Splatter painting!

The technology doesn't really exist for true glitter laminate anymore, because now all laminates are digital pictures, but glitter laminate actually had glitter sprinkled in it.

Ages ago I decoupaged a piece of MDF with scrapbook paper and ribbon. I used it as the top for a kitchen table that needed a new top. I am still surprised at how well it held up to spills and so on for years. Not exactly high brow, but it was a lot of fun and I never worried about it. When I moved from that house, we got rid of the table, but we did cut down a piece of the MDF top to use as a desk over some filing cabinets. I think creating your own plywood counters is definitely worth a shot. If they don't work out, you haven't invested that much anyhow... (sorry for the mess in the picture, just snapped a quick one)

What a happy surface to work on! :)

Oh, my goodness, that second sample looks like what I grew up with in a house built in the 50's. When my mom sold the house a few years ago, it was still there, a bit faded, but we figured it made more sense to let the new owner replace it with a pattern of her choosing.

Please, no splatter painting! I bought a house once that was completely covered in it. Every vanity, every counter, kitchen cupboards, even closet doors :o

Have you looked at some of the great retro patterns that Formica has brought back, Lass? While I haven't noticed the two you posted, I've seen a bunch of other great ones.

When we were demoing our house I was struck by the bold choices previous 1920s-1948 owners had made. The kitchen countertops were pink with gold glitter and under the vinyl flooring was three layers of bold, bright floral linoleums. It's a bit on the conservative side, but Retro Renovation tipped me off to the dogbone pattern so now the white colorway of dogbone is at the top of my countertop list. It's going to be a while before we get to the kitchen, I think, so I still have time to go with something bolder.

Thanks for sharing you colorful, retro kitchen journey with us.

Mike- Is that paper in the bottom center? That top is amazing! :)

My other idea is just a solid aqua counter....but it might show marks. Glitter? LOL

You know, I LOVE that kitchen! Aqua glitter? Love the color. I don't know, I am not quite sold yet on the glitter.... :-)

I admit, I prefer the solid aqua option. I grew up with laminates, and remember the dark seams, peeling away bits, dark chips ... However, you can make almost anything into a counter top with resin now, or so it seems.

My parents built their house in 1962, and that white spun gold glitter (or one just like it) is still there in their kitchen today. It's in shockingly good shape. A few knife marks, but other than that it's held up amazingly well.

The solid aqua/turquoise is really pretty! :)

I like the gold nugget, too.

Wilsonart has a few retro laminates, even a boomerang/skylark called, get ready for this, "Retro".
http://www.wilsonart.com/commercial/laminates/designs?filterColor=&filterStyle=fad98ce5-3e42-6a3d-bc33-ff00009529b6&cabinetStyle=

Why did the old '60's laminate hold up so much better than '80's laminates?

The butcher block look laminate in my first home (1981) was just awful - easily chipped, peeling, coming apart at seams. The old ones in my grandparents' homes similar to those above hardly showed signs of wear, even though they suffered harder use.

They probably had more asbestos and formaldehyde in them ;)

Possibly...but I think they were thicker and not so 'paper' thin. I have a friend, who has these gorgeous laminate countertops. Very 70s with leaves (greens against white) as countertop and backsplash.

She hates them and wants to replace them with granite. I keep telling her to remove them carefully and I'll buy them for the greenhouse/porch. They would be perfect :)

Wilsonart has some retro patterns available, this is one.

Wow, some of the new patterns are amazing! And the names! Pionite has a color called "Graveyard of the Atlantic" I love it!

You made me look it up! It's not as interesting as I'd hoped.

My 93 year old grandma had the white and gold one. I have always loved it.

I love that aqua top... And yep, the whole top i made was paper

My mom still has the White & Gold - or something very similar. It's original to the house that may dad and grandfather built (with help from some specialists, like a mason) in 1960. The cabinets are not cabinets like we have today - they're site-built and the back wall of the cabinets are actually the wall of the house. The cabinets and counters are 55 years old!

We all grew up in that house and my mom still lives there!

I have found my tribe :-) My SIL has an old 60's orange countertop she hates but I love lol. We looked everywhere for just the right retro laminate, but 90% of it was faux wood, faux stone, we really wanted a sparkle laminate and didn't want to "settle" for one that wasn't quite right, so we are doing black laminate with metal edging. But what I really wanted was a starburst or a glitter....

I have found my tribe, too! The only reason why I'm not going with laminate in my remodel is that I want undermount sinks. Although I have toyed with the idea of having my sink bases covered with stainless customized to fit my sinks and then doing laminate from the sink base edge out. Gosh, just when I think I'm set on DIY zinc counters, this post brings me back to my lust for fun laminate....not a boring stone-look either. If I did it, I'd have exposed plywood edges (baltic birch or apple-ply as the edges are stunning) even though I also love the look of the metal edging.

I would keep my current laminate which is the White Spungold (second photo in OP) if I wasn't changing my layout. It's 44 years old and looks almost brand-new except in a couple of obscure places. So we'll probably move it to the outdoor kitchen we're going to create under the covered part of our patio. Love it.

I'd really like to know why the older stuff holds up so much better too. My parents 1962 white laminate with the gold flecks is still going strong. Trust me, no one in that house ever babied that counter top either. Anything that stains it is just temporary (and scoured out with Comet, for heaven's sake!) and it's amazingly resistant to being cut or damaged.

This was a budget counter top in a pretty basic 1960's ranch house.

I have to agree...ours is still 1965 white laminate (no gold flecks) and it's bulletproof. We should be ashamed of how we treat that counter, but it always cleans up perfectly. Not one chip anywhere. Amazing.

Funkycamper, good idea to reuse your vintage Formica in your outdoor kitchen!

At least Wilsonart has come out with some interesting patterns. This has been a fun thread to brainstorm ideas. Mermanmike, thanks for posting your table top!

this is what we used to have in our old kitchen....i have to say i hated it, so ugly IMO, hated the color but i will say, it held up great., i totally mistreated it and always clean up nice. we now have it on the W&D.... my guess it was from the 60's??? i absolutely agree, it was so much stronger then than now.

I am really surprised they have not re-released some of these since the mid-century moderns have really come back in popularity. I like the white with gold stars.

I like the specks of blood look in that one!

so hideous, right?? ugly pea green color. our oven was the same color, worse than harvest gold, imo

Oh my gosh I am cracking up. The second sample in the original post (white with gold speckles) is STILL IN OUR KITCHEN. Which is what brings me here - we are getting ready to tear it OUT. Its in amazing shape considering it is 54 years old.

Ummm, my countertops are mostly 3' to 4' long.....LOL

Seriously, the more I look at the options, the more I wish the old laminates were still around! I think many of you are right...they do NOT make them the way they used to and they don't hold up as well.

So, plywood it probably will be. I'm kind of liking the idea of aqua countertops. Just wondering if I should go for a light dose of glitter. It's really easy to OD on glitter :)

I have a mudroom cabinet with a White Spungold counter. It was in the house when we bought it, I would guess it's 50 years old. I love it, it is indestructible, the scrubby side of the sponge is all I've ever needed to use on it. If I could get more I would use it in our kitchen remodel. The finish on the new(er) Formicas seems less durable.

Maybe you could try this: An Ode to Glitter Formica

My father, who is 93, still lives in the house where I grew up in California. He has ivory Formica with gold glitter in his kitchen that was last remodeled in 1960. He also has a Dish Master faucet, the one where the soap is loaded into the container under the brush. When I visit him, it is like I have stepped back into my childhood.

Iroll- That is an awesome link! :)

I have used Abet Laminati, maybe you would like some of their patterns:

http://abetlaminati.com/products-page/laminate/patterns1/

Here are a few--

Oh, cookncarpenter, that is my second favorite pattern after boomerang! And it still looks like new. The old stuff lasted forever.

Unfortunately I still have the original 1967 bathroom in our brick ranch

Included medication cabinet light fixture