Powder Room Perfection
Editorial and Photography: Robert Bysher
Located in eastern Pennsylvania, this distinctive Victorian-era home has undergone detailed renovation work over the last 12 years.
Built in 1900, the home is classified as a Free Classic Victorian and has been affectionately named Cardinal Hill. Free Classic Victorians typically featured the same irregular floor plans, and towers associated with Queen Anne Victorians, but replaced the ornate spindle work with classical columns for a simpler, cleaner aesthetic.
This modest 2900 sq. ft., four-bedroom home was purchased at auction in October 2010 and work began in December of the same year.
Of all the rooms completed by owner Bob Bysher, this Powder Room was most certainly the smallest. Surprisingly, this tiny 6’ x 3’ area took 8 weeks to complete.
Originally, this powder room had just a toilet, so adding more functionality was at the top of the list.
Starting with the basics, the toilet was removed as well as all wallpaper. During this process, a toilet water supply valve was added and plaster repairs made to the walls. The pass-through radiator pipes were stripped to bare metal, primed, and painted in Rustoleum Champagne Bronze. A side wall was opened up to add plumbing for a sink.
After the walls were primed, the woodwork was stripped of many layers of paint. It was decided that repainting the trim work was the best course of action. The floors were sanded down and the majority of stains removed.
Beadboard was added to the lower half of the wall and Anaglypta embossed wallpaper was installed at the top. After a few experiments, the wallpaper was painted with an old can of Ralph Lauren “Old Sapphire” that was sitting in the attic. Of course this needed to be strained first, but it was worth the effort. The satin blue finish had fine metal particles in the paint giving it a wonderful glow. Finally, using Rub ‘n Buff in antique gold, certain areas of the embossed wallpaper were highlighted. This effect gave the wallpaper an aged look. Painting the woodwork and trim in a satin cream helped brighten up the small area. Minwax “Special Walnut” was used to give the original oak floors a warm tone. Since this powder room gets used on a regular basis, three coats of oil based satin polyurethane were used to protect the floor.
After installing brass hot and cold supply valves, a small “bird-bath” sink was added. Now this is where a little “artistic license” came into play. Antique style all-metal P-traps and collars are still made but were only available in a chrome finish. Those, along with the chrome supply lines were scuffed and spray painted in the Champagne Bronze to match the antique brass plumbing fixtures and accessories.
The final piece of the puzzle came when purchasing an antique cabinet. The piece was listed as a late 1800s medicine cabinet but I knew it was actually an antique spice rack. What looks like a towel bar was actually where herbs and spices were hung to dry out. This was the precursor to the modern day medicine cabinet. It came with a pretty damaged mirror so rather then put a new mirror on it, it was decided to have a custom stained glass piece made for the little door. All the glass pieces and pattern were chosen to match the interior colors of the powder room. The final touch was using the Rub ‘n Buff in antique gold on the solder joints of the stained glass. The cabinet became the focal point of this small powder room and a wonderful addition to the remodel.
Bringing all these elements together helped create a space that is both warm and inviting. Even though this room is only 18 square feet, paying attention to the little details can create a huge impact in a small area.
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