The example works because both the mosaics read as solids. It's the same shape but different scale. I agree that using the shower tile in the niche isn't going to make it feel very special or custom. You might try a chiclet or small square mosaic if you can find it in similar colors as your other tiles. Penny tile might work, but stick mosaics are too directional, making them look busy. You usually see them as an accent stripe and not in a niche. But I'd avoid white or black as it's too stark against the softer neutral gray and beige of your other tiles. That accent tile is better suited in a white cabinet and marble bathroom.

Could you find an accent tile with the same material as your counter top, or perhaps a remnant of it to use in the niche? It would bring that element into your shower without adding another, different material. I agree with others that the one you've selected doesn't really "go" with the others. And is one too many different things.

I have to agree with the others. Too much and too many. Mayflowers explained why very well. If you insist on introducing a fourth tile into the room, then make it a mini square mosaic in similar color to what you have there already so it reads almost solid. Additionally why would you want to highlight a niche that will be holding your shampoos, shaver, soap, etc? Why would you want that to be the first thing people see when they look in the shower?

What do you think of keeping the same field tile (gray plank) with this tile for the shower floor & niche? Also keeping the same 12x24 bathroom floor tile. All with medium gray grout.

This was my first idea… The small rectangle mosaic above & this subway. It's 4x12", but I started to think it would be too dark & not match my vanity at all. Thoughts?

Your first shower floor tile has warmer tones, which might be the better complement to the counter. Don't ignore the counter, which looks like it might have some brown. Can you show us your samples with it?

Is the square tile the same one that's in your first post? I see a lot of orange in that so I'm not liking it with the gray plank tile.

Its a different one. The first one is porcelain & this one is travertine.

The first mosaic reads warm gray, which matches the plank tile. The small amount of cream/tan in the mosaic pulls in the wood tone of the vanity. It's a softer, more subtle look than the travertine, basically a two-tone color palette.

Travertine has some issues in showers so you'll want to read about that. The colors make it busier than the porcelain, and orange is a strong color. If you were to use that, I think it would look better with a tan tile. A darker gray might look nice and cool down the palette, but then you're getting into a moody look. I would only use it in the niche because of its strong colors--no stripes. What size is your niche? I think the bigger the better if you're only using the accent tile inside the niche.

The counter provides pattern though (as does your oak vanity), and for the size of the room, you might want to limit pattern. I have a speckled granite countertop and used a plain shower curtain for two years. I got a new one in a watery blue-gray and cream paisley and I didn't like how the pattern interacted with the speckles of the granite. My eye keeps bouncing from one to the other.

I'm not 100% sold on the porcelain because it reads a bit pink in person. If I could find something very similar that has gray & a bit of beige I would go for it. Thats why I picked up the travertine sample. It has both the gray/brown combo that ties in the floor, vanity & countertop. I am a bit hesitant to use real stone though. I just can't seem to put my hands on the perfect floor/accent tile. It's driving me crazy.

I know, it's so frustrating. I knew exactly what I wanted and couldn't find it, so I ended up putting my master bath remodel on hold. There's still an awful lot of the Tuscan-look tiles out there, and lots of gold, so it may take awhile to clear those out.

Travertine is a natural stone so you have no idea how pink/peachy/orange it might be. There are tons of photos of travertine backsplashes and they all look very pink to me. Haven't seen many with gray though so I wonder what that is. Could it be silver travertine? I found this photo of the silver.

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What do you think of keeping the same field tile (gray plank) with this tile for the shower floor & niche? Also keeping the same 12x24 bathroom floor tile. All with medium gray grout.

I like that idea quite a bit. Still has a wow factor but a bit more muted and seems to coordinate better. Of course, would need to see an actual sample next to your other tiles to know for sure.

I really like that stone! I got it from The Tile Shop yesterday. I didn't pay any attention to the name. Any suggestion on a tile I could use? I think I've been looking too long & I need to step away for a bit… haha

I like the rectangles-inside-squares tile too and think it'd look nice in the niche. But I think it will only work if there's no brown or tan tones in your counter. Otherwise one side of the room is all cool gray tones and the other side is warm tans and browns along with the gray. Don't lose the cohesiveness just because you like a certain tile.

Yes, that's why I ditched that in the first place & moved onto brown tones. Trying to marry browns & grays is difficult!!

Should I go more brown in the shower instead of gray? Would a beige field tile look better than the gray?

It took me a while, but I think I finally learned that when I'm in love with 5 things, I need to narrow it down to the 3 that play well together. I think you're on the right track with your simplified version.

There's a balance between unity and variety. Too much of the first is boring, but too much of the second makes me want to run from the room. (People have different thresholds for "too much" of course!)

I agree Lori. We are definitely more 'simple' & like less. I just don't want to spend $10K and it look like a prison shower. Ha! I feel like we are on the right track, but quickly losing steam. I'm all love picking kitchen granite & tile & also hardwoods... Bathroom tile is not my thing.

Bathrooms are much harder than kitchens!

Start with the counter. Don't try to make it a gray bathroom if the counter doesn't want to go there. I can't really say if it'd be happier with beige or brown shower and floor tile because I don't know what your counter looks like in person. It looks cream and brown in the first photo. You have to look at the speckles blended and find the dominant tone.

Ill take a pick of the counter tonight. The problem is the counter has brown, a hint of pink, gray & black. Going all beige/brown wouldn't work, but going all gray won't work either.

Beige is a no IMO...

Thoughts?

Use a good quality sealant with that stone.

Cabot, what would you req for a sealant? Thoughts on using travertine?

IMHO travertine nor marble should ever be used in a shower. Yes, they are beautiful, but high maintenance and require the use of special cleaners. The very porous nature of the stone will allow the stone to stay darker much longer from water absorption no matter what sealant is used. Below is the result of a well meaning relative who decided to help by applying a normal household cleaner to a travertine shower.

I don't think you can pick that little bit of gray out of the granite and push the room gray. The brown seems quite red. But you could try a cream field tile with an accent tile with cream, gray or gray-blue, and tan/caramel and see how it plays with your brown. Then paint the room to match the gray tile to cool down the color of the granite and vanity. That was my thinking for my guest bath when I couldn't find a mostly cream granite remnant.

I pulled out the blue gray that you can barely see and used it for paint. My granite has large chunks of white quartz, so I used a cream and muted blue-gray and tan floor tile. I was shooting for a gray paint with a touch of blue and ended up with BM Silver Mist, which is too blue. If I had a do-over, I would have tried BM Wales Gray 1585 or Pale Smoke 1584, which has a slight touch of green-blue.

I love that idea mayflowers! Back to the tile shop i go... Do you think the cream field tile would work with the gray floor?

It might, because I see cream, two shades of gray and possibly tan in your floor tile. Maybe warm up the floor with a little more beige or tan along with the gray.

What is the name/ color of your floor tile you posted?

It's Alterna luxury vinyl tile by Armstrong. Multistone White is the pattern.

White and grey doesn't go with beige.

Sophie what beige are you talking about? Please explain your comment so I can understand.

Your other tiles appear beige in contrast with the faux marble tile. They do not coordinate well at all. You need something less stark if you are going to use that mosaic as your shower floor. Otherwise, pick a different mosaic that has less brown in it to go with the white marble look.

It's not working for me either. It's not a white marble bathroom.

I liked that first mosaic until I saw the browns in the counter. I'd pick a shower floor and accent tile that works well with brown and go from there.

I do like the marble look. I think we would need to pick a new shower floor tile to go with it though.

And a new countertop.

I totally agree that a new countertop would be ideal, but we are keeping the budget low for this bathroom because we have so many other projects. Kitchen, basement, hardwoods, painting, landscaping, the list goes on. The countertop that is there is fine, it's just not the most attractive. It looks better in person than on the pic. It reads more like the first stock pic I posted.

I think she means you would need to change the counter to work with the gray and marble color palette you are trying to achieve, not that the granite is unattractive.

I agree---nothing wrong with the counter top, except that it clashes with the gray scheme. It's frustrating when you have one vision in mind and it just doesn't work with a permanent fixture (i.e., your counter) in a room. As much as you love the marble, I have to agree that you will be happier with the overall, cohesive look if you take into consideration the need to make it work with the counter. I've had to do that at various times and, even though I never forget my original vision, I'm glad I worked out a different plan where all the elements work together.

That's helpful. The marble looks better there, a creamier base color. Are you thinking the gray as the floor and the marble look as the shower walls? If so, I might do the solid gray mosaic as floor and niche. Could we see those all together WITH the counter?

The 'marble' would be the shower walls @ we would have to find a new mosaic for the shower floor & niche.

Here's the mosaic we had before.

I'm not sure about the square tile for the niche, but it may be okay for the shower floor. It seems to pull the colors from the marble porcelain tile. I think you've reached your limit on swirly and splotchy elements for a room this size--the splotchy niche mosaic could just be one pattern too many. Usually marble showers have marble niches as that stone doesn't need fancying up.

I'm going to look at the tile shop for a different floor option. The solid squares sometimes look to industrial to me. If we go with the 'marble' we will probably use it for the niche as well since it will be much busier than the gray plank.