When we bought our house in 2007, we intended to renovate it from top to bottom. We judged the modest-sized home by its bones and were reassured that most major structural updates—windows, roof, plumbing, and siding—had been completed by the previous owners within the past five years. That left cosmetic work and smaller projects, and we assumed that with a bit of effort we would have a wonderful place to live fairly quickly.
What we couldn’t accept, however, was the single full bathroom. Planning to make this house our long-term family home, we knew we needed at least two full bathrooms. The house did have a second, oddly placed half bath on the lower level, and with some creative reconfiguration it seemed possible to convert that space into a modest master bathroom.
Rather than fitting the new room with the plainest fixtures, we wanted to respect the character of our 110-year-old house. That led us to search for the perfect claw-foot bathtub. New reproduction tubs were priced far above our budget, so we turned to online marketplaces for an affordable antique alternative. Our only requirement was that the tub be long and deep enough to accommodate a full-sized adult comfortably.
