I purchased my 1926 Craftsman bungalow in 2004. I fell in love with the large front porch, stained glass windows and efficient floor plan. With four bedrooms, two down with a bathroom between, and two upstairs, it was a typical 1920’s home. The bathroom had been remodeled by the previous owner. It was done in typical arts and crafts colors and included some wonderful details, like Pewabic Pottery art tiles. Unfortunately, the bathtub was eliminated to accommodate a large shower.

In the 21st century, homes with four bedrooms typically also have two bathrooms, and in addition, I felt the house needed at least one bathtub. Fortunately, there was a space at the top of the stairs on the second floor that had been described as an attic in the sales description. This room was a large, open, dark space with a sloping roof line that had been used for storage. My vision was to turn this room into a second bathroom, thoroughly modern, but appropriate to the period in which the house was built. I had done a lot of research, using American Bungalow and several other magazines and books as resources and knew I wanted a white, “sanitary” bathroom in keeping with the philosophy of the time.

I had never tackled a project like this before and knew I needed the help of professionals. I had read horror stories of people arguing with architects and contractors, who tried to push them into all things modern. I wanted especially to find an architect who at least appreciated historical design (no recessed lighting in my house!), but who ideally was an Arts and Crafts enthusiast. Fortunately I found the right architect, Antonio Craparotta of The Pegasus Group, Inc., who also has a Craftsman bungalow, which he is presently restoring. Antonio understood exactly what I was trying to accomplish, worked closely with me to design my 1920’s bathroom, and consulted with me regularly throughout the process. Although long (16 feet), the sloping roofline allowed for only a 5 foot wide room, just enough space for a standard bathtub at one end and a linen closet at the other.

Opening a wall in the stairwell to the basement allowed the installation of the plumbing and electrical without too much damage and disruption (although the jack hammer brought in to open a trench in the basement floor was kind of scary). An operable skylight provided much needed natural light and ventilation.

White subway tile was the perfect choice for my period bathroom wainscot. And I knew white octagon was right for the floor. I fell in love with mosaic glass tile while on one of many tile seeking expeditions, and these were incorporated in both the floor (octagon corner inserts) and walls (ribbon border and mosaics). Finding just the right 1” tiles to go in each application was tedious. In fact, tiles I originally chose were not true 1” x 1” and after consulting with the tilesetter, who did not like the wide grout line that those tiles would require, it was back to the drawing board. I went online and found Susan Jablon Mosaics and the perfect 1” x 1” glass mosaic for the floor. In addition, Antonio designed three lovely little mosaics for the shower area, where we incorporated art tiles from Motawi Tileworks. There is a lot of tile in my bathroom, and the tile installation took several days. Fortunately, Chad Schultz from HBS Floors & More is a perfectionist, and this shows in the final product.

I chose plumbing fixtures from American Standard. The console sink, medicine cabinet and faucets are from the Standard Collection, which are reproductions of 1920’s designs. I chose a console sink in order to keep as much of the floor space open as possible, given the narrow width of the space. The other fixtures are also white and plain, with the only concession to 21st century tastes being the whirlpool tub.

The room turned out brighter and larger than I could have hoped for. Now I have a beautiful, brand new bathroom that looks like it could have been in the house when it was built! Are you restoring your 1920's Arts and Crafts home? If so, we'd love to hear about it. Send us your story and photos