The only beadboard original bath I have seen is a Victorian bathroom that was extremely early. The fixtures were raw brass and more along the lines of what would look like garden spigots to us, with the supplies and drains running exterior to the walls; the toilet was a china bowl with manufacturer's writing on it encased in a wooden seat with a high wooden (and probably zinc) tank, and the tub was a box tub with a zinc interior. It was all stained, dark brown beadboard--including the walls-- and was added off a stair landing for the house. This house also had working gas fixtures. The sellers had "new" baths that they actually used, (one other more typical Edwardian bath with newer fixtures and something from the 70s--it was a large house. Since this was very early, they probably didn't really have a notion of what a bathroom "should" look like but toward the end of the Victorian era marble, nickel and tile was the standard, at least here.

Thanks again everyone. I just wanted to add that we definitely shared the "trepidation" some of you mentioned when we first contemplated renovating the spaces. I think in retrospect it was a good thing that the job of selling our previous house prevented us from moving into this home until a month before the demo began. I think if we had lived here for very long it would have been much harder to take on such a big remodel (and I can definitely relate to why the second owners chose to change nothing.) We couldn't have accomplished this without our fantastic GC and cabinetmaker. Our cabinetmaker took our original vision and made it so much better. It was he who designed the shape of the bar table to match the angle of kitchen counter and designed almost on the spot the boomerang shelves when we discovered that the fireplace stone didn't go all the way down to the counters. His company does custom work at very reasonable prices -- if you live in the Twin Cities area, I can recommend them highly. rhome410 -- below is the original floor plan. The home is a split level (the floor plan shows only the top floor of the split levels) The only structural changes we made were: 1) to eliminate the wall of cabinetry and shorten the half wall between the kitchen and dinette area; 2) lengthen the half bath by removing the doggy bath in the laundry area ellendi -- great idea! in fact, our home will be part of a home remodeling tour later this summer AngAx -- I agree that homes in WI are more standardized than we were used to (we are originally from the west coast.) However, after buying our home, we became more attuned to finding the MCM gems.... they are here and SO much more affordable than on the west coast. p.s. I love white kitchens too :) flyleft -- your enthusiasm cheered my DH up amazingly! (He is overall very happy with the move and renovations but at times laments the year of our life dedicated to it :) Re: the pottery on the boomerang shelves, the vintage cannisters were a gift from a dear friend in France. The rest have been purchased from artisan potteries in France. louisanapurchase -- "looks more original than the original" -- wow -- thanks so much. We couldn't have hoped for more. javachik -- It sings to us too! Thanks!

I actually do like that brushed brass, though I had to laugh as I have spent the last 3 months swapping out (shiny!) brass fixtures/door handles in the whole house. Perhaps the bronze will work after all.

Thanks, rorah, and others. I tend to gravitate towards cool vs. warm colors here. Can you try a mock-up of the Stonington Gray since I have two gallons of it? Also, maybe the Powell Buff. Not sure about Kangaroo. ?? I would likely need to stop at BM and see what kind of samples they have of these colors. DH does like the Nantucket Fog, and he said he was skeptical about the gray for a BR. So, in all likelihood, we are going to end up keeping it, so, yes, that means painting the bathroom. At least I don't have to hire painters to do it. I have had some issues with balance and vertigo over the past couple years, so I did not feel comfortable taking on a job where I'd need extended time on a ladder or step stool, but I'd be able to do that small space. I could send DH up on the ladder, but I'm the painter. He is a wonderful man, but he is not handy at all. I've done this entire interior on our house except for this BR. If I did it while he was home on a weekend, that would be OK for safety. I'll probably need to sell the leftover Stonington Gray on Nextdoor. I also have 3 gallons of primer. They are about 2 years old but have never been opened, so I'm sure I can't return them. What do you think of the suggestions in this article on coordinating with terracotta? http://homeguides.sfgate.com/colors-coordinate-terracotta-tile-100127.html