Arts & Crafts Revival Bath

The master bath was enlarged and re-imagined for an existing Shingle Style house.

Spacious yet intimate, symmetrical without being formal, the revival bathroom shows a restrained use of Arts & Crafts-era design and motifs.

Christopher Lark, courtesy Greene & Proppe

Inspired by the rest of the Shingle Style house, this new, Arts & Crafts revival bathroom features a beadboard wainscot, period wall treatments and mouldings, fine lighting fixtures, and furniture-like sink vanities. The Arts & Crafts pendant frieze visually lowers the vaulted ceiling. Windows reflect those used in the Queen Anne and bungalow eras.

Like others by the Chicago architecture firm Greene & Proppe Design, this bathroom has a furnished quality. Each of their designs for renovated bathrooms reflects the house it is in; none is a generic subway-tile bath. Underlying the design sense is a simple layout and the use of such traditional materials as wood, porcelain, stone, and ceramics. Often there is a mix of built-in and freestanding furniture.

It was the bathtub that most inspired the renovation (which included added space). The bathing room has simple cherry-wood vanities flanking the tub in a symmetrical arrangement. Painted beadboard wainscoting and the paper frieze have a turn-of-the-20th-century look. A separate toilet room provides privacy; shower walls are lined in tumbled marble mosaics. The flooring is limestone tile; countertops, too, are made of limestone.

Simple lighting fixtures are a break from Mission-style sconces. The chandelier is a blown-glass bowl hanging from wrought iron arms. Decorative blown-glass iron sconces flank each wood-framed vanity mirror.

A complementary color scheme suggested by the frieze balances the clear-finished wood in the room. With the light stone flooring, the room delivers a brightened, modern take on the Arts & Crafts palette.

1. FRIEZE AND CEILING
The vaulted ceiling in this up-stairs master bath is a wonderful amenity—and the pendant frieze framed in wood battens visually brings it down, creating a pleasing scale in the room.

2. LIGHTING CHOICES
Iron fixtures are traditional and timeless—but not deliberately Craftsman in style, and not too matchy-matchy. Curves in the sconces relieve the linear mouldings.

3. BEADBOARD WAINSCOT
Beaded-board wainscots and ceilings were a late-Victorian and early-20th-century convention used in service areas including kitchens and baths, back halls and porches. A painted finish lightens the look.

4. SEPARATE VANITIES
A variation on the long counter with double sinks, this symmetrical arrangement allows more personal space. Cabinets bridge Shaker and Craftsman styles; feet make them more like furniture than bulky built-ins.

Be Inspired…

‘Simple Lines’ sconce from Hubbardton Forge.

Basic and traditional, this
is the ‘Simple Lines’ sconce
from Hubbardton Forge. Forged in wrought iron by artisans in Vermont, with 8 finish options and 3 glass options. About 9″ tall with a 7″ projection, rated indoor damp. hubbardtonforge.com

Bradbury’s Arts & Crafts ‘Oakleaf Frieze’, shown in Natural.

Shown in the room is Bradbury’s popular Arts & Crafts ‘Oakleaf Frieze’, shown at left in Natural. The pendants are 15″ high and the frieze may be trimmed to fit 16″–27″ deep. Other A&C friezes in the collections. bradbury.com

Kohler’s ‘Vintage’ 72″ x 42″ freestanding cast-iron tub.

Ah, a comfortable rolled rim and easy-to-clean pedestal base distinguish Kohler’s ‘Vintage’ 72″ x 42″ freestanding cast-iron tub. Available in white and four light neutrals; slip-resistant enameled interior finish. us.kohler.com

Signature Hardware’s ‘Kipley’ vanity.

Signature Hardware’s ‘Kipley’ vanity for a rectangular under-mount sink is similar to the custom vanities in the revival bathroom. This model is 48″ wide for a single basin; cherry finish. Options for stone counter and sinks, extra. signaturehardware.com


Tags: Arts and Crafts bathroom bathroom styles OHJ December 2018 shingle style

Product of the Week


© Copyright 2023 Home Group, a division of Active Interest Media. All Rights Reserved.

2143 Grand Avenue, Des Moines, IA 50312