COVER UP

A cotton skirt

(attached with Velcro)

wraps the pedestal sink,

left,

for an old-fashioned

look that also provides

space for a cleaning bucket

Sconce shades embellished

with shells and a mirror

with a weathered frame

add decorative appeal.

“It really is a pretty room,

not just a bathroom,”

Gretchen says.

BY THE SEA

Marine-theme

wallpaper, beaded board,

and starfish-shape knobs

on the built-in,

below,

play

up the room’s underlying

beach theme.

character builder

These

homeowners took their design cues from

the past to give their new bath an old soul.

Gretchen Price loves the charm of old homes, but not the upkeep and

tight storage that come with them. So when she and her husband, Jason,

built their new Massachusetts house, it was a chance for them to get the

best of both worlds. “It looks old, but it’s new, clean, and full of storage,”

Gretchen says.

Their powder room has the nooks and crannies of an old house, with

a bumped-out ledge behind the pedestal sink and a cabinet recessed into

the wall. Beyond hiding the usual bath fare, these built-ins have even

been used to temporarily stow kids’ crafts projects. Gretchen is glad she

heeded friends’ advice: “Everybody told me to plan for more storage

than I thought I’d need—to get it every place I could.” (3)

6 4

AUGUST

2010

B E T T E R HO M ES AND GARDEN S

F o r buy in i' in fo rm atio n sce /x ig e 2 13 .

P H O T O S : M IC H A E L P A R T E N IO ; P R O D U C E D BY S T A C Y K U N S T E L