Last week, we took a look inside the glamorous black-tiled 1948 master bathroom at Mary and Duane’s house, and now, let’s examine the upstairs bathroom. It, too, has an unusual color combination that we don’t see often in postwar bathrooms — brown wall tiles and yellow fixtures. And it, too, is in spectacular, high-quality, time-capsule shape, as if it had been built yesterday.
The house was in one family all these years, so some stories came with it. Word is, the upstairs in this little Cape Cod house was finished out by dad, a plumbing contractor, for a daughter in the family was either living at home while she went to school or had just started her first job after finishing school. Oops, I forget.
So, upstairs, there is a living area… a second, small kitchen… a bedroom, and various closets.
Remember: In 1948, many folks — including where I live, in Massachusetts — had the “Cape Cod” style in their sites as their “dream home.” The Cape Cod style was broadly publicized — and popularized nationwide — by Massachusetts’ own and my favorite architect Royal Barry Wills. It’s a is classic Colonial look… it’s a charming livable style… and folks could “grow” into it by initially only completing the downstairs, then, when their family grew in size, finish the upstairs. More photos to come of the rest of the house (I’m milkin’ it), but you can bet: There’s knotty pine involved in this house, too! No pink bathrooms, though! These homeowners were fashion-forward, going against the (pink) grain!
Now, all the lovely details:
So there you go: A love letter to a little 1948 brown-and-yellow bathroom, right down to the original Crane shower rod escutcheon.
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Karin says
Beautiful! That unusual convex end piece on the shower rod is yet another charming Robbie the Robot detail. I will definitely keep an eye out for something like that.
Robin, WA says
The Crane sink I rescued from the Restore has those exact knobs, although the rest of my sink is different – drop-in with a metal faucet. But mine is also Ivory. Someday I’d like to remodel my bath using the sink as my inspiration. Some day…
Mary Elizabeth says
If it were my bathroom, I’d lighten up that brown by featuring a wallpaper with a lot of white and yellow, such as Hannah’s Treasures (below), or a similar light shower curtain and window curtain with a pale yellow painted wall.
https://hannahstreasures.com/products/1960s-floral-vintage-wallpaper-ht363
Beth says
I love the idea of lighting up the brown! I would do a lighter than the fixture shade of yellow with a yellow based printed shower curtain and a yellow rug to cover from the tub to the sink so your feet were on it coming out of the tub, using the toilet or standing at the sink. I would also do towels in white with yellow design or yellow with brown accent.
Both of the bathrooms in this house are so lovely!
Ree says
Ineffablespace, I love the second wallpaper suggestion, although both are great. I think the right wallpaper would make that bathroom look fabulous and not dated at all.
Nancy says
Is the floor a poured epoxy type? Love that groutless choice!
Pam Kueber says
The floors are some variety of vinyl or vinyl composite
Kelly Wittenauer says
Sheet vinyl. From ’89 to ’98 we lived in a ranch house built in the late ’50s – and almost completely original. The hall bath had that flooring in gray, with pink fixtures.
Donna in SC says
where can i find this sheet vinyl? it is what i want for my kitchen and knotty pine den!
Pam Kueber says
Nothing quite like it available today. See this story for possible other options: https://retrorenovation.com/category/kitchen/flooring/
Erin says
I had a different color of this type of sheet vinyl in the powder room of my 1958 house. I would have kept it, but it was in very poor condition.
Carolyn says
Geez Pam, you’ve been a little lax about including tootsie pics lately, glad to see you’re back on track.
I don’t know what you’d call that knob in the middle of the sink by the Hot/Cold but is that the inspiration for Robbie, the Robot?
We lived in a Cape Cod where they put in shed dormers on the back facing the marsh with an enclosed porch beneath to connect to the garage. Best house we ever rented…and my girls (42 & 38 – in HS & MS at the time) will concur.
Pam Kueber says
Yes, and I just got a pedi the other day. Need to get another tootsie pic out there to commemorate!
Pam Kueber says
That Robbie the Robot knob is the for opening and closing the drain, I am pretty sure.
ineffablespace says
Something like
https://www.thibautdesign.com/catalog/product/details/product/coco_t3220/material/wallpaper/colorway/brown_10/?s=1
https://www.thibautdesign.com/catalog/product/details/product/tea_house_t5310/material/wallpaper/colorway/brown_10/?s=1
Upstatenow says
Those wallpapers are just beautiful.
ineffablespace says
Yellow and brown is a not-uncommon combination in my neck of the woods. The housing stock is old here so the 1950s is when lots of houses got their first modern bathroom, and there were many two-color and even three color combos. Maybe because people were picking for themselves, it wasn’t part of new housing area.
This isn’t one of my favorite combos, but I’d keep it. As usual with these combos, the right wallpaper would work wonders.
Mary says
I wonder if the colors choices reflected the daughter’s school colors? Brown and gold?
Kathy says
My Master bath has the same color combo. Ranch house built in 1965. We are 3rd owners. I love it, wouldn’t change it, just need to find just the right wallpaper.
Kathy