I love my 1962 ranch house because it is mostly original and I can choose what I want to change instead of having to undo someone else’s “updates.” But, while I adore vintage bathrooms (especially the pink ones!), my original master bathroom is simply not cutting it in terms of function and cleanliness, plus its drab and dirty decor looks out of place with the rest of my cheerful house. That’s why — after living in our house and with this bathroom for 2 years — I’ve decided it is time to replace this old, original bathroom with the retro-modern bathroom of my dreams. I didn’t make this decision lightly — it’s a significant expense to remodel, for sure — but I count at least 12 reasons it’s time to renovate.
1. My master bathroom is mauve. I’m not one to shy away from color… I’ve decorated with everything from bright orange to mint green, but mauve is my least favorite color ever. When I wake up and go into my master bathroom, this color is just not communicating the bright, happy retro modern vibe that I long for. Even so, as much as I dislike mauve, I’m not one to base the need for a remodel on color alone. There are several other issues with my master bathroom that need to be fixed and quite frankly, it stresses me out!
Let’s start with the biggest offender, the shower. At first glance, it doesn’t look that bad…until you notice a few things…
2. At some point, the previous owners needed to repair the shower pipes, which necessitated removing some of the mauve tile. Instead of searching high and low for an exact match (they weren’t retro enthusiasts as many of us are), they replaced the missing mauve tiles with some brown tiles and called it “good enough.”
3. The grout is also cracking in the shower, which is not good at all. Cracked grout can allow water to get into all sorts of places that it shouldn’t be. This needs to be fixed ASAP.
4. There is no where to put shampoo, conditioner, body wash, etc. in this shower. I had to rig up a few suction cup containers and this shower caddy to get the job done. Not an ideal situation at all! Added bonus of this set up: Every once in a while the suction cup containers release from the wall in the middle of the night while we are sleeping, which scares us!
5. The final issue with the shower is the size of it. It is pretty cramped. An average sized person like myself takes no issue with this, but my tall husband with broad shoulders feels very claustrophobic, not to mention he has the tendency to accidentally bump the shower door open with his elbow while he is washing his hair, which gets water everywhere.
Next we move along to the sink area. At first glance this looks like an excellent example of a peachy keen retro sink, complete with hudee ring…
6. …upon further examination, you can see that the sink is rusting. I have tried and tried to get the rust off, but it always reappears after a few days. It probably has to do with the sink not draining well. Many times it will have standing water in it. We have tried cleaning out the pipes, but I think the whole drain line from the sink to the floor needs to be replaced. I’m sure there is 50 years of gunk in there just waiting for me to discover it.
7. The vintage faucet is also cool, but again 50 years of abuse has made it kinda crusty looking. It makes me sad because no matter how much I scrub, the sink never looks clean.
8. The years of moisture have taken their toll on the mirror and the wood trim on the window (the window itself is the only new thing in this bathroom).
9. The vanity is plywood and in decent shape. The two smaller drawers are great, but the pull out hamper smells like a thousand sweaty socks. I have tried nearly everything to rid it of that awful smell, but alas, I think the smell has embedded itself in the plywood. Now it is just a chunk of smelly wasted space.
10. There is a sad lack of towel bar space in this bathroom. All we have are these two bars, one works for the hand towels, but the other bar is not large enough to accommodate two bath towels while giving them adequate space to dry.
11. What this bathroom lacks in towel bar space, it makes up for in doors. There are two closets in the bathroom, the larger of which is where we keep our laundry baskets. It is very difficult to get them out of the closet and then out though the main bathroom door. It requires some tricky maneuvering skills and the doors constantly bang off each other.
12. The master bathroom also has plenty of light switches. There are a total of five different switches! When I remodel the space, I would like to have a fan timer switch and no more than two other switches. Five is far too many to keep track of!
This redo is going to be a gut remodel. I’m trying keep the cost down by moving as little plumbing as possible, but I am going to remove the mauve tile (which will basically necessitate new drywall), extend the tiny shower (to better accommodate my husband), replace the vanity, retile, paint and get all new hardware. From a design standpoint: My whole mantra is maintaining the retro while making it modern. I’m excited by the challenge of designing a new bathroom with the right retro vibe to fit the rest of the house.
I’ll be reporting on all the stages of my bathroom project here over the next several months. My next step is to draw up some plans and make a few mood board mock ups so I can source my materials. I’m also going to reread Pam’s bathroom remodeling checklist before I work out the budget. Stay tuned, this is going to be quite the job!
Genevieve says
We will be doing the same to our original kitchen cabinets, because while the cabinets are perfectly functional and attractive, the layout is non-functional and they can’t be salvaged. But we are the 6th owners (at least) since 1962, and even the original owners quickly built another house, using this as a “starter.” Fixing a functional issue and making a house work for you certainly beats trading up every seven to ten years. Sometimes families truly do outgrow homes, and the best thing is a larger home, as finances truly permit; but I’m not a fan of disposable homes. Just think about all the communities that have languished because moving into a newer community is easier than maintaining and fixing the old. Think about the level consumer debt, and the hours spent commuting further and further from work, the environmental waste. Think about the difference between a person who puts in sweat equity fixing what truly doesn’t work in their own home compared to those who are mainly interested in keeping up with trends and fashion for “resale.” Who is going to be more interested in making functional, needed changes in their own communities, based on what truly needs to be done? Who is going to do make community decisions based on what’s trendy, and who isn’t going to even bother with serving in the community because they haven’t any skin in the game. So make your home, your own home, and own it!
Minicommittee (Mary) says
I totally understand! My house is from 1963 and yours looks very similar in color to my hall bath…which is on the list to reinvent to a brighter more fun mid century coloring, once we finally finish the gutted bathroom from downstairs!
One thing we did learn…just wait until you pull those tiles from the shower…if it’s like ours…they very likely could just be tiled straight onto plywood…water resistant options weren’t so available then. This can be good and bad..easier to remove, but might discover hidden leakage. (The reason we have to redo the upper hall bath…leaky window+carpenter ants=problems!….it waits patiently).
I feel that keeping what we can that is original is great…IF you are lucky enough to have had the original be quality products…not all are. Also, not all are best for functioning today. One of the pieces I just couldn’t keep downstairs, even though it was the only thing worth keeping from a ‘not totally gross’ standpoint was the Nutone heating coil in the ceiling to dry/heat the bathroom. I just kept thinking of the electric meter spinning out of control when it ran and it didn’t really remove the moisture as well as a fan would..so it is gone. I think redoing the room in vintage style but with modern function is a great way to go!
Carole says
We have the most gawd awful 1970s blue bathroom on the face of the planet. We’ve lived w/ ours for ten years, and let me tell you, I envy you. There is simply a time and place to remodel, and sometimes retaining the ‘original’ isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. We’re hoping to start in on ours this year.
Good luck.
Laura says
I have to admit this blog post is making me feel a lot better about getting rid of some mauve floor tile and a mauve toilet (both 80s vintage, I think) early on in my home ownership. Like Kate I knew there was no way I was ever going to fall in love with mauve. I won’t use any of Pam’s “forbidden words” 😉 but I find mauve to be such an indecisive color. It’s not really beige, not really pink, not really brown. That just doesn’t work with the clear and strong colors so popular in mid-century decor! I’ve seen Kate’s oranges and greens in the rest of her house (on her blog), so I’m looking forward to seeing how she whoops it up for this bath. Go Kate!
kate says
I agree. I want something bright and happy to greet me when I wake up and go brush my teeth! 🙂
Marta says
Kate, you sound as though you’re carrying a little guilt about having to gut the mauve bathroom, even though you know it’s for the best. But, really, just from the pictures you posted of the shower tile, I’d say it’s a good bet there’s a mold habitat in the making behind them.
Can’t wait to see how it all turns out.
LauraRG says
Good luck on the renovations. I can put up with alot, but I would have a tough time living with some of the problems you have. I got lucky with my 1961 raised ranch… the bathroom is peach tiles with a medium brown accent and looks great. Can’t wait to see it unfold!
aleta says
Oh I tend to agree with Kate – too many doors and wasted space – not enough towel bars…
Laura's Last Ditch--Vintage Kitchenwares says
We had to get rid of our original kitchen sink. It had the hudee ring, too. It was rusty around the edges, like yours. It had no gloss left on it at all, so you had to bleach the dickens out of it, then it still looked vile, sick, and wrong after just a day or two.
Our original front door went a while ago. It killed me, but you had to slam your butt against it and quickly turn the latch or it wouldn’t close. And the kitchen counters might be the next original feature to go–they’re so stained it’s ridiculous. It’s kind of embarrassing when anyone comes over. But I’m so glad we still have our bathroom, and the tiles are a wonderful color and in beautiful condition.
Eartha Kitsch says
I’m too exhausted (from current renovations at our house this week) to have enough clarity to comment on the remodel but wanted to add that we have one of those flip out wooden hampers and I’ve always wondered why they didn’t make custom-fitted hard plastic liners to go inside of them. I’m always trying to find a plastic garbage can or something that will fit so that dirty clothes and wet towels don’t have to touch the wood.
Sarah V says
We are (with regret) planning to gut our master ensuite as well. Our telephone booth sized shower could be liveable size wise (luckily I have a more petite hubs and we have another bathroom if need be), but the leaking shower tray is not, thus, our next reno project is already picked out for us!
I’m already starting to scout out period appropriate but still contemporary design ideas. So I can’t wait to see what you guys come up with!