining room. The wooden floors throughout the house have been refinished and varnished.

Chandelier: Vertigo, diz. Constance Guisset for Petite Friture

Fusion D

“There used to be an absolutely monstrous fireplace here, which we decided to replace with this compact stove,” says Nino.

Armchairs: purchased from Leroy Merlin; skin rug: flea market

Fusion D

Nina Etienne used to live in London. It was from there that she brought this glass table with metal tube legs.

Fusion D

The armchair was bought at a flea market and reupholstered by Laura Cote, a friend of the owner. The fireplace mantel was found in one of the antique shops in London. “And the skull in the crown was left after one fun party,” the hostess laughs.

Fusion D

“I set up my office in the room that the former owner of the house, the architect, used to work in. And I decided to restore and
to leave here one piece of furniture that belonged to him, this unusual desk.

Fusion D

The walls of the study are covered with wallpaper from the Mediterranea collection, created after drawings by the Italian artist Piero Fornasetti. This is how the artist saw Jerusalem.

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The photographs that adorn the walls of the staircase show architectural designs from the 1950s.

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“For the walls in the bedroom, I chose a bright turquoise color and mixed styles from different countries. I wanted the spirit of travel to be here,” says Nino.

Fusion D

Bedroom interior with pine wood chest, art deco dressing table and Catholic confessional door. Behind the door is a dressing room and a bathroom.

Fusion D

There is always plenty of light in the dressing room and bathroom thanks to large windows with simple wooden frames.

Fusion D

Fornasetti also made his mark in the master bathroom, this time with wallpaper from the Tema e Variazione collection.

Fusion D

Basins and freestanding bathtub are a flea market find.

Fusion D

Before the overhaul, this bright children's room used to be a kitchen. “Before, there was a separate kitchen on each floor,” recalls Nina, “but we decided this issue in favor of additional rooms.”

Fusion D

A blue glass door leads to a small bathroom.

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Original tile and stone sink set the mood in this tiny bathroom.

Atmospheric apartment in a 1950s house in Warsaw

Apartments

Photo
BARTOSZ JAKUBOWSKI

The Powisle quarter is located in Warsaw's Sredmiescie. This is a dynamic and very eclectic area, including the oldest part of the city and new buildings, where old houses are adjacent to those that actively appeared after the Second World War in place of the destroyed ones. The area is actively growing and developing, there are many luxury hotels, modern office centers, parks and museums. In one of the houses of the 1950s. This small apartment of 50 square meters is located.

Photo
Bartosz Jakubowski

The owners of the apartment are a young creative couple, photographers who are interested in contemporary art and design due to their profession. But they did not want to fill the house with art objects and turn it into a museum. They needed to create a functional modern space in a rather small area, where there would be enough space for relaxation, meetings with friends, and work. Martyna Kupis and Daria Vacovich from the Polish studio Dash Interiors were invited to implement this idea.

Photo
BARTOSZH JAKUBOWSKI

First of all, the architects changed the layout and got rid of internal partitions, creating a combined space of the kitchen, dining room and living room. Thanks to the white walls and two large windows, the common area turned out to be bright and spacious: it has a lot of natural daylight and “air”.

Photo
BARTOSZH JAKUBOWSKI

The round extendable table is a tribute to the owners' love for vintage objects.

Photo
BARTOSZH JAKUBOWSKI

The kitchen area is visually separated from the main space by tiles with a black and white geometric pattern on the floor. For technical reasons, the kitchen could not be moved to another location, so some tricks were required to make the most of all the usable space. So, for example, in order to use the entire length of the wall, the designers developed narrow shelving up to the ceiling, which were made to order from brass.

Shiny brass apron is an original designer find.

Photo
BARTOSZH JAKUBOWSKI

Brass shines perfectly with matte dark green kitchen fronts.

photo
Bartosh Yakubovski
photo
Bartosh Yakubovski

Conditions to the established apartments, the designers have chosen a saturated green for the kitchen and its senior dummy, and it is also a saturated dummy and in the same way. the open shelves of the upper cabinets and the kitchen apron are finished.

The result was brilliant both literally and figuratively. A small kitchen has become one of the most spectacular elements of the apartment and its real decoration.

The apartment has a lot of indoor plants: the owners love living greenery.

Photo
BARTOSZH JAKUBOWSKI

In the bedroom there was even a place for a small dressing room with a full-length mirror.

Photo
BARTOSZH JAKUBOWSKI

The designers chose the same rich dark green color for the bedroom, making it an accent wall. The blind doors were replaced with transparent glass ones, thanks to which the bedroom immediately became more light. And living plants, books and paintings on the walls add home warmth and comfort to the interior of the sleep zone.

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