Throwback Thursday - Let There Be Light (and storage)

When we purchased this 1940s home, I insisted that the medicine cabinet in the main bathroom had to go.

It’s a 1940s chic bathroom! It even had a toilet from 1950, which we discovered when Derek tore it out. The black-and-white 40s-era tiles work now that I painted the walls and ceiling white. But I couldn’t see keeping the massive mirrored medicine cabinet and light.

huge medicine cabinet has mirrored doors. Light overhead appears to be florescent but isn't — This is the “after” photo.

Everyone who saw it said things like, “cool” and “you’ve got to keep it”! It just seemed to take up a lot of real estate for the amount of storage it offered. It’s almost four-feet wide! The light was uneven and dull. I thought it was florescent and I despise florescent.

I started looking around for a replacement cabinet of this size and they don’t exist unless they’re custom-made. Was I going to have to convince Derek to make one? Then I thought we’d just put a big mirror there. We found a massive mirror but couldn’t figure out how to move it without a lot of risk. Finally I thought I’d just replace the lighting. But this fixture goes with the cabinet. We’d have to rig something up for a fixture to hang out far enough to make sense. It was a conundrum.

Our friend Avery pushed it over the edge. She has terrific taste and we respect her opinion. She said it was cool and needed to stay. So I decided to go with it. I rolled up my sleeves. purchased some chrome cleaner, and gave it a good scrubbing. Derek found antique-style knobs, replaced the lightbulbs and voila – it’s super bright. It’s a nod to the home’s storied past of nearly eight decades and I know for certain I won’t see another one like it.