• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Kitchens
  • Bathrooms
  • Blog
  • Exterior
  • Other Rooms
  • Decorate
  • The “Museum”
  • Be Safe/Renovate Safe
Retro Renovation
Retro Renovation

Retro Renovation

Remodel & decorate in Mid Century Style

  • Home
  • Kitchens
  • Bathrooms
  • Blog
  • Exterior
  • Other Rooms
  • Decorate
  • The “Museum”
  • Be Safe/Renovate Safe
Home / Bathroom

A glamorous 1948 bathroom fit for a movie star — a time capsule just down the street!

Pam Kueber - Updated: August 19, 2020

Retro Renovation stopped publishing in 2021; these stories remain for historical information, as potential continued resources, and for archival purposes.

So proud: I helped the time capsule house two doors away find owners who LOVE it and don’t want to change a thing. Can you believe: This house sat on the market for at least six months, because, word is, all the buyers who made their way through were put off because it would take too much remodeling.

The house had been on the market all this time when finally, I was talking to my friend Molly, whose parents were looking to move to town. I mentioned the house, which was For Sale By Owner, not on the MLS. Molly arranged a showing for the very next weekend and ka-boom, her parents — Duane and Mary — jumped on it. They were thrilled by the house. They are “old house people,” like their daughter. Like me. Like us! Welcome to the neighborhood, Duane and Mary!

Since they confirmed the deal — and then, after they closed — I’ve walked through this lovely mid-century modest house at least four times and must say: All the folks who passed on this house missed a great thing. This house is amazingly well built, full of time capsule features that are going to make you drool, and after Mary and Duane make just a few housekeeping updates, move-in ready. Updates that I am aware they are making: Refinish wood floors, repaint a few walls to colors they prefer, add a rain gutter to the back, and update the electric to handle modern electronics. Otherwise, this house is good to go!

The house was with the same family since 1948. The dad was a plumbing contractor. This explains a lot, because the bathrooms are all fantastic.

But most fantastic of all: This en-suite master bathroom. I am telling you: The black wall tiles, liner tiles, and porcelain mosaic floor tiles — are pristine! I’ll show more of the house over the next few days, but let’s start with this glamorous, romantic, 1948 bathroom.

All the fixtures and hardware are original, high-end Crane that look like they were installed yesterday. Original, every bit, down to the shower head (note the “Crane” detailing on the escutcheon/base), the shower curtain bar (okay, not the shower curtain!), the towel bars, the recessed cosmetic box, the faucets, the light switch cover (okay, I spot one GFI-conversion on the electric outlet), even the trash can!

Even the Venetian blind and the radiator cover.

The mirrored medicine cabinet is a treasure to behold. It has three sections — each section opens — and the two tube lights still work.

I am even in love with the hot- and cold-water shutoff switches. Oh, and the nickel-plated legs and integral towel bars on the sink.

Peoples, it doesn’t get much better than this.

Welcome to the neighborhood, Mary and Duane! There are welcome cocktails in the Mahalo Lounge your future! 

CATEGORIES:
Bathroom Readers and their Bathrooms

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

  • starburst-shower-door
    Sterling 'Starscape' -- still the funnest shower door for a midcentury bathroom
  • be safe renovate safe graphic
    Make a resolution to: Be Safe and Renovate Safe!
  • retro bathroom tile
    Tile in retro colors for your mid century bathroom -- 36 places to find them
  • decorative-concrete-block
    1956 Dallas time capsule house with Jack 'n Jill bathroom -- just 1,500 s.f., but lives large -- 28 photos
  • vintage-style-bathroom-faucet-crystal-knob
    Where to find parts for your vintage bathroom faucets and toilets

Reader Interactions

Comments are closed. 

127 comments

Comments

  1. Donna in SC says

    September 11, 2017 at 12:10 pm

    GREAT bathroom! The house I bought in SC (I had worked with the owner in the 1980s) seriously spoke to me AND it has a Mamie pink master (only as long as the tub and twice as wide) and a little larger yellow/white guest bath. It was built in 1957ish (they don’t build them like that anymore) and had all the original hardwood underneath carpet and original tile in both baths. I almost cry when I see houses from this era (and in this neighborhood) “updated.”

  2. Shelley says

    September 11, 2017 at 11:58 am

    Oh, so exquisite. I love this era! Love love love how much BLACK was used in bathrooms and kitchens. Kudos to all involved and thanks for sharing!

  3. MCM is Grand says

    September 11, 2017 at 11:47 am

    Thank you Pam!!! That is the most beautiful bathroom I have seen in a long time. Looking forward to seeing more of this house. So glad it did not end up on HGTV, being demolished.

  4. KStace says

    September 11, 2017 at 10:51 am

    “Needs updating?” Ha! MY bathroom needs updating, to look like that!! I cannot believe how pristine that bathroom is. No rust on the medicine cabinets, nada. The broken little chain at the top of the left cabinet was the only flaw I could see. (except that shower curtain, lol!)

  5. Ranger Smith says

    September 11, 2017 at 10:45 am

    Stunning! I am amazed at the pristine condition. Who new venetian blinds could last so long in a bathroom? Looking forward to seeing the rest of the home.

  6. Cindy Bohli says

    September 11, 2017 at 10:19 am

    Wow!! What a beauty!!

  7. Jay says

    September 11, 2017 at 10:07 am

    Pristine, yes; this bath looks never used or hardly used. It does require someone special who can appreciate it “as is”. For such a generously sized room, it’s a shame a separate shower or dual sinks weren’t installed. I like the picture of the recessed radiator under the 2″ metal venetian blinds, so 40s yet I can remember being in rooms like this as a kid. Looking forward to seeing more of the house.

  8. Valerie says

    September 11, 2017 at 10:00 am

    This is beautiful. Glad it’s being saved.

  9. Maryann Roy says

    September 11, 2017 at 9:55 am

    Fabulous!! Congrats to the new owners!

  10. Kristie Pennock says

    September 11, 2017 at 9:53 am

    Love it! The drama of the dark field tiles is perfect.

« Older Comments
Newer Comments »

Primary Sidebar


Footer

Follow Along

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RENOVATE SAFE
  • About
  • Blog
  • The “Museum”
  • Kitchens
  • Bathrooms
  • Exterior
  • Other Rooms
  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Notice
  • Disclosures
  • Contact

© 2026 Retro Renovation® • All Rights Reserved • Website by Anchored Design
Please do not use any materials without prior permission. Portrait by Keith Talley Photography