Atomic Ranch Midcentury Interiors [Hardcover]

Michelle Gringeri-Brown (Author), Jim Brown (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2012

Atomic Ranch Midcentury Interiors showcases the virtues of the popular and ubiquitous ranch houses that sprang up across the country following World War II. It features the exceptional interiors of eight houses, discusses successes and challenges, and shows how to live stylishly. Tips are shared on color, flooring, window coverings, furniture arrangements, and how off-the-shelf components can be turned into custom features. The homeowners' stories explain why these rooms work, and provide you with resources and ideas for everything from garage doors to the art on the wall.

Writer Michelle Gringeri-Brown and photographer Jim Brown publish the quarterly magazine Atomic Ranch, which features ranch homes built all across America. They are the authors of Atomic Ranch: Design Ideas for Stylish Ranch Homes and live in Portland, Oregon, in a 1952 brick ranch.

Inspiring midcentury ranch interiors

Editorial Reviews

Review

In their new book, the duo gives tips from homeowners on using color, flooring, window treatments, and furniture arrangements to get the split-level, rambler, modern home, or traditional ranch stylishly ready for its closeup. (Rebecca Christian Traditional Home 20120316)

"Given the style's popularity these days, decorating a home in mid-century modern design isn't too difficult. The real question is, how far are you willing to go?" From "Getting the 'Mad Men' look: How far will you go?"

(Amanda Abrams Washington Post 20120229)

From the Inside Flap

atomic ranch

MIDCENTURY INTERIORS Michelle Gringeri-Brown Photographs by Jim Brown

"How can we fix up our boring, humdrum ranch house?"

Well, we're glad you asked. Traveling from upstate New York to Washington, D.C., to San Mateo, California, and various places in between, we found eight great examples of ranch interiors sure to inspire. Flip through the pages of this book and you'll find kitchens and baths that stand out from the crowd but are still at home in this modest architectural style. You'll see how the judicious addition of the most inexpensive details can make your house look like a zillion bucks.

The homeowners of our featured homes share their tips on color, flooring, window coverings, furniture arrangements, and more. They turn off-the-shelf components into custom features and talk about both their successes and their challenges. But most importantly, they show how to live stylishly while still having a life. Like you, they have kids, pets, and jobs, and would trade a kitchen floor that doesn't show muddy footprints for a white carpet any day. Their stories explain why these rooms work, and provide you with resources and ideas for everything from the garage door to the art on the wall.

Whether your taste runs to vintage originality or updated modern finishes, there are sure to be plenty of ideas within these pages that you can borrow for your own home, be it split-level, rambler, traditional ranch, or modernist. Come on inside the amazing Atomic Ranch house with us.

Writer Michelle Gringeri-Brown and photographer Jim Brown launched the quarterly magazine Atomic Ranch in 2004 to help call attention to the underappreciated ranch homes built all across postwar America. Since then, admiration for the charms of this era of housing has blossomed, and home tours, enthusiasts' groups, and national preservation efforts have followed. The Atomic Ranch community meets on Facebook to discuss all things midcentury, including the name: "Atomic," referring to the Atomic Age, and "Ranch," for the architectural style.

Their first book, Atomic Ranch: Design Ideas for Stylish Ranch Homes, was published by Gibbs Smith in 2006. The couple's work has previously appeared in automotive and shelter magazines. They live in Portland, Oregon, in a 1952 brick ranch.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Gibbs Smith; 1St Edition edition (March 1, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1423619315
• ISBN-13: 978-1423619314
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 1 x 10 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #63,773 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #81 in Books > Arts & Photography > Decorative Arts & Design > Decorative Arts

More About the Author

I'm the editor of Atomic Ranch magazine, a shelter publication focusing on postwar ranch homes, primarily built in the '50s and '60s. With my photographer husband, Jim Brown, we write about and photograph inspiring homes from coast to coast. We both grew up in Southern California but now live in Portland, Ore.

Our first book, "Atomic Ranch: Design Ideas for Stylish Ranch Homes," focuses on both modernist and transitional ranch houses, from the exteriors and landscaping to the furnishings and decorative details. Think your aunt's ranch house but with really cool furniture and fresh modern finishes. What most interests me are the homeowners' stories, not hipper-than-thou coverage of celebrity pads or the latest starchitect of the moment. The homes in the book (and magazine) are inspiring yet attainable--interior design for the rest of us if you will.

"Atomic Ranch: Midcentury Interiors," is our March 2012 coffee-table volume published by Gibbs Smith. In it we share eight fantastic homes located all across the U.S. and discuss what works best about their interiors. Styles range from a split-level and several modernist customs to California tract homes and a traditional ranch in Tulsa. There's even an aluminum prefab house in New York state with amazing details. The homeowners' stories of their renovations and remodels contain lots of tips that you can translate to your own ranch. Get ideas on flooring, appliances, window coverings, affordable finishes and furniture you can live with and enjoy without needing to be a design fanatic. Whether your taste runs to vintage furniture and retro kitchens or you're a clean-lined modernist collector, "Atomic Ranch: Midcentury Interiors" delivers lots of eye candy.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Eye Candy March 13, 2012

By js

Format:Hardcover

Once again, a wonderful book that is a must-have for mid-century modern enthusiasts. There are eight homes featured in this book, all are great examples of mid-century style, yet each is very different than the next. It shows the diversity of the period.

Being the 2nd Atomic Ranch book, I do feel like this one leans a bit more towards the upscale luxury home than the first book. Although stunning and inspiring with jaw-dropping views and expanses of natural light, I do wish a couple more "working class heroes" had been featured. That said, my favorite house featured in this book is actually the most modest - a 1955 traditional ranch in Tulsa, OK. I feel that this house is such a familiar example that can be found pretty much anywhere in the country, a modest dream house that is within reach of many homeowners, rather than a gigantic McMansion with far too much square footage. This home feels like...well, *home*.

The book contains lots of useful tips. I will definitely use it as a reference when remodeling my own mid-century home. The bathroom fixture resources are particularly helpful, as it is difficult to find era-appropriate toilets, sinks, and faucets at your average big-box home store.

I do love that each home has a very different paint palette. Many mid-century homes seem to be stuck in a pink/yellow/turquoise pastel scheme, so I like that different bold options were featured, showing that personal taste and bold choices, as well as understated neutrals, and yes, period-appropriate pastels, will still all work well in these homes.

I'll continue to reference this book for inspiration throughout my own renovations. While I'll be dreaming about the 4,000+ square footer overlooking the mountains of Oregon, I'll be quite content with using the smaller, more traditional ranchers to influence my choices for my own cozy little MCM gem.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Brillant Jewel of a Coffee Table book March 9, 2012

By zef

Format:Hardcover

As you can see from the front cover Modernism is not just Black+White and this gorgeous book takes a leisurely stroll through 8 Mid-Century Modern houses rather than a quick look at many. Rather than just a hook-up, the extensive photos of each house will pull you into a relationship very much in the concept of Giedion's "Space-Time Architecture". The 23 page spread of the Szwarcberg Residence ( Eichler renovation designed by Mark J Marcinik , M110 Architecture) has the time to reveal itself as a throughly integrated architectural experience from the Mid-Century Modern, center mounted, front door knob to a new de-constructed, post punk Master Bathroom. The art of living is back so let this book romance you by its look at the extreme depth of Modernism.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved the book May 17, 2012

By Mike

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

8 very different examples of mid-century ranches. Each house is described in detail in a,separate chapter so you really get a feel for them. None of the houses are decorated too 1950's "kitch". I especially enjoyed the purple aluminum kit house from Brighton, NY. It's a very interesting house with a pleasing mix of aluminum, brick, and wood materials.