Bringing Vintage Charm Back to Bathrooms

Picture yourself entering a bathroom recently updated but not compromising the past in any way. The philosophy of blending classic elements against today’s comforts could be best described as ‘heirloom design’, as it marries the cosiness of the past with 21st-century technology – a perfect setting for unwinding.

Repurpose original features such as freestanding clawfoot tubs and pedestal sinks for added period character. Opt for classic tile arrangements such as subway tiles in colours that nod to an era you’re inspired by.

Vintage Fixtures & Fittings

Other period features offer a quick history lesson on the room. There’s nothing quite as nostalgic in the bathroom as the clawfoot tub and antique hardware, easy to keep up compared with modern equivalents and a good thing to honour the original look of the home.

Why not make the vintage chandelier light the centrepiece in the bathroom, which you can find in crafts-type shops that do old-world design? Or unusual shape – like a lamp made from a wooden kitchen gadget of some kind. Old pie plates, for instance, which have been transformed into fixtures.

Perhaps this is a dip back into a bygone era in bathroom design, but one that can evolve easily with your taste over time – a floral wallpaper could be switched out to something more modern when soft millennial pink makes a comeback; an antique chair provides character and is somewhere to rest in this bathroom by McMillen Inc.

Decorative Elements

Bathrooms should remain light and airy, but that by no means means having to forsake all decorations or personal touches. By introducing an antique piece of furniture, some vintage style wallpaper or throwback shades, you can immediately personalise a bathroom and make it much more welcoming.

One of the easiest ways to get a vintage feel in a bathroom is to replace your vanity mirror and light fixture with a set that suits your style better. Designer Mark D. Sikes created this timeless and contemporary powder room by doing exactly that.

It can change the whole look if you add some antique-inspired tiles or replace the original tap with a faucet that would match your tub. If you need to buy a new fixture, go for stainless steel, as it is less likely to corrode; Tap Warehouse is a good place to get inspired by their huge selection of styles.

Smart Technology

Upgrading vintage homes to integrate with modern technology can be tricky, but thoughtful and creative choices will yield a sympathetic melding of styles that enhances each. Smart mirrors that provide the homeowner with a weather or news briefing or voice-activated showers that allow shoppers to customise the bathroom setting can layer on comfort and luxury that augment vintage elegance.

Features of the smart home can add modern conveniences to an old bathroom in Winnipeg without reconfiguring historic layouts or disrupting historic fabric. Wireless systems can allow for retrofits of efficient lighting and temperature controls, while discrete doorbell cameras and window alarms can integrate into historic design without altering its appearance.

Juxtaposing old world charm and new world functionality takes a bathroom from the mundane to magisterial in a style that is uniquely yours, expressing your own history as you create it. From art deco clocks with embedded smart technology to portrait pictures that can also play the role of screens, this style is the ultimate immersive tour where the historical and hi-tech collide in a story of discovery.

Restoration & Renovation

Renovating a vintage bathroom is a balancing act between historical authenticity and modern updates. For a successful makeover, attention to detail is important: this includes if any original elements like tiles or taps can be saved, and also safety and functionality issues.

Or refinishing or revamping vintage fixtures and materials (think refinishing an old clawfoot tub to give a kitchen an old-timey touch – or rearranging vintage tiles into a bathroom’s aesthetic or adding a clawfoot tub refinishing service in Los Angeles for your existing tub – to give your space an aesthetically pleasing vintage ambience without taking its history away.

By updating older plumbing and electrical systems in the vintage bathroom for optimal performance, and installing lighting that complements the aesthetic, it can be optimised for use today; so can style. Items such as an old wooden ladder retrofitted as a towel rack, or a vintage suitcase on the back of the door with more towel and toiletries storage solutions can elevate style and reduce clutter. Antique artwork or family heirlooms can conjure up the right sense of warmth and nostalgia.