Kate finalizes design ideas for her master bathroom remodel — a vintage pink bathroom, from scratch!

It’s been a while since there’s been an update on my retro modern master bath remodel — for good reason — much vintage hunting, thinking and planning has been going on. The more I thought — the more the realization that I was leaning towards a retro pink bathroom with a touch of modern instead of a 50/50 split sunk in. While the clean lines of a modern styled bathroom are pleasing, nothing has been making me happier than all the finds sent my way via the Retro Decorating Gods. It was becoming apparent that my house was sending messages via Ebay and the ReStore — and wanted me to be true to 1962. I’ve finalized the list of products I’m planning to use, what do you think of my design? –>

1. Vintage mirror/medicine cabinet combo. This is the real deal — heavy and well constructed. I actually have two identical mirrors like this now. The first was bought on Ebay — cost was $100 delivered. A few weeks later — another in slightly worse shape showed up at my local Restore — and was mine for $25 (just call me a vintage mirror hoarder). I’ll probably have to get new mirrored doors cut at my local glass shop, but still — two old mirrors are much less than the cost of the same size new Commodore style mirror from Nutone — which will run you $275 (now discontinued but check out this Cosmetic box (affiliate link) — pair it with a mirror and you’re good to go. Of course I’ll only use one of them for this bathroom, but it is nice to have a backup or another to use when I finish the basement bath.

2. Bath bar light. I’ve decided that a bar style light will work best in my master bath — especially with the mirror. Currently the 24 inch Nuvo Lighting U channel light with diamond pattern (discontinued but there are proxies out there) is the fixture of choice.

3. Vintage Pink American Standard Sink — recently found on Craigslist for $25. Incredibly it is an exact match with the wall tile.

4. Boomerang Laminate countertops. Our recent story — 24 colors of boomerang laminate available today — made me consider this as a countertop option. A sample of  “Retro Pop” and “Glacier” are on their way from Heffrons.com.

5. Oak wood vanity. Since all of the wood in my 1962 ranch is oak with a pecan stain — including the current original vanity — why shouldn’t it retain this original style feature? At first I considered using a dresser as a vanity — a candidate was found — but ultimately, the dresser in question was a few inches too long for the space. Since then — after much research — I’ve decided to built my own vanity. Wish me luck!

6. Vintage Amerock chrome starburst backplate and knobs. Let the drooling begin — I won five of these on Ebay (they weren’t cheap, but are so cool) and with the help of my new favorite cleaning product (story to come, we’re trying to get the MSDS), I got them shiny like new — on left is what they originally looked like after being salvaged from a gutted house — on right is what they look like now.

7. Kohler Taboret low arch bath faucet. Since my vintage mirror has a protruding medicine cabinet, and the vintage sink is a four inch spread — this low arch bath faucet from Kohler will work wonderfully. The design is modern with a vintage feel — I dig it. It is a little more costly that I was hoping for — but I am not 100% committed to this faucet — something similar would also be great for my bathroom remodel.

8. Pink 70W tile from B&W tile.

9. Rejuvenation Starburst towel racks (now discontinued) From day one, these have been the towel bars for me.

10. University Pink floor tile from Merola/Somer Tile.

Are you wondering how all of this will come together? Above is a little mock up of the type of bath cabinet that I’m planning to construct. It will be situated between the outer wall and wall separating it from the shower instead of free standing as shown in the picture. This retro modern bathroom vanity has the look of a dresser, but will be constructed in place — as a custom built in.  The legs will be coming from TableLegs.com. To save myself — a novice carpenter — too much stress, interior drawer boxes will be purchased pre-made.

I plan to tile all the walls — instead of just the inside of the shower as originally planned — and am on the fence about using all pink wall tiles (as shown above) or “trimming” the pink tiles on the top with white (as show below). What do you like best?
If all of the above awesome vintage finds weren’t enough — looky what else I have — a perfectly matched set of NOS Cannon bath towels, hand towels and wash cloths.

They couldn’t be a closer match to the tiles. The idea to track down vintage towels came to me after reading Pam’s story about vintage towels — and yes, they are a little smaller than I am used to — but they are perfect for the bathroom. Larger supplementary towels can also be found later.

So there you have it — with the key decisions made — my retro modern master bathroom remodel has become retro with a dash of modern. All of the current selections are making me very happy — which signals to me that it is time to start getting quotes, looking into permits, psyching myself up for another big project and ordering massive amounts of tile. Pam has also reminded me to take care when planning any demolition to ensure I consult with a properly licensed professional about what’s in the vintage layers of my “old” bathroom, so I’ll be doing that, too.

See all of Kate’s stories about her master bathroom remodel