An All-Wood Paneled 70s Bathroom Got an Americana Folk Makeover

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Certain architectural or decor features immediately call to mind a specific decade. Whether it’s rooster decor that dominated the early 2000s or the patterned linoleum of the ’50s, each period has its own look and feel. It might not be hard to guess which decade was referenced in the initial bathroom of Lauren Famularo and Richard Abendroth.

Certain details like the “featured wood on wood on wood,” with a chevron ceiling, paneled walls (which the couple later painted white with blue wainscoting), and a dark-stained vanity with two matching cabinets immediately scream ’70s.

“The previous owner is the only family to live in this house before my husband and me,” Lauren shares. “The home was well-loved and built with care, but definitely had not been updated.”

But its dated look wasn’t the only issue the couple faced.

It Was Awkward for Guests to Use Since It Was Connected to the Primary Bedroom

Even though their ranch-style home was around 2000 square feet, it only had one full bathroom, which was connected to their primary bedroom — making it awkward for guests.

The bathroom was also large enough to be two separate full baths, so Lauren and Richard first renovated the front half, and then tackled the second half to create an accessible shower for Richard’s brother.

Credit: Lauren Famularo

As Professional Architects, They Drew Plans Over and Over Again to Create Their Dream Space

Both Lauren and Richard are professional architects, so they couldn’t help but draw future plans for their home over and over again over the years.

“We can’t afford to do major renovations and make big changes all at once, so we try to implement changes slowly over time as we save up money for individual projects,” Lauren explains.

Not only did Lauren and Richard save for a year before starting the project, but they also “greatly benefited” from using their designer discounts and resources as architects. Fireclay Tiles gave them a friends-and-family discount because Lauren often worked with them professionally; West Elm offered a 20% discount for all designers; the shower head was a showroom sample product; and Lauren’s Kohler rep helped them figure out how to configure the overhead and hand shower faucets.

The couple spent over a year designing, planning, and renovating everything themselves. Overall, they spent $5,500 on materials alone. “My husband did 95% of the labor on this job with a little help from me, his brother, and my dad,” Lauren says.

Credit: Lauren Famularo

The “Earthy” Quilt-Patterned Tile Flooring Was Hand-Designed and Installed One by One

The couple had a goal to make the shower accessible for their brother but didn’t want it to look or feel “medical” — instead, they wanted it to fit with the rest of the home.

To make the shower accessible for Richard’s brother, they planned not to have a shower threshold, allowing the flooring to be a single continuous pattern. Because of this, Lauren knew that the flooring would be the showstopper, but it also needed to be non-slip and waterproof.

“I was aiming for a pattern that felt like folk Americana without a boring, overdone ‘farmhouse aesthetic,’” Lauren notes. When she first decided to create a classic quilt pattern out of ceramic tiles, she had a new challenge of finding a company that actually sold right-triangle tiles.

Luckily, Lauren found Fireclay Tile’s triangle pieces and played around with the various colors offered until they found the pattern they loved the most. The couple used the brand’s 4-inch matte ceramic triangle tiles in the colors “Slate Blue”, “Dusty Blue” (similar to “Caribbean Sea”), “Crater Lake”, “Daisy” (similar to “Feldspar”), and “Rosemary” to create a “subdued and earthy” design.

“The hardest part had to be installing the floor tile, though,” Lauren comments. “The tiles were installed individually, and the pattern was relatively complex — it was a lot to keep track of.”

But now her favorite part is the flooring and how it not only looks great, but they were also able to center the pattern perfectly around the shower drain, and how it’s “highly functional and accommodates a lot of different needs” for their family and guests.

Credit: Lauren Famularo

He Custom-Built the Medicine Cabinet to Fit Their Special Requests and It Saved Them So Much Money

Richard custom-built their vanity and medicine cabinet from a design they came up with together. They had a few priorities that they would only find if they made it themselves.

Lauren and Richard knew they wanted the hidden storage of a medicine cabinet, but they needed it to be extra large so they could mount it lower than the top of the faucet. Since Richard “is about 13 inches taller” than Lauren, they had to be able to see both of themselves in the mirror.

The couple decided to design it as a slider medicine cabinet, rather than have a swing door. It allowed the cabinet to hang wherever they wanted, while maintaining the hidden storage quality. Even though designing and building their own cabinet involved more labor, they were able to build it for only $150. It’s “a huge savings compared to what’s available on the market for tall medicine cabinets,” Lauren explains.

Because Lauren and Richard split the bathroom into two, this half is now the hall bath and hopefully will someday be a kids’ bathroom, so they wanted the space to be fun but not overly polished or modern.

“With every incremental renovation we do to this house, we try to find ways to make it feel like our own, and also think deeply about all of the details that go into it,” Lauren says.

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