Guest Bath w/ a clawfoot tub, Kohler Bancroft Pedestal Sinks, Craftsman Mirrored Medicine cabinets, period sconces, Malibu Tile Company wall tile in Copper, and a custom keystones floor from DalTile

This tub and shower combo features a beautifully tiled shower niche using Bedrosians Cloe tiles in white.

An Arts & Crafts Bungalow is one of my favorite styles of homes. We have quite a few of them in our Stockton Mid-Town area. And when C&L called us to help them remodel their 1923 American Bungalow, I was beyond thrilled. As per usual, when we get a new inquiry, we quickly Google the project location while we are talking to you on the phone. My excitement escalated when I saw the Google Earth Image of the sweet Sage Green bungalow in Mid-Town Stockton. "Yes, we would be interested in working with you," I said trying to keep my cool. But what made it even better was meeting C&L and touring their home, because they are the nicest young couple, eager to make their home period perfect. Unfortunately, it had been slightly molested by some bad house-flippers, and we needed to bring the bathroom back to it "roots." We knew we had to banish the hideous brown tile and cheap vanity quickly. But C&L complained about the condensation problems and the constant fight with mold. This immediately told me that improper remodeling had occurred and we needed to remedy that right away. The Before: Frustrations with a Botched Remodel The bathroom needed to be brought back to period appropriate design with all the functionality of a modern bathroom. We thought of things like marble countertop, white mosaic floor tiles, white subway tile, board and batten molding, and of course a fabulous wallpaper. This small (and only) bathroom on a tight budget required a little bit of design sleuthing to figure out how we could get the proper look and feel. Our goal was to determine where to splurge and where to economize and how to complete the remodel as quickly as possible because C&L would have to move out while construction was going on. The Process: Hard Work to Remedy Design and Function During our initial design study, (which included 2 hours in the owners’ home), we noticed framed images of William Morris Arts and Crafts textile patterns and knew this would be our design inspiration. We presented C&L with three options and they quickly selected the Pimpernel Design Concept. We had originally selected the Black and Olive colors with a black vanity, mirror, and black and white floor tile. C&L liked it but weren’t quite sure about the black, We went back to the drawing board and decided the William & Co Pimpernel Wallpaper in Bayleaf and Manilla color with a softer gray painted vanity and mirror and white floor tile was more to their liking. After the Design Concept was approved, we went to work securing the building permit, procuring all the elements, and scheduling our trusted tradesmen to perform the work. We did uncover some shoddy work by the flippers such as live electrical wires hidden behind the wall, plumbing venting cut-off and buried in the walls (hence the constant dampness), the tub barely balancing on two fence boards across the floor joist, and no insulation on the exterior wall. All of the previous blunders were fixed and the bathroom put back to its previous glory. We could feel the house thanking us for making it pretty again. The After Reveal: Cohesive Design Decisions We selected a simple white subway tile for the tub/shower. This is always classic and in keeping with the style of the house. We selected a pre-fab vanity and mirror, but they look rich with the quartz countertop. There is much more storage in this small vanity than you would think. The Transformation: A Period Perfect Refresh We began the remodel just as the pandemic reared and stay-in-place orders went into effect. As C&L were already moved out and living with relatives, we got the go-ahead from city officials to get the work done (after all, how can you shelter in place without a bathroom?). All our tradesmen were scheduled to work so that only one crew was on the job site at a time. We stayed on the original schedule with only a one week delay. The end result is the sweetest little bathroom I've ever seen (and I can't wait to start work on C&L's kitchen next). Thank you for joining me in this project transformation. I hope this inspired you to think about being creative with your design projects, determining what works best in keeping with the architecture of your space, and carefully assessing how you can have the best life in your home.

This 2 bed 1 bath home was remodeled from top to bottom! We updated the floors, painted the whole interior a rich warm gray color and installed rustic wood tile flooring throughout. We worked on the kitchen layout quiet a lot because of it's small size, we opted for a large island but left enough room for a small dining table in the kitchen. We installed 36" upper cabinets with 3" crown molding to give the kitchen some height. We also wanted to bring in some of the Farmhouse style, so we installed subway backsplash with black grout. The only bathroom in the house is very small, but we made the most of the space by installing some cool tile all of the way to the ceiling. We then gave the space as much storage as we could with a custom vanity with beautiful granite and a large mirrored medicine cabinet. On the outside, we wanted the home to have some charm so we opted for a nice dark blue exterior color with white trim.

The Guest Bathroom bathtub was relocated to be under the window, which is the only new window in the house. This window has insulating, frosted glass to provide privacy and to keep out cold drafts.

Basement Bathroom in the Legato Home Design by Symphony Homes.

Traditional style tile details and better storage will make this the ideal bathroom for two growing boys! Custom cabinetry allowed us to make room for a laundry shoot (far left side) and double sinks.

22 Pages Photography

Annie M. Design

I designed this bathroom to be a modern take on craftsman. Mint green ceramic tiles, terrazzo floors ice white with flecks of green, chrome Kohler hardware in pinstripe pattern and custom cabinet doors to match existing in the home. Photos by Sara Essex Bradley.

Neil Sy Photography