Formica, the hard-wearing wipe-clean surface, identified with kitchens from the Fifties kitchens, is becoming increasingly popular. According to Homeinspiration website, formica, which reaches its 100th birthday this year, is fast becoming the material of choice for top kitchen designers. Formica was first created in the US in 1913 as an electrical insulator in place of expensive mica. When its potential for domestic use was realised, it rapidly became the must-have dcor in the post-war years. However, by the Seventies, formica gradually began to be replaced by the fashion for natural materials such as stone, wood and marble. Now Homeinspiration is saying that 70 percent of homeowners are opting for a good kitchen laminate again.