Arts and Crafts Powder Room

PROBLEM:

The powder room was inconveniently located in the middle of the kitchen. It was shabby, leaking and cold. The toilet and sink were too close together.

SOLUTION:

As part of a kitchen and mudroom renovation, the new 18 square foot powder room was relocated to the back of the house. The proper clearance was planned for the toilet and sink for comfort and code compliance. A space-saving pocket door was installed. The crawl space below and exterior walls were insulated. Baseboard heat was added.

The Arts and Crafts style from the kitchen was continued into this adjacent powder room: soapstone tile floor, pedestal sink, oil rubbed bronze faucet and Craftsman-style lantern wall sconce. The crowning touch is the Tramp Art mirror custom made by Fran Phillips of Mulligan & Phillips.

Tramp Art, popular between the 1870s to the 1940s, was not typically made by “tramps” or “hobos” but by skilled, itinerant artisans. Small pieces of wood, primarily from cigar boxes and produce crates, were whittled, notched and carved into geometric shapes, then stacked in layers to produce small decorative objects like boxes or frames. Learn more about this charming and whimsical art form, here and here.