How American Kitchens Looked The Year You Were Born

In the early 1950s, it was all about convenience and cutting-edge novelty, ushering in a brave new era of time-saving appliances like dishwashers. Although the machines were invented in the 1850s, primitive models were neither practical nor universally accessible (via Home Stratosphere). Fortunately, the 1950s proved a golden age for mommy's little helpers, and the domestic devices began popping up in higher-end homes fitted to kitchen counters for easy access and usability.

Popular Science notes that the dishwasher revolution was tied to a significant trend of kitchen efficiency and came alongside other advances like cold water taps and customizable counters. There were even some sci-fi adjacent trends like smart kitchens and super-powered ovens, although they never caught on quite to the effect that now-standard appliances like dishwashers did. Today, it's almost impossible to imagine a modern kitchen without a dishwasher, but these machines were transformative in the early 1950s.

Formica was huge in the 1950s (via The Guardian), and most postwar homes had scores of wipeable, shiny surfaces in their kitchens. Although plenty of 1950s kitchens boasted the kind of dreamy saturated pastel Formica colors that dominated the walls and furniture, some went in a different direction. According to This Old House, boomerang-patterned Formica hit its stride during the 1950s. The playful pattern of interlocking and overlaying boomerang shapes cropped up everywhere, adorning counters and backsplashes with its whimsical design.

San Francisco Gate notes that the official name for boomerang-patterned Formica is Skylark. The design is highly identifiable both with the 1950s and the material itself. Although there were plenty of other patterns and styles in every color of the rainbow, the boomerang pattern stuck. Perhaps it was a nod to bold 1950s kitchen fashions or a subtle look ahead into what the swinging '60s would bring. Either way, the style was utterly iconic.

Although open-plan kitchens might be falling slightly out of vogue (via My Domaine), they've had an excellent run over the decades. Issues aside, people still love the idea of sprawling open spaces without barriers between the kitchen and living room. The trend toward open kitchens really started in the 1960s (via Click Americana), facilitating more spacious environments and allowing for conversation between the dining room and kitchen.

The perks of open kitchens were virtually limitless, making tiny kitchens feel suddenly larger and more accommodating and even prompting airflow throughout the house. 1960s Revco, Inc.'s book "How to Plan a Trend-Setting Kitchen" visually illustrates how opening up your kitchen can double your space and provide more area for conversation and comfort across the two rooms. Even though the trend is waning, many home-buyers still desire open-plan spaces, proving that this kitchen idea is one of the greats (via My Domaine).

While bright and bold appliances were par for the kitchen course during the 1960s, refrigerators also underwent a transformation during this decade — they swelled. According to Big Chill, the 1960s were the age of frozen dinners and gigantic freezers, a reflection of the changing dynamics of the American family and slowly shifting gender roles. As Smithsonian Magazine points out, Americans began purchasing television sets in the late 1950s and 1960s, charting the course for one of the most convenient inventions in history: the TV dinner.

With the twin benefits of practicality and cost — plus celebrity endorsements from the likes of mega-stars such as Barbara Streisand (via Smithsonian Magazine) — TV dinners and frozen fare were all the rage. In addition, the slick, substantial refrigerators of 1960s kitchens were large enough to hold plenty of family-friendly meals and frozen add-ins for semi-homecooked meals, embracing a faster food revolution that would come to define the end of the 1960s (via National Museum of American History).

The mid-1970s kitchen had its own sense of hip maximalism, thanks to fun backsplashes and cool tile work. According to Tile Club, the 1970s glam aesthetic benefitted from two distinct influences: natural colors and the disco era. As a result, these funky tile designs often featured 1970s colors like avocado, deep yellow, brown, and rustic orange, but with geometric patterns that made the backsplash or countertop stand out.

Additionally, 1970s tile work often relied on a deliberately mismatched aesthetic, combining complementary colors in unexpected patterns. While the general feel was usually the same, the look was slightly off-kilter and cool. If one of your cherished childhood memories is wandering into the kitchen and getting instantly hypnotized by the area behind your stove, you may just be a 1970s kid. Interestingly enough, tile work would resurface a few years later, proving the staying power of this quirky trend.

Early '70s babies might have fond memories of doing their homework at the kitchen table island. According to Yahoo Finance, the current concept of a kitchen island has been around since the '50s, popping up in some shape or form to aid with the cooking and prep work. The reason that they came to define the late 1970s and early part of the 1980s was their sheer size. As Yahoo Finance notes, the kitchen island was a central hub in the early part of the 1980s, making this standalone feature one that you'll undoubtedly remember if you grew up in the decade.

By the 1980s, kitchen islands had swelled to the point where they almost masqueraded as dining room tables, taking the idea of an open kitchen to brave new levels. According to Dakan Homes, prominent islands were the center of kitchens in the '70s and '80s, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a modern home without one.

The 1980s embraced nature in its own way, with country-style kitchens that delivered big on wholesomeness and charming cute touches. According to Homes & Gardens, this design was a staple of the '80s with details like luxe warm golden wood cabinets, delicate hardware, and homespun tile and fabric patterns. So if your childhood memories include a lot of gingham, rustic-looking tin decorations, hanging cookware items, and plenty of natural wood, you might have grown up with a 1980s country kitchen.

Houzz Magazine notes that these kitchens vied for a rustic, farmhouse feel, and suggests that you can achieve this epic mid-80s aesthetic by keeping the country style but eliminating the honey wood and other dated elements. While qualities of 1980s country kitchens, like the sweet innocent patterns and hanging kitchen equipment, certainly read as lovely and timeless, others should certainly be put onto the chopping block of history.

If you want to spot a 1980s or 1990s kitchen, look at the color of the cabinets and hardware. According to The Washington Post, brass was big in the 1990s. While this brash metal looked pretty fabulous in kitchens three decades ago, it doesn't have the same allure today and it immediately dates a space. Fortunately, it's also something you can change fairly quickly if you want to upgrade your kitchen from retro 1990s to modern and refined.

The Washington Post notes that '90s brass fixtures don't have to send your kitchen back to the days before "Friends." Instead, you can simply switch out old brassy doorknobs or light fixtures for something in more modern silver or black. If you're feeling extra-DIY, you can even de-shine your brass with a good buffing. Natural-looking brass fixtures are a chic and updated alternative to the Day-Glo shimmering stuff.

The French blue cabinets of a few years prior turned out to be a prelude for another European inspiration that was about to take the kitchen world by storm. Tuscan kitchens displaying massive, open, homey spaces with plenty of rich colors, natural wooden accents, and exposed stone, became intensely popular. If your kitchen looked more like Naples than New York growing up, you probably had a Tuscan-inspired decor.

According to Saratoga Living, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Tuscan kitchens were defined by an artful interplay of rougher elements and modern amenities. They also had plenty of rustic touches, like artificial arches or exposed bricks. Although not mandatory, many Tuscan kitchens borrowed a page from the '80s playbook by incorporating large family-centric kitchen islands. These kitchen designs also came in various color schemes, but rich deeply saturated hues and natural tones like umber and brick were pretty standard (via Love to Know).

According to Style by Emily Henderson, accent walls were one of the hottest pieces of decor in the early and mid-2000s, allowing homeowners to inject a room with personality without slathering the entire space in vibrant colors. The so-called color pop was a great way to add detail and interest, and all you needed was a tiny bit of paint and some elbow grease. Accent walls transcended all rooms of the home, making their way into stylish kitchens in the form of breakfast nooks and alcoves.

Although accent walls often came in complementary colors, some people really exercised their creative muscles with textured prints and designs, turning the entire space into an immobile work of art. Of course, part of the allure was that you could simply paint it back if you decided you didn't like it anymore. This versatility and ease of application are probably why accent walls are making a considerable resurgence (via Family Handyman).

America's love affair with mason jars is fraught with both admiration and disdain for the slightly-awkward, rustic, old-timely jars. As The Outline points out, mason jars are kind of tricky to sip from, and consuming a proper meal from them is next-level difficult. Still, a few short years ago, mason jars not only stood in for cups and plates but were also prominent decorative items in kitchens all across the United States. 

Smithsonian Magazine notes that mason jars weren't always the darlings of hipster dinner parties. Once upon a time, they were pragmatic rather than whimsical. As late-aughts kitchens embraced the trend, mason jars evolved into a hipster staple (via The Atlantic). While some people welcomed the movement as charming and sustainable, others flocked to the internet to mock the mason jar and other hipster serving vessels that were more wacky than functional.