by pam kueber on August 6, 2009
YES, I AM OBSESSED with this sink. I have one — in white, although I also love this icy gray — in my garage on hold for my tiny, storage-challenged master bath; I am waiting to see if the retro decorating gods also send me the vanity. Meanwhile, I have finally learned its official name: It’s the Gracelynn Cabinet-Lavatory. The toilet: The lovely Carlyle. You know it is one of my life goals to be able to name every midcentury toilet and sink on sight. This 1960 photo is from flickr friend Java1888, click the image to go straight to his photo stream. Another flickr friend, What Makes the Pie Shops Tick, has a 1965 American-Standard catalog posted where I found the name of this much-coveted sink, and more. Final note, I believe this sink was introduced in ‘59.
by pam kueber on May 9, 2009
VINTAGE EYE CANDY today — a complete catalog of steel kitchen cabinets from Montgomery Ward, circa 1941. You can see from this brochure, how much simpler kitchens were in the pre-war era. Of course, we were still in recovery from the Great Depression. Even a kitchen like this — which would seem so basic today — would have been immensely luxurious in 1941. Heck yeah there is more…
by pam kueber on April 23, 2009
by Erica Donnis on March 25, 2009
When I visited Rejuvenation in Portland, I saw this wonderful early 20th century reproduction sink for sale. I am not sure of the exact timeline for sinks like this. They were originally porcelain enamel on cast iron — and I would guess they spanned the 1910s through the 1940s. These reproductions — from St. Thomas Creations — are made of vitreous china. Even so – the sink looks like the real deal – gorgeous – and would be a wonderful choice for a pre-war retro renovation bathroom – for a bungalow, four-square or romantic revival bathroom, for example.
by pam kueber on February 24, 2009
1946 American brand kitchen
Can you believe it? You can still get the exact faucet required for a vintage American-Brand kitchen drainboard sink. It’s available here from Locke Plumbing. The owners tell me they still sell quite a few of them, including to lots of folks in Europe. Click on the thumbnail of the faucet for sale – you can see it’s designed to nestle right into the backsplash of the sink top. I am told it does not fit other sinks, so no need to go there. Cool, huh? I just love having found this – thanks again go to Russell for turning us on to Locke Plumbing. Remember folks, they are also great if you want to fix a particular brand of vintage toilet.
The also are good go-to’s for:
by pam kueber on January 8, 2009
Do you need a new faucet for your vintage bathroom sink? TodayI happily add a third alternative to my short list of recommendations. It’s this simple Gerber 4″ lav. Nice lines, nice faucet handles. Also a nice one here with fluted handles. Hurray.
Update: Nathan went looking for this and Gerber eliminated the image from their catalog. However, it IS still available. Here is what Nathan reports – MANY THANKS, Nathan!
Hey Pam,
I was able to track down that particular faucet that you had on your site. I contacted Gerber, and they gave me the part number. I then tried to find it locally here in Abq, but that was a dead end. So, I then resorted to shopping on the internets (d’oh), and found it here:
http://www.newtondistributing.com/product/Gerber-2-Handle-Faucet-121.html
I ordered 3 of them 
Thanks again, and I’ve bookmarked your site
Hasta,
Nathan
Other faucet choices:
One of my very favorites - great deco style
by Pam Kueber on December 9, 2008
It’s not a hootie ring. Or a huddee ring. It’s a hudee ring. I still don’t know why it’s called that exactly – presumably there was a Mr. Hudee involved. But now, we at least have a paper trail via these 1958 and 1959 ads. At this point the ubiquitous metal ring for porcelain kitchen and bathroom sinks was sold by the Walter E. Selck and Company of Chicago. And according to the second blue ad, there were 1062 different kitchen and bathrooms sinks to take a metal ring!
Heck yeah there is more…
by pam kueber on October 23, 2008
Elizabeth asks, “Do I need clips to hold my drop-in sink and hootie ring in place?” Three approaches – read on: Heck yeah there is more…
by pam kueber on October 18, 2007
Finishing up my recent series on bathroom sinks matched with chrome legs, I wanted to spotlight this Waterworks model. No doubt, it is GORGEOUS. But, the chrome legs with integrated towel bars do run $1,475… while the sink is $315. If you’ve got the cash and the desire, this certainly would be the centerpiece of your retro reno bathroom.
But, if you just want the look and the basic functionality, see my other, recent bathroom posts on wall-mount sinks from Crane that can be matched with $30 chrome legs from Franklin Brass. Another thought: The original fixtures used in our retro homes were NOT luxury. They were stylish…and functional…but, accessibly priced for the growing population. So in that spirit, I really prefer to seek out affordable products to complete a retro renovation.
So in that spirit: Try salvage shops…or even place an ad in your local paper. I advertised in the items wanted section a couple of years ago, and immediately turned up a wall-mount sink with fabulous chrome legs with towel bars, and nabbed the set for $65. It had be sitting in someone’s basement for 20 years. It was in perfect shape, and looks awesome in my tiny but functional – and beautiful – master bathroom.
