If you need a medicine cabinet for your bathroom remodel, you can stalk your local Re-Store and in just a short while, you are sure to find one. But, old skool cabinets can be quite small, only about 16″ wide and 20″ tall. When I renovated my bathrooms, I wanted more space, so I put in new 20″wide x 26″high medicine cabinets. Square, beveled mirrors. I don’t think the medicine cabinet looks oversized or anything. Now, I’ve discovered these five cute medicine cabinets from Kohler, which all feature additional decorative oomph — arches or frames that might work nicely in vintage homes. Note, these are even taller — 31″ tall. While I think we need to be very sensitive to scale within small spaces, I don’t think the extra 5 inches will be too much. However – I’d likely flank a cabinet this tall with two sconces, not put a single fixture above. 
This is absolutely my favorite of all the Kohler designs. That loopdeedoo arch reminds me of a 1930s or 1940s triple-vanity mirror I owned once. It is very sweet, and I think it would look great in a “sweet”-styled bathroom. Here’s the listing on Amazon, these cabinets are available from a variety of sources: Kohler K-CB-CLC2030VAS Single Door 20-Inch W by 30-Inch H by 5-Inch D Aluminum Cabinet
Above, arch on top only: KOHLER K-CB-CLC2030AS Single Door 20-Inch by 30-Inch by 5-Inch Aluminum Cabinet
KOHLER K-3073-NA Archer Mirrored Cabinet
Above, arches on top and bottom:
Above, gentle arches above and below and beveling all around: KOHLER K-CB-CLC2031BAN Single Door 20-Inch by 31-Inch by 5-Inch Aluminum Cabinet
Above, wood framed medicine cabinet with arch on top: KOHLER K-CB-CLW2030DAW Single Door 20-InchW x 29-1/2-InchH x 5-1/4-InchD White Enameled Aluminum Cabinet
Related stories
Franklin Brass — Chrome fixtures for your retro bathroom available today 
10 NOS Tub-Master accordian-door shower doors — for a vintage travel trailer or home 
Soap ‘Tainers — colorful, vintage, NOS soap dishes that hide your soap 
My bathroom exhaust fan didn’t work — and I find out why Ad
Get our retrolicious free newsletter.
Comments
Leave a Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
I have the first medicine cabinet and I LOVE it! I am really impressed with the quality and really appreciate that the door is a double-sided mirror and the inside is mirrored. I really price shopped an Amazon has the best price by far…and it was eligible for free 2-day shipping with my prime account. Awesome!
Hey Catherine, I would love to see this in a real bathroom. Can you send me a pic? retrorenovation [at] gmail [dot] com. Thanks!
Yes! We put the next-to-the-last one listed in our master bath and *love* them! I’ve never had a medicine cabinet before, and I can’t get over how handy it is to be able to stash our stuff in there (and it’s incredibly roomy) and keep our small countertop clear. We have a small-ish vanity – 60 in wide – and we wanted two sinks. That means there isn’t much countertop space left. I actually don’t mind, because it means we can’t fill it with junk. These rad medicine cabinets make putting away our everyday items super easy.
Would love to see a photo, Rachel, if you get a chance!
Great medicine chests, Pam! I would also like to post the options below, because I fell in LOVE with the mirrors when I found them at Home Depot! Of course, for those that don’t want a medicine chest, and just want a mirror, they can skip to the bottom of this comment to the Home Depot mirror links.
Home Depot has beveled mirrors that are etched with a daisy flower border and with the cute little chrome (actually satin nickel) buttons on them – very retro! I confirmed this morning that they are still available with the manufacturer, so if Home Depot doesn’t have them in stock, you can them ordered. I can vouch for the quality of the mirrors, they are really nice (much better looking in person than the Home Depot website photos).
I bought mine a couple of years ago, and at that time Home Depot had the 24 x 30 size mirror; Lowe’s carried the identical mirror, but in a smaller 18 x 24 size. Sadly, the manufacturer no longer makes the 18 x 24. For those who think a full rectangle of 24 x 30 might be too big, Home Depot also carries the oval beveled and etched version and it is 23″ x 29, but being oval shaped, it might not seem as big.
Step two: I am going to buy the Metro oversize medicine chest from NuTone. It comes in a basic mirror version of 24 x 30, and also a deluxe mirror version – the kind with a mirror on the inside of the door also and behind the glass shelves. I’m going to take this medicine chests to the glass shop to have the mirror it comes with removed, and have my etched mirror put on the door instead. I already contacted NuTone to see if I could just order the cabinets with no mirror attached, but no dice.
NuTone does make a medicine chest, smaller 16.25″ x 21.25″ that you can buy with no mirror on the door and just add your own, great if you already have a retro or antique mirror that you would rather use. I’m putting the links to everything below, in case someone wants to travel the medicine chest road I am on.
To be continued below…….
Home Depot 24 x 30 Daisy Etched Rectangular Wall Mirror:
http://www.homedepot.com/buy/decor-wall-decor-mirrors-bath-mirrors/deco-mirror-30-in-x-24-in-rectangle-mirror-178318.html
Home Depot 23 x 29 Daisy Etched Oval Wall Mirror:
http://www.homedepot.com/buy/decor-wall-decor-mirrors-bath-mirrors/deco-mirror-high-daisy-29-in-x-23-in-oval-mirror-161972.html
Medicine Chest Models from NuTone that should work with the above mirrors if you replace the mirror on the front with the Daisy mirrors.
Rectangle 24 x 30 Medicine Chests (search for them on Faucet.com, or go to the NuTone website to see specifications/photos:
Cheapest: NuTone 530924 Simplicity Frameless Medicine Cabinet
Mid Level: NuTone 52WH304PF Metro Oversize Frameless Medicine Cabinet
Deluxe: NuTone 52WH304DPF Metro Oversize Frameless Medicine Cabinet
And for the Oval mirror, cabinets that would work size wise:
Cheapest: NuTone 1459 Horizon Frameless Medicine Cabinet
Deluxe: NuTone 1358 Cameo Oval Bevel Frameless Medicine Cabinet
And, if you already have a favorite retro or antique mirror that you want to use (providing the sizing is close) you can order the NuTone Hideaway which comes with no mirror so you wouldn’t have to remove a mirror before mounting your own.
Hideaway: NuTone 622 Hideaway Basic Medicine Cabinet
Tami
Wow, thanks for all this research, Tami — I’ll have to do a complete standalone post — with all credit going to you, of course! Many thanks!
Glad you found it valuable Pam. My only request is that you fix all my typo’s if you do a stand alone post on this 🙂
Tami
Oh, I forgot to add – you can throw this in if you decide to post stand alone. The manufacturer of the Daisy Mirrors (Headwest, Inc) also makes the rectangle mirror in a 30 x 36 size. Most probably wouldn’t want one that big for a medicine chest, but hey, if they turn it horizontal / landscape for a mirror only on the wall, it could be another great option.
Tami
These cabinets are fab! Thanks so much for posting them. I have to replace my 1950 medicine cabinet…it has a long vertical flourescent tube light on either side, attached, and the ballasts are shot. I’ve asked around about rebuilding…but no go. I want to reproduce the same look.
And the 5 inch plus depth of the new Kohler’s is a problem for me.
This is so helpful and very much appreciated! I want to add a mirror to the NuTone 622. Would I just glue it to the NuTone door or do I have to modify the door in some way? I don’t have the mirror yet, but I’m thinking of something in the Venetian or Murano style. I am grateful for any help or input!
I’m starting to contemplate my bathroom reno! This post was very helpful! Thx!
I reno’d one of my pink bathrooms (staying true to its roots), but the addition of a bathtub, meant I had to retire my 7-foot mirrored medicine cabinet. I refuse to trash it! Anyone have ideas about who might put it to good use?
craigslist it, or donate to the Re-Store….
Thanks. No takers on craigslist so far….and ReStore was next on my list!
Love this blog! I have 2 1/2 bathrooms in this 1959 house. All ceramic tiled half-walls, and floors. Bright yellow, mint green and kind of a burgundy. I have so many questions as they need some work, but I want to keep as much original as possible.
So .. my first question (of many, I’m sure!) : Above each of my medicine cabinets is a florescent light covered in a plastic cover. The cover is now 55+ years old, and discolored. The silver of the fixtures is spotty. What should I do about replacing these fixtures? Do I stick with the florescent light and try to clean it up, or should I/could I select new fixtures and still maintain the integrity of the 1959 bathrooms?
I’m so glad I found this community!!
Welcome, Kathy!
All our lighting stories are in the Decorate/Lighting category.
And, we recently found this source for plastic covers, maybe this is just what you need, if you want to keep what you have? https://retrorenovation.com/2014/04/29/curved-light-bar-replacement-shades-vintage/
Finally, if you really want to try something different, go for it.
Thank you, Pam!! That is EXACTLY the information I need! I will now work at getting all of those u-shaped plastic covers replaced, thanks to you and your reader’s hard work. (I apologize for not having searched your blog thoroughly to find that post, myself. But I thank you so much for bringing it to my attention.) I’ll get right to it!
🙂 Kathy
What I DO without you?!?!
Need a phone number to get in touch
Salmia, we do not sell anything here. You need to contact the companies profiled in the stories… In this case, all the products here are online — click the blue links.
I couldn’t find the daisy mirrors any more, but I saw this one, which seemed retro to me (but Pam or someone else can give a more official yea or nay!).
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Jensen-ToPSIder-24-in-x-19-5-in-Rectangle-Surface-Mirrored-Steel-Medicine-Cabinet/50192929