The Arts and Crafts–inspired residence Folly Cove overlooks the shore in Gloucester, Mass., and the custom tub in its master bath looks as if it might have arrived under sail. Designed by Steve Batiste of Bath in Wood of Maine, its form is a composition of stems, sheer lines, gunwales, and transoms. Of course, Batiste says, “I was building a 33-foot dory at the time, so that helped.”
Design/build architect Rob MacNeille made a home for the sturdily built vessel by matching its mahogany planking in the room’s vanity cabinet and trim. “It’s the centerpiece of that bathroom,” he says. “It’s what you see when you walk in from the bedroom, so we worked the room around that tub.” The tub works, too. Assembled with high-grade marine epoxy and sealed with 16 coats of penetrating finish, its hull is deceptively tough. More than three years since its christening, MacNeille says, “we haven’t had any callbacks or maintenance issues.”
