As a lover of renovating old houses and turning them into sumptuous homes, I also have an eye for salvage houses throughout New England. About 25 years ago when I was working in the real estate assessment field consulting to town assessors, I found myself wandering around some amazing buildings adorned with period detail and filled with fabulous treasures. Treasures to an oldie buff like me are claw foot bathtubs with ornate feet, marble sink basins, porcelain and crystal door knobs but my favorite were the fireplace mantles. It conjured up fancy cocktail parties and fat cigars of yesteryear.

Vintage design with a modern flare is in. Let’s face it, unless you are glued to your Jacuzzi and have no interest in the joy of a REAL bathtub, then don’t go a salvage house. However, if you have an interest in beautiful fixtures and fascinating artifacts of lives in the recent past, go and have fun. If you want to furnish your home with a slipper tub but don’t want to pay the price tag for a reproduction, you may want to consider a used claw foot tub. Many fixtures will be in great shape but may require a resurfacing. That’s where all the fun of sweat equity comes in. Taking what some people would consider junk and restoring to its original beauty and functionality is truly an accomplishment. So the next time you are bored and uninspired, go take a day trip to one of the many salvage houses in New England. Enjoy a little piece of yesteryear today and who knows, maybe there’s a project in your future.