And Speaking Of Kitchen Faucets…
So, y’all now know that I have changed my plans for the kitchen of the Cross House. Rather than install a huge island with sink and appliances under, I am going to do a soapstone sink in what I believe is the original location: smack up against the huge south window.
The sink will have a tall backsplash, and the faucets will be mounted on the backsplash, like this:
.
This is what faucets looked like in 1894. There was a cold tap. There was a hot tap. It seems that combining cold/hot into a single faucet was a newfangled invention which showed up in the 1920s, I think.
So, to be period-correct, I should install separate cold/hot taps.
But…no.
I think kitchen should be as efficient as possible. Which means a combination fixture, like this:
.
This fixture will allow me the convenience of a combination fixture. AND with the all-important sprayer!
The fixture is nickel-plated, which WAS normal for 1894.
Yes, I am breaking my own guidelines about the importance of not screwing with the historical narrative but, as I have previously pointed out, I am not an absolutive about things. And guidelines are not rules.
I hesitate to order because I would prefer an actual 1920s combination faucet but I have not been able to find one that has a sprayer.
So, what do y’all think?
37 Comments
Leave a Comment
Your email address will NEVER be made public or shared, and you may use a screen name if you wish.
I think it would be perfect.
I love it! However, finding one from the 20’s with a sprayer might be problematic. This is going to be steller.
I am ALL for this faucet – it’s a great compromise and will make the kitchen much more liveable than a ‘real’ 1894 faucet. The bathroom that was added on to the back of our old house (overlooking the yard with the original bathroom… a green outhouse) had a sink with C/H taps. It was not fun to live with, especially when trying to wash your face in the morning. In the northeast, your water can be DAMN cold!
You have modern wiring, A/C and heating don’t you? Your decorating is not strictly period correct. I say go for the convenience with a generous nod to history.
Just my 2 cents. 😉
I say go for it. Better to have something modern with a nod to the period than having a 1920s sink which would confuse future generations.
I grew up in a house with separate hot and cold water taps in the bathroom. It’s neat but the novelty wears off.
Follow you heart!
I had a bathroom sink like that once, Carin.
And that is why I don’t wish to repeat the experience!
“Smack up against the huge south window.”
Will that tall back splash cover the bottom of the window and get in the way of being able to open it and cut down on the amount of light coming into the kitchen? Maybe in Kansas that’s desirable? (Fun tidbit- Up in MN’s Northern situation it’s pretty common in old houses to have kitchen windows facing East to get as much light in the morning as possible.)
Mona, the south window is HUGE. It’s two windows, almost 6-feet wide total, and a little less than 7-feet high.
The sink will cover 19-inches of the right window. There will still be a TON of light.
NOTE: I would not be planning this save that the original sink appears to have been in the same location (the holes for the hot/cold lines are extant in the window sill). I will use the same holes for the new lines!
Utility and efficiency were the bywords then as now. Go for it!
Love the faucet as pictured and sink.
Don’t love 1894 sink with tall back splash against huge window.
Love that window and the light in the kitchen during the day.
Your house & your choices. 🙂
Hope these plans make you happy and are utilitarian and convenient.
Happy for you Ross!
PS often wondered how Justin like the deep fryer (I gave him) and if it worked for him?
I will ask about the fryer, Sandra!
That would be lovely Ross!
I often wondered….
I’ve been looking at similar ones from Kingston Brass that have the sprayer and are combo hot/cold. Maybe look at those?
Thank you, Tiffaney. I did looked at those but didn’t like the square competent in the middle.
Besides the sprayer, I have that exact faucet on my double drain board apron front sink. I love the design and functionality. There is one model with a soap holder at the top which would be handy b/c there’s no place besides the drain board to put a sponge.
Christine, I’m gonna have a narrow shelf attached to the right side of the backsplash.
The faucet will not be centered, but will be over to the left.
So, I think you should go original, but then add a 1950’s rubber hose with an unreliable plastic sprayer and flop it from the back of the sink over the top to the front, perhaps while drilling an unnecessary hole in the wood window sill. Because that is what someone’s crazy uncle would have done about 1950-60 (wink wink). Historical narrative retained!
The perfect solution, Derek! Thank you!
I do what I can….tip the waitress…. try the veal….
What can I say, I had a vision for the perfect historically accurate solution!
Thank you Derek! I needed a good laugh today!
I think everyone should have ONE faucet. You’re on the right track Ross. 🙂
A very good choice. Functionality, yet close to what would have been there.
Experienced both separate hot/ cold faucets and combined ones. Found the separate taps to use more water and is time-consuming, even more so if the taps are far apart. The convenience of a combined tap (especially for daily use) will be very useful in a kitchen. The sprayer is also a useful addition.
I wonder about this. Because before faucets, people were used to washing up in a wash basin (aka standing water) so they probably plugged and filled the sink with the desired temperature, as opposed to now a days when we just let the water run. So maybe it didn’t use as much water as one would think? Just speculating with ideas.
Emily: you are correct with using a wash basin/ plugging the sink’s drain then collecting water if using separate faucets. Doing so use less water. It is okay for mild weather, as one can wash with cold water. In winter though, a person with decreased sensitivity to heated water (numb fingers/ hands due to the cold weather and/or poor blood circulation) is at a risk of being scalded. Regulating the water temperature can become burdensome when a person is feeble. Too many steps required to use separate faucets.
Love that faucet. 2 thumbs up.
I don’t actually think of this as a compromise – it is a great solution.
Hot/cold mixing faucets were totally available in the 1890s, especially in bathrooms, pantries, and barber-related settings (where a shampoo hose was a common accessory). So while it is true that the split wall cocks were most common in kitchens, a mixer is not out of the realm of possible and a totally appropriate look.
Take a look at some of the great 1893 faucets here, some of which are mixers.
Check out the jasper handles! Fancy.
( around p. 115 of the catalogue, p. 166 of the pdf)
What if you got yourself a 1920’s mixer faucet, sans sprayer, but ALSO installed separately a high pressure, restaurant/industrial sprayer? You know, the kind with a high arch that hang out over the sink? It might give you a bit more flexibility and more options for finding the look you’re really after.
I like the faucet you picked out, looks appropriate, yet convenient. We have separate faucets in our bathroom and it is a bit of a pain, it would be more so in the kitchen. Good choice.
Lovely!
Actually I think that choice is perfect for the historical narrative. In my collecting/decorating, I remind myself I’m not trying to pin myself to a particular day in history. Anyone who has seen your fabulous twist on modern decorating would begrudge you combined hot and cold water.
The kitchen is the one room in the house that should be functional for the owners. So I think you should make it a comfortable working space for you, matching how you cook and entertain.
By the way, I’m betting the drainboard becomes a favorite spot for kitties to sunbathe.
I know you are trying to remain “true” to the old ways. I’ve lived in enough homes with the separate hot and cold faucets. I’m over that. I’ve learned that I don’t really enjoy having to use two handles/knobs to get my desired temp. And yes, sprayer is also a very handy tool!
That said, the set you posted is lovely!!
It’s probably safe to assume Emporia Had running water by 1894 if your house was built with a bath and a half, but how did they draw water from the huge cistern back behind your place? An early electric pump system? A hand pump? There may be precedent for multiple taps at your original sink. What if you had what looked to be a single faucet, flush against the backsplash, but was really on a weighted, retractable hose like a sprayer?! It would function as a sprayer then retract to fit snugly against the backsplash when not in use. And the downward position would save you from a soaking should any of your guests pull my favorite childhood prank: a rubber band around the sprayer handle up soak whoever turns the faucet on.
I vote for the mixer taps. Like many others here, I’ve lived with enough separate taps to think that the mixer was a lovely invention. Ditto the sprayer.