When deciding what to write about next for my readers I sometimes look at past posts and how they have done (I review the stats). One of those popular posts has ended up being on ‘The beautiful world of 1940s Linoleum Flooring“. It has top billing in my stats every single day! Which made me think that clearly I need to do another version of Vintage Design Ideas (or close too) for the modern home.

In the past I have written about “Vintage Formica Tables” but I have never done a post on just vintage advertising for Formica from the 1940s, 1950s & 1960s! I think it’s time I do!

Let’s begin spining the seach engine wheel to see what we find (be prepared for some stunning mid century designs!)!

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from eBay are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

NOTE: If you click on any of the items featured below and they are not available, don’t fret! Hit the search button and see what else is on the websites. There are 1000’s and 1000’s of items being listed daily.

1950s / early 1960s vintage ad for Formica tops for your kitchen. Image features a mid century kitchen.

Source: eBay

Formica-For the Vintage Styled Home

First up..WHAT IS FORMICA? It’s LAMINATE!

Formica Laminate is a laminated composite material invented at the Westinghouse Electric Corporation in the United States in 1912. Originally used to replace mica in electrical applications, it has since been manufactured for a variety of applications. Today, the product is produced by New Zealand–based Formica Group, and has been since 2007.

The word Formica refers to the company’s classic product: a heat-resistant, wipe clean laminate of paper or textile with melamine resin (Source).

For today’s post we are going to focus on ‘Decorative Laminate/Formica’. Decorative laminates have greater aesthetic appeal in terms of finishes and patterns. Decorative laminates can be used for doing ornamental overlays on furniture (Source).

Vintage 1950s Formica table top salesman sample pieces, set of 8 Mid Century designs.

I want the design on the right!

Vintage 1950s Formica Table Top Salesman Sample Pieces RARE Set of 8 Mid Century

Source: eBay

Vintage Advertising for Formica 1940s-1960s

1948 Vintage Ad-“Formica is friends with the family.

A poem…

“What makes some homes such friendly places

Where smiles abound on happy faces?

Do colours clean and cheerful bright

Make coming home a real delight?

But daily use is the final test,

True beauty’s active….not at rest.

So have a home your proud to show,

Yet spare the kids that sharp “no, no!”

Formica’s beauty is in useful living,

In the abuse it takes…and the joy it’s giving.

1940s vintage ad from 1948 for Formica for all the different counter tops in your home.

Source: eBay

1941 Formica kitchen dinette breakfast table print ad.

1940s vintage ad: 1941 Formica Kitchen Dinette Breakfast Table furniture design vintage print ad

Source: eBay

“Hundreds of Pictures of Formica Furniture to Live with“. Vintage advertising print ad from 1956 for a Formica Furniture Shopper Guide. LOVE the 1950s purple skirt and top on our model and of course the Mid Century Designs!

1950s vintage ad: Vintage advertising print ad from 1956 for a Formica Furniture Shopper Guide. LOVE the 1950s purple skirt and top on our model and of course the Mid Century Designs!

Source: eBay

1956 ad showcasing another housewife in her mid century kitchen.

1950s vintage ad: 1956 vintage AD FORMICA kitchens Very 1950s Style mid century kitchen design

Ebay

“Formica, that’s the ticket!”. 1952 vintage ad featuring two 1950s housewives with signs supporting the purchase of Formica for their homes.

11950s vintage ad: 1952 Formica: That's the Ticket Vintage Print Ad featuring 2 1950s housewives holding signs. 1950s vintage hairstyle inspiration

Source: eBay

Make sure you buy Genuine Formica! Don’t get fooled by the imitators! 1950s ad featuring a Formica dining table and another 1950s housewife setting the table.

1950s Vintage ad featuring a Formica dining table and a 1950s housewife in a 1950s dress.

Source: eBay

1954 Ad featuring a blue Formica Kitchen counter tops and bubble gum pink chairs.

1950s vintage ad from 1954 for Formica featuring a Mid Century Kitchen and blue formica counter tops and pink chairs.

Source: eBay

1961 Formica ad. “Always check for the Formica Label”!

1960s vintage ad: 1961 Formica: Trustworthy Loyal Vintage Print Ad featuring an illustration of a man and woman in a furniture store buying a formica table.

Source: eBay

Formica is not just for the kitchen, you also can add it to your bathroom/washroom as seen in this 1966 ad.

Yikes carpet in the bathroom..NOPE!

1960s vintage ad from 1966 featuring a formica bathroom counter top and carpet in the bathroom in blue colour. The woman is wearing a 1960s dress.

Source: eBay

Add Formica to your walls, doors, counters and furniture for the perfect 1960s classroom as seen in this 1966 ad.

1960s vintage ad from 1966 featuring Formica for your classroom.

Source: eBay

Formica for stylish 1950s side cupboards. 1957 ad.

1950s vintage ad for Formica for stylish 1950s side cupboards. 1957 vintage ad.

Source: eBay

Lastly I wanted to share the competitions advertising from a 1957 vintage ad for General Electric Textolite (laminate surfacing) countertops. Look at those stunning patterns for your kitchen counters?!! Yooza!

1950s vintage ad for Textolite countertops, laminate surfacing, 1957 vintage ad featuringa 1950s mid century kitchen.

Thanks for stopping by friends!

Question Time! Are you a fan of Formica? Do you have any in your home right now? What ads did you like the best? Share your comments below, I love to hear from my readers.

FURTHER READING: Check out my archive of ‘Vintage Home Decor’ Posts HERE.

Liz

It’s that time of the month again….It’s August Vintage Magazine Covers (and yes I did forget to do May-July and that was because well…..2020). BUT I’m back and ready to browse the magazines!

If you are a regular reader of my vintage blog, you know that I have started a “vintage magazine cover”series for each month. It’s been really fun, to see what was popular topics and images on these covers from the 1920s to the 1950s.

Let’s begin!

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

July & August 1927 Dennison’s Party magazine: Decorations, Costumes, Games, Refreshments. “In this issue: Water Games & Sports, A Treasure Hunt, The Fourth of July Parade, A Garden Cabaret, The Children’s Party on the Lawn”.

Source: High Valley Books

Social, August 1920 featuring a very stylish woman in a 1920s swimsuit and jacket. Social was an illustrated monthly magazine that circulated in Cuba between 1916 and 1938. It was known for its quality and high artistic value.

Social, August 1920. Social was an illustrated monthly magazine that circulated in Cuba between 1916 and 1938. It was known for its quality and high artistic value. 1920s vintage magazine cover.

Source: Pinterest

“Toy Sailboat,” Saturday Evening Post Cover, August 1, 1925 by Charles A. MacLellan.

Source: Art.com

Vintage British Mabs Fashions magazine from August – October 1935, complete with the patterns for the garments illustrated on the front cover. Click HERE to see inside.

Vintage British Mabs Fashions magazine from August - October 1935, complete with the patterns for the garments illustrated on the front cover. 1930s vintage magazine

Source: Etsy

August 1937 Better Homes & Gardens magazine (The orange awnings are cute).

This interesting vintage magazine is filled with photos, ads, articles, and all sorts of inspiration for those interested in 1930s home decorating, furniture, interior design, gardening, cooking, and more.

Articles of interest include: Delphiniums Steal the Show, The Great American Dessert, Tomatoes Take Prizes, Menu for a Moveable Feast, The Artcraft Department, The Diary of a Plain Dirt Gardener, We Found Buried, Treasure, A HOme Without Any Headaches, Try Living Outside, For Summer Lounging, and of course, lots of vintage ads and more. Take a look inside HERE.

1930s Better Homes & Gardens magazine August 1937 complete issue furniture home decor gardening recipes DIY retro design vintage ads. 1930s vintage magazine.

Source: Etsy

Cosmopolitan magazine, August 1935. Artist: Bradshaw Crandell.

Source: Pinterest

The American magazine cover, August 1935 with the cutest 1930s swimsuit on the covers model.

The American magazine cover, August 1935. 1930s vintage magazine cover.

Source: Tumblr

Card Game at the Beach, Saturday Evening Post Cover, August 28, 1943 (love the swimsuits!). Anyone interested in hearing about the New England Orgy?

Card Game at the Beach, Saturday Evening Post Cover, August 28, 1943. 1940s vintage magazine cover.

Source: Etsy

The American Home, August 1941. Look at the prices of those homes? $6000 with a pool! And only $3800 for a 100% masculine house (I see this is the man issue).

The American Home, August 1941. Vintage Magazine featuring 1940s homes. 1940s vintage magazine cover.

Source: Etsy

Star Weekly, Toronto August 23rd, 1941 with a wounded soldier and a nurse helping him.

1941 Star Weekly Toronto Magazine Cover. 1940s vintage magazine cover.

Source: Elinor Florence

Profitable Hobbies magazine August 1946. Meet the King of the crocheters!

Profitable Hobbies Magazine August 1946 featuring an image of a man crocheting. 1940s vintage magazine cover.

Source: Etsy

Jet Magazine, August 21st, 1952 featuring Estelle Price (with a really fantastic 1950s pageboy hairstyle ).

Jet Magazine August 21st, 1952 featuring Etelle Price on the cover. Magazine for Black Men and Women. 1950s vintage magazine cover.

Source: Pinterest

August 1952 Woman’s Home Companion magazine featuring fruity 1950s desserts (ohhh jello!) and the Fall Fashion Preview (it’s a good one!). Take a look inside HERE.

August 1952 Woman's Home Companion magazine featuring fruity 50s desserts and the Fall Fashion Preview (it's a good one!). 1950s vintage magazine.

Source: Etsy

Ebony magazine, August, 1959 with Roy Campanella (Baseball Player inducted into the baseball hall of fame).

Ebony Magazine, August, 1959 with Roy Campanella (Black Baseball Player inducted into the baseball hall of fame) on the cover. 1950s vintage magazine cover.

Source: Pinterest

The beautiful, vibrant flower filled cover of the August 1953 edition Today’s Woman magazine (“for young wives”). Inside: “Tips on Garden Flower Arrangements”.

The beautiful, vibrant flower filled cover of the August 1953 edition Today's Woman magazine ("for young wives"). 1950s vintage magazine cover.

Souce: Flickr

I remember when I was younger being so excited to get the fashion magazines that featured the fall fashions I could wear to school. This magazine brings me back.

Seventeen Magazine, August 1959. 26 new hair styles and the giant fashion issue.

Source: Pinterest

Thanks for joining me on this trip down August magazine covers land. See you in September!

Question time: What was your favourite cover? Share in the comments section below.

Interested in other posts I have done on vintage magazines? Then check out my archived posts HERE.

Liz

Tag: vintage advertising

Vintage Formica Advertising 1940s-1960s

Formica-For the Vintage Styled Home

First up..WHAT IS FORMICA? It’s LAMINATE!

Vintage Advertising for Formica 1940s-1960s

August Vintage Magazine Covers