With a skillful melding of nostalgic details and up-to-date comforts, Lise Lawson, ASID, created an inviting bath with the feel of a comfortable, remodeled farmhouse. French doors and generous windows suggest the "sleeping porch" of a Victorian summer cottage. Inspiration for the room's color scheme and detailing came from the decorated lavatory and matching ceramic tile. There are elements of Victoriana, yet there is ample use of whites and a soft celadon shade in the room to maintain a light and airy feeling.

To achieve a familiar, down-home quality the designer selected wide floor boards painted celadon, and classic beaded board wainscoting, done up in white, which encircles the room and continues across the front of the thoroughly modern whirlpool bath. Hand-crafted touches extend the ivy motif in the garlands stenciled on the floor and in the whimsical cabinet pulls and mirror frame.

"Painting and stenciling a wooden floor is one of the least expensive options for a floor treatment and is a nice way to create a customized, decorative look," Lawson pointed out.

Lace curtains discreetly screen the French doors, and filter the sunlight as it enters the room, while the floral print fabric in the Roman shades picks up the colors in the lavatory. A marble vanity top and whirlpool surround, along with etched and frosted light sconces and a comfortable wicker rocker, preserve the room's traditional heritage.

About the Designer
Projects designed by Lise Lawson, ASID, IBD, have been featured in Better Homes & Gardens, Midwest Living, the Washington Post, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the Chicago Tribune and Sun-Times. Her firm, Lise Lawson Interior Design, handles both residential and commercial projects from offices in Fox Point, Wisconsin, and Chicago. She earned degrees in art history and interior design from the University of Michigan and Mount Vernon College, Washington, D.C., respectively. Lawson is a past president of the National Council of Interior Design Qualification, the Wisconsin Chapter of the America Society of Interior Designers, and the Wisconsin Chapter of the Institute of Business Designers.

Kohler Co.
K-702-H1 Vintage bath whirlpool in Biscuit
K-9695 Whirlpool trim kit in polished brass
K-110-9B/K-264-PS Antique bath faucet w/personal shower, riser tubes and escutcheons in polished brass and ceramic trim with Artist Editions Peonies & Ivy pattern
K-14270-PS Cantata lavatory with Artist Editions Peonies & Ivy pattern
K-280-9B/K-258 Antique lavatory faucet in polished brass and ceramic trim with Artist Editions Peonies and Ivy pattern
K-3435 San Martine toilet in Biscuit
K-211 Antique toilet tissue holder in polished brass
K-208 Antique towel rings in polished brass
K-14181-PS Accessory jars in Artist Editions Peonies & Ivy pattern
Various tile in Artist Editions Peonies & Ivy pattern