Every December, we, as an agency, throw money into a hat to give our founding partners a gift to thank them for a great year. Over the years, these gifts have included a neon sign shaped like our logo, a phone booth, an entry rug (featuring our logo), a table set (again, logo), a fishtank, an old exercise machine, and a disco ball. This year, we decided to tear a page out of our agency equity "Good. Clean. Fun." and our website, which features a clawfoot tub, and create The Tubble.
What's a tubble, you ask? Simple, it's a tub, filled with bubbles, that we turned into a coffee table.
Tub + Bubbles + Table = Tubble.
It all started with a rusty tub on a neighbor's porch.
He was gutting his house and graciously gave us this old clawfoot tub. While the structural integrity of the tub was sound, it needed some work. The porcelain inside had some rust spots, the feet and fixture were rusted, and the outside of the tub had about 12 coats of paint on it.
So how did we get from rusty old tub to Tubble?
You'd be surprised at how easy (and relatively inexpensive) it was.
What's a tubble, you ask? Simple, it's a tub, filled with bubbles, that we turned into a coffee table.
Tub + Bubbles + Table = Tubble.
It all started with a rusty tub on a neighbor's porch.
He was gutting his house and graciously gave us this old clawfoot tub. While the structural integrity of the tub was sound, it needed some work. The porcelain inside had some rust spots, the feet and fixture were rusted, and the outside of the tub had about 12 coats of paint on it.
So how did we get from rusty old tub to Tubble?
You'd be surprised at how easy (and relatively inexpensive) it was.
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Signing UpStep 1: The Cost
First things, first. Before you begin, you probably wanna know how much this little baby is gonna set you back. Before you wince at the cost, however, remember that this is a one-of-a-kind piece of furniture (currently) and you're not likely to find another one within a 2000-mile radius of your home. Having a unique piece of furniture sometimes comes with a cost. That said...
We were fortunate in that we got an old tub for free, but you may be able to pick one up from a local junkyard or find one on Craigslist or Freecycle for next to nothing. A quick perusal of eBay turns up vintage clawfoot tubs in much better shape than ours for as little as $20. So we'll just assume you already have a tub.
The major expenses are the glass table top (custom cut glass, especially tempered safety glass can be expensive), a new fixture, and the stuff to fill the tub with (to create the illusion that it is filled with a soothing bubble bath). We splurged on a nice fixture from Signature Hardware for $120, but you can find a fixture for a clawfoot tub at your local big box hardware store for around $50 or find a good deal on Craigslist or eBay. We had some extra bubblewrap lying around from packing Christmas presents, but you can get a couple of sheets at a local shipping store for minimal cost or buy a whole 602 roll for around $12. The Christmas lights were $3.99 a box or $8+tax for two. The rubber ducky was on sale at Bath & Body Works for $1 (normally $4). The Christmas ornaments were also on sale at Michaels we bought $50 worth, which was about 10 boxes of large (6 in each box, ornaments about the size of a tangerine) and 10 boxes of small (9-12 in each box, ornaments about the size of a ping pong ball). We had the glass tabletop cut at Oakley Paint & Glass here in Cincinnati and it was about $180. The cost of the glass is largely dependent on what kind of glass you elect to get, but we opted for tempered safety glass because we have some clumsy people walking around the office.
Additional costs for this project include tools, cleaning supplies, and paint. Depending on the state of your tub and what you already have around the house/office, this may be a little or a lot.
We already had all of the tools, so we were just left to purchase the paint and cleaning supplies (prices listed next to each item).
So, the total cost for the Tubble? If you had absolutely nothing in the house, including the tub, and had to go out and buy all of your tools and supplies, you could end up spending as much as $600.
Because we splurged on the fixture and table top (and we already had a tub), it cost us about $400.
But, assuming your tub was in better shape and you already had some of this stuff around the house, you might be able to do it for the price of the glass, fixture, and bubbles, or around $200.
We were fortunate in that we got an old tub for free, but you may be able to pick one up from a local junkyard or find one on Craigslist or Freecycle for next to nothing. A quick perusal of eBay turns up vintage clawfoot tubs in much better shape than ours for as little as $20. So we'll just assume you already have a tub.
The major expenses are the glass table top (custom cut glass, especially tempered safety glass can be expensive), a new fixture, and the stuff to fill the tub with (to create the illusion that it is filled with a soothing bubble bath). We splurged on a nice fixture from Signature Hardware for $120, but you can find a fixture for a clawfoot tub at your local big box hardware store for around $50 or find a good deal on Craigslist or eBay. We had some extra bubblewrap lying around from packing Christmas presents, but you can get a couple of sheets at a local shipping store for minimal cost or buy a whole 602 roll for around $12. The Christmas lights were $3.99 a box or $8+tax for two. The rubber ducky was on sale at Bath & Body Works for $1 (normally $4). The Christmas ornaments were also on sale at Michaels we bought $50 worth, which was about 10 boxes of large (6 in each box, ornaments about the size of a tangerine) and 10 boxes of small (9-12 in each box, ornaments about the size of a ping pong ball). We had the glass tabletop cut at Oakley Paint & Glass here in Cincinnati and it was about $180. The cost of the glass is largely dependent on what kind of glass you elect to get, but we opted for tempered safety glass because we have some clumsy people walking around the office.
Additional costs for this project include tools, cleaning supplies, and paint. Depending on the state of your tub and what you already have around the house/office, this may be a little or a lot.
We already had all of the tools, so we were just left to purchase the paint and cleaning supplies (prices listed next to each item).
So, the total cost for the Tubble? If you had absolutely nothing in the house, including the tub, and had to go out and buy all of your tools and supplies, you could end up spending as much as $600.
Because we splurged on the fixture and table top (and we already had a tub), it cost us about $400.
But, assuming your tub was in better shape and you already had some of this stuff around the house, you might be able to do it for the price of the glass, fixture, and bubbles, or around $200.
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