NASA's Bathroom Contributions

Freeze dried food and memory foam are not the only popular products developed by NASA. If you take a closer look, NASA is all over your bathroom. You can explore NASA in the bathroom at the Discovery Channel's interactive website.

Some of the bathroom innovations include environmentally safe sewage treatment, durable polished brass finish, memory metal alloys, purifying bacteriostatic water softeners and reflective insulation. Infrared ear thermometers, ingestible toothpaste, and some cosmetics also have NASA influence.

Learn more about NASA and NASA at home and in your city.

Vintage Advertisements

Advertisements of the past tended to be full of words, instructions, and photos. Over the decades, marketers have performed many tests and much research to appeal to their targeted consumers. As a result, ads are less busy and more visually appealing.

Below are vintage advertisements for various bathroom products. The first ad was released in 1930 for the Si-Wel-Clo quiet toilet. Promoting an innovative, comfortable design, the Si-Wel-Clo was the most quiet toilet of the time.

The 1943 Scot Toilet Tissue advertisement below goes into great detail about an alternate use of the Scot toilet paper. The ad assures consumers that tests have proven Scot toilet tissue to effectively prevents the transference of disease when used as a disposable mask.


This vintage Jonny Mop advertisement from 1954 confidently promises to actually pay consumers to try their product. It also introduces a "modern" way to clean toilets.

Disney Castle Bathroom

Did you ever wonder what the inside of Cinderella's castle looks like? I came across some photos from about.com depicting the Cinderella's Castle Suite. The pictures that caught my attention were those of the luxurious bathroom. I learned that you can actually spend the night in this magical suite.

Below is a view of the entire bathroom,


the jacuzzi bathtub complete with stained glass tiles and a waterfall faucet,


the copper sink with wall mounted, single handle sink faucet,


and an over-sized shower head and a convenient hand shower.


Not pictured above is the royal toilet, which i can only imagine looks something like this toilet throne fit for a king (or queen).

Check out other photos of the Cinderella Suite from about.com.

Corner Sinks for Small Bathrooms

You have a lot of sink choices for your small bathroom. One particularly good option is a corner sink. Corner sinks are perfect for small or unusually shaped bathrooms because they require very little space. Here are several that our customers recommended.

This Elizabethan’s Classics Corner Sink with chrome Kohler Faucet, for example, is very small and discreet yet it is highly recommended by our customers. "Andrew1000" from Boston, MAdescribes it as “a perfect size and completely out of the way”. Take a look at the photo he submitted below.

If you are looking for a sink with a more interesting shape, this corner basin sink may be a good choice. Due to the size and shape, it can be installed “in tight [spaces and allow] doors to open without hitting the sink”, says "DLB1" from Washington, DC.

A good example of a large corner sink is this wall mounted Cheviot. This larger alternative offers more space for hand washing but can still be installed in small spaces. "Czyzyk", a customer from Medford, New Jersey found this corner sink to be “perfect for small spaces and handicapped accessible”

Vintage Advertisements: American Standard

Currently, American Standard is a popular bathroom fixture manufacturer which is the result of American Standard Americas, Crane Plumbing, and Elijier merging together. Though this merge occurred as recently as last year, American Standard has roots dating back to 1875 when the Standard Sanitary Manufacturing Company was founded. The company was so successful that in 1929, they were the largest producer of bathroom fixtures. The "American Standard" name was created when the Standard Sanitary Corporation merged with the American Radiator Company.

The following are vintage advertisements for American Standard products. The first was printed in 1959 and discussed the new American Standard bathtub with a contour shape that made bathing more relaxing.

A close-up of a pink, 1959 American Standard vanity sink.


The Fiesta sink advertisement from 1968, tells consumers that the "sporty Fiesta makes other kitchen sinks look like they're standing still".


From the same campaign, the 1968 advertisement features a self ventilating toilet that can be installed in one hour for $150.


View our American Standard bathroom products.

Sources: American Standard
Retro Renovation
Ad Classix

The Toilet Quiz

We all use a toilet every day. But how much do we really know about them? Click on the little toilet below to take the toilet quiz. Find out if you are a toilet expert, or at least try to beat my score of six correct answers out of ten.

The Art Museum Toilet Museum of Art

The Art Museum Toilet Museum of Art is not a museum of interesting toilets from different time periods or countries. Nor can it be visited physically.

What makes this Museum of Art interesting, is that it showcases only toilets and bathrooms that are located in other museums. Due to the fact that the Museum's exhibits exist in other museums all over the world, The Art Museum Toilet Museum of Art can only be visited online. Now that, is a mouthful.

Photos can be submitted to The Art Museum Toilet Museum of Art. Some toilets currently featured in their gallery include:

Tate Museum Bathroom in London, England.


Kyoto National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto, Japan


Museum of Photography in Tokyo, Japan


Smith College Museum of Art in Northampton, Massachusetts


Source: The Art Museum Toilet Museum of Art

Pot Fillers and Bar Sinks

You may think, why buy a bar sink or pot filler when I already have a sink and faucet in my kitchen?

Pot fillers are small faucets that extend from the wall or counter. They usually dispense only cold water but some have the option of hot water or filtered water. Pot fillers are mainly for filling kettles and pots but also have other uses. Installing a pot or kettle filler can save steps while preparing dinner. Rinsing off vegetables and filling up glasses with drinking water can both be made easier with a pot filler.

Bar sinks are generally smaller than your kitchen sink. They come in different shapes, sizes, and depths. Having a bar sink is ideal for entertaining guests because you can prepare drinks without making a mess. Fill the sink with ice to keep soda, beer, and white wine cold at your next party.

Another name for a bar sink is prep sink. This sink can make food preparation quicker and can also be useful when two people are using the kitchen simultaneously.

Leopard Locked in Bathroom

According to this BBC news story, a family in Vadodara, India, was greeted by a leopard in their home. The family woke up hearing noises in their home, went to scope out the scene, and were surprised to find a leopard in their home. They closed doors of the house, trapping the leopard in the bathroom where it began roaring.


After alerting officials, a crowd began to form outside of the household which was alarming to the leopard. Eventually, the crowd was forced away and the animal was tranquilized and captured. The leopard, which officials said "probably came from the jungle near the city", was to be released back into the wild a few days later.

Source: BBC News

Planning Out Your Bathroom

Before beginning a remodeling project, it is important to plan properly to ensure the renovation process goes smoothly. Since you do not want any trouble maneuvering in your bathroom, it is a good idea to follow certain spatial guidelines. If your bathroom is going to be used by people of different ages and sizes, it is a good idea to stick with Universal Design (UD). Another set of helpful guidelines are ones set by the National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA).

According to UD, you should leave 30 x 48 inches of floor space around each fixture. If, for instance, you have a toilet and sink next to each other, the recommended open space can be shared. Meaning you can leave a 30 x 48 inch common space between the two.

When you install your sink, keep in mind that you should leave 30 inches of space in the front of the sink. A wall mounted or console sink will have room undearneath and allow 12" of the recommended 48" of space to begin under the sink.

There should be 30" in front of the toilet and at least 16" of clear space from the center of the toilet to a wall or any other fixture next to the toilet. If you plan on installing your toilet in a compartment within the bathroom, make sure it is at least 33" wide and 66" deep. If the compartment will have a door, it should be at least 32" wide.

If your shower is less that 60", allow 36" of depth. To arrive at the amount of recommended width, add 12" to the width of your shower. If your shower is greater than 60", still allow 36" deep of clear space, but the width need only be the size of the shower.

Photos above from our customer gallery.

Learn more about clearance guidelines for these and other bathroom fixtures.

The Many Bathrooms of President Truman

In addition to the 35 bathrooms in the White House, President Truman also had a couple in other locations. Below are some photos from the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum.

This photo, taken in 1942, displays Truman's bathroom on the presidential yacht - U.S.S. Williamsburg.


Below is the sink in Truman's bathroom while he stayed at the Laranjeiras Palace in Rio de Janiero. Following that is a photo of his regal toilet and bathtub.


Source: The Harry S. Truman Library and Museum

Other Uses for your Aga Oven

Warm Plates
Keep your plates warm before dinner by sticking them in the plate warming rack in the Vertical Convection Oven. Or warm up your mug in the morning while waiting for coffee to brew.

Dry Linens
Hang dinner napkins or tablecloths over the hang rail to dry or smooth out wrinkles before use.

Making Jam
Use up over-ripe fruit before it goes bad by turning it into jam with your Aga simmering plate and simmering oven. Try this recipe for Damson Plum Jam and don’t forget you can also use your Aga to sterilize the jars you will be putting the jam into.

Keep Wooden Utensils Clean
Store wooden or bamboo kitchen utensils and cutting boards above your Aga range to keep them dry. Since they are so porous, bacteria can easily grow if they aren’t properly dried. You could also put cutting boards in the plate warming rack of your Aga Legacy after washing.

Food Prep
Try defrosting or thawing out meat or seafood in your Aga oven instead of the microwave.

Incubating
If you really want to get the most of your oven, try incubating chick or goose eggs. I found these articles discussing how chicks were nursed to life by the heat of an Aga oven range. You may want to do more research before attempting this, however.

Customer Gallery - Outdoor Kitchen

This photo submitted is unique to our customer photo gallery. It is not of a bathroom, but of the ultimate outdoor kitchen . The series of photos were submitted by Rich from Minnesota to showcase the copper bar sink and deck mounted faucet.

However, we do also offer a variety of garden furnishings, garden accessories, and fireplace supplies. Check out more photos of Rich's outdoor kitchen as well as other customer submitted photos. Don't forget to send your photos to emily@vintagetub.com!

Installing a Toilet

Toilet installation sounds like a difficult task to those of us who aren't experienced with plumbing or remodeling. However, according to the DIY Network, the toilet "is easy even for beginners to install".


In the how-to article about toilet installation, it is stated that the toilet should first be completely assembled before installation can begin. The article goes into detail describing each step necessary beginning with installing the knock-out flange which will be compressed under the toilet to create and airtight seal and keep sewer gases and debris away. Next the toilet will be attached, sealed, and bolted to a wax ring atop the flange. The process ends once water supply lines are connected and toilet seat is added.

Read step by step toilet installation instructions from the DIY network.