Love it!

How cute! Maybe a Magic Eraser would work on the yellow spots. Give it a gentle try and see what happens.

It's so cute, and it seems like it would be a lot handier than having everything thrown in a drawer.

I love it too! Looks to be in really good condition. Great find!!

Cool! We had something similar in my house growing up. My dad insisted that the paper towels NOT be seen! I think ours was stainless.

lol! we had something similar too (in stainless) that my mom probably got in the late 50's-early 60's...

i didn't particularly love using it...didn't like the way things tore off it and then remember not liking to have to roll the rolls back up into the container. my mom didn't use the paper towel holder part for towels--- i think she kept plastic bags in the bottom for some reason...(maybe the rolls of PT were too big for it?)

What a great find! Love it! And now you have the perfect place for paper towels. Why is this always such a dilemma? At least for me anyway. I did away with paper towels mostly because I didn't have a place for them, and I didn't want them out.

Re--getting the yellowed grease off--I've linked a site that has step-by-step directions.

Here is a link that might be useful: cleaning grease off painted surfaces

Thanks for the link mjsee, some good tips there. Well, I haven't put any rolls of paper in it yet myself, so we shall see how functional it is. Plus I'm still on that newly remodeled kitchen high and have to think long and hard about pounding a nail in the beadboard walls to hang anything. The paper holder was just so me, I had to have it.

This same shop had one of those long narrow mail centers, not sure what to call it, but you put mail in one pocket, receipts in another, memos in one,ect. It was also metal, same color as the paper holder and with colorful designs on the pockets. The owner said she found it in its original box and doesn't think it was ever used. I was tempted but knew I wouldn't use it, and I'm not one to stick artificial flowers in something like that. I prefer to use them as originally intended as much as possible.

As far as paper towels, I always thought they were such a waste of money and used dish towels or older towels as rags to clean up with; but one time I needed to drain some bacon and suddenly I was using them for other things. Got in the habit of buying and using them for small clean ups and microwave cooking. A cheap three roll pack lasts me a long time. busybee, that isn't a bad idea about keeping plastic bags in there.

I grew up in the late 60's and 70's, and my best friends mother had one of those on her wall. I always thought it was the neatest device. The parents recently dies of old age and the house was put on the market. I took a look at the house online, and the kitchen had not changed one bit!

What a great find!

Lysol kitchen cleaner is pretty good on grease. Greased Lightning is even better.

Love it. I remember my aunt had something silar in the 60's.

If regular household cleaning products don't work, try a bleach mixture. The old metal kitchen appliances and cabinets used to yellow with age, smoke, grease, etc when homes were not properly vented and heating systems were not as clean and efficient. You might try a spot on the back to make sure the paint will hold up to it, but in most cases the old oil-base enamel paint like what is on your dispenser will hold up nicely to a good bleach cleaning.

I put plastic wrap where the wax paper should be and then foil and paper towels respectively. Works, just lift up the compartment enough to pull out the paper, close, and tear. Also I took a rag with some Dawn dish washing liquid and lightly scrubbed it. Lots of smudges and even black marks came off. The yellowed areas not so much, but I'll try other treatments.

So what most of you are saying is that this is from the 1960's? Thanks.

It's adorable! Just guessing but I don't think it's from the '60s. Looks more like the late '40s to me. Go ahead and hang it. A nail hole in wood can easily be filled with wood putty, sanded flat and smooth, and re-painted to totally disappear, should you change your mind later.

Love that! What a great find!

Love it, what a great find! Just judging by the colors used, I would guess earlier than the 60's also. I'd agree with Oceanna, 40's probably. The 50's things became more streamlined and chromed.

oh that's adorable--i want!!

Very cool.

I love that dispenser, but couldn't believe that it could be from the 40's or 50's til I googled how long paper towels had been around. For some reason I thought they were invented in the 60's.

Very cute! Love it! and it's a great find....

Thanks all, and the price wasn't bad either - $22. As I continued shopping that day, I had to open the bag occasionally and share it with other shop keepers. They loved it too, remarked how good of shape it was in. Interesting bit about paper towels. I never thought to look that up.

Schoolhouse, we use waxed paper a lot in our house. It is a good wrap for the microwave. I never use plastic wrap there. I also use it on cans of dog food in the fridge, with a rubber band to hold it on.

Altho I don't use it often, I always keep a box of waxed paper in the cupboard, mostly for baking or for layering cookies and such in containers. Also I make cracker crumbs by putting crackers in between sheets of wax paper and using the rolling pin. I guess that's something I saw my Mom doing while I was growing up.

Very cool ! I remember seeing them in lots of homes in OH when I was growing up. I sure would go back and get the other piece too......or even more cool...make some pretty paper flowers to put in..but I would use it to sort mail :)