Once Upon a Time…

West Coast designer and photographer Michelle Rajotte was compelled to start Looking Glass Baths after her ramblings up and down the Pacific coast found her stumbling across long forgotten but extremely well made cast-iron tubs tossed aside at farms, peeking out from beneath foliage in backyards and buried at the back of salvage shops. Michelle’s lifelong passion for history and interior design inspired her to pay homage in some way to these relics of the “Decorative Arts” period (1880- 1925). Michelle’s favorite era of design was an exciting time in which designers and artisans fabricated beautiful, high integrity ‘objets d’art’ for use in everyday life. She became determined to give these antique treasures a new lease on life and restore them to their rightful place in American design history. 

Michelle’s commitment to sustainability made her determined to repurpose these stunning artifacts of the past for future generations to enjoy. As a lifelong creative, it occurred to Michelle that she might be able to honor the past while simultaneously creating completely unique works of art. And so an idea was born. Michelle applied her special brand of moxie to salvage the coolest tubs found in the most unlikely of places and drag them home to her studio in Portland, Oregon. There, they became the magical, one of a kind gems you see today.