Have you gone to tile showrooms? They usually display sample bathroom setups and you might see one that suits your taste color wise.

Emser (https://www.emser.com/) has many types of tile and has stores where you can view its products -- and get samples -- in many places across the country.

Do a search on Houzz for backsplash tiles to identify what you like. Then go to a good tile showroom (not the big box stores) to see them in person. The showrooms usually have sales people with some design ability on staff (it's hit or miss unless you go to a very upscale showroom like Artistic Tile, Walker Zanger, Ann Sacks, or Waterworks). They can help you.

But keep in mind that simple is best. Pick one tile for the walls and a complementary one on the floor, including the shower floor. Stick to porcelain or ceramic--they'll usually be less expensive than natural stone, and easier to care for. And find a line that has multiple coordinating tiles for ease of selection, since you are doing this yourself and have that religious aversion to hiring a designer.

Your budget will also dictate some of your choices. The person at the tile shop we chose steered me away from areas in the shop that had things out of our price range. That was very helpful.

IMO ceramic tile never goes on floors and I like a much simpler choice for small spaces. A nice 12 x 24 tile for floors and shower walls and a smaller coordinating tile for the shower floor, no accent stripe no niches just simple and the best place to find those are a good tile store where you can get some additional information about choices. I sure hope your contractor has a decent installer for the water proofing of that shower and the tile work. Not sure what your religion is but good luck.

Hi, as someone above said, look for a tile that has a line of coordinating sizes and shapes. In my opinion, if you want to mix tiles, the best look is to mix shapes, not colours. Mixing colours isn't easy in my opinion and it can become overwhelming pretty quickly.

I agree that you need to visit a good tile store to see things in person. But for ideas, look at some websites like Tilebar. You can get an idea of what appeals to you in terms of style and colours and that gives you a place to start.

For example, on the Tilebar websiteTilebar Crackled Tile, this search was for the Nabi line, and then I narrowed it down to blue. You can see all the various styles offered in that line that could coordinate with one another to make a really gorgeous room.

Here are three that coordinate and would look great:

Then maybe imagine something like this one for the floor:

I like the cohesiveness of the same floor in the shower as out.

These are just some examples and oh, I just found this inspiration shot on the Tilebar website so you can see some of these choices together.

This may not be your taste at all, but you see how sticking to one manufacturer and mixing and matching their coordinating shapes/sizes/colours can make a really cohesive space.

As others have suggested, look at as many pictures of bathrooms as you can and save pictures of the ones that you are instinctually drawn to. Then see if there is a common denominator.

The good news news is that since your space is small, you can splurge on getting materials because the cost of is not going to be significant as opposed to a larger space.

I just finished a remodel and i didnt I didn’t want the gray or beige boring spa look that is currently on trend so I used color and design and I loved the end results.

I would suggest going to the best tile stores you can in your area because the staff people can probably offer better design advice than you would find at lower end stores and the actual tile choices are breath taking in their possibilities. You can also google and check out websites of the betterctile companies for inspiration in their galley photos. Some choices have been suggested. There is also Encore, Motawi, Pratt & Larsen, Fireclay. Check out Mission Tiles. My bathroom was done using tiles from Encore, Pratt $ Larsen amd a marble design from Artistic Tiles

I went to several showrooms and picked tile from the Lititz PA Ace Hardware (not the typical Ace Hardware - 1/2 the size of Home Depot with a 20,000 sf design center! Love this store).

The tile I picked is Fly Zone Mikasa Bianco Euro Tile. I specifically like more monotone, less busy designs and needed something that would work with the flooring I already have.

This style and color worked well for me, but I think the way they displayed the various shapes and styles together on the sample boards helped me envision the possibilities.

Many displays only show one tile of each color.

Maybe if you posted pictures of your bathroom here, we could give better ideas.

Do you have a ProSource near you? I found the folks at mine to be extremely helpful. The prices are great and they have a wonderful selection. If you find something you like, your contractor has to pick it up as they are considered a wholesaler but mine didn't have any problem doing that.

Susie the bathroom does not exist yet lol! It will be rather small though, which is actually a good thing because I’d rather buy less tile & get something of high quality.

It will be going on our second floor once we finish dormering our cape.

All I know for sure is:

* I’m planning on a larger shower in lieu of a tub. Unless UTIs suddenly become less terrible, I won’t be taking any baths anyway. Plus we have one downstairs.

* I’m planning on floor to ceiling glass doors in the shower.

* I kind of want a skylight? Is that crazy?

* No subway tile (unless it barely resembles subway tile like in the examples below). Typical subway tile is too uniform for my taste. I think I prefer my tile to have more individual character.

* I’d like some natural stone because I think it’s pretty & timeless. However somebody here mentioned it’s hard to take care of and that is a totally legitimate concern that I haven‘t considered.

* I’m really trying to avoid anything trendy but I also really dig zellige tiles so I guess I’m planning on breaking my own rules.

* Ideally I’d like to stay with “natural” colors. Warmer whites, maybe black?, stone, maybe like a light sage green (used sparingly)

* None of that ”all grey farmhouse” nonsense that’s taken over New Jersey. I’ve incorporated a lot of warmth into my home in protest of this dying trend.

* I don’t have the guts to use a patterned tile : /

and perhaps most importantly:

* I like mixing texture & finish- hence the interest in zellige tile

These are some of the things I’ve been pinning.

I guess a follow up question would be:

How cheap could I find a designer & what’s the best way to get the most out of the experience?

I was able to get a paint color name for every single room in my house after only an hour with a paint consultant for like $175.

My religion might make an exception in this case.

I love zellige tile, but it's not something every run of the mill tile setter knows how to install.

Here's a blog post by a great designer, Amy Mitchell, regarding her use of zellige tile on a powder room floor:

https://homeglowdesign.com/2019/04/13/3-important-things-know-before-install-zellige-tile/

Really? I didn’t know that zellige was hard to install.. Uh oh lol I smell extra charges!

Edit: Wow I’m looking at this blog post- you have to sand each individual tile? Cant you just buy them pre sanded lol!

Forewarned is forearmed, Corinne.

Grover- it totally does. Right now it lives in a fourth dimension known as “Pinterest”.

Oh boy- ONE tile? I do understand why that makes sense now that I see it but it grates against my need to be extra!

A vote for not using natural stone tiles in areas of high use....you can’t use most of the heavy duty cleaners on natural stone...not that the stone needs them...but the grout will!

There are a lot of porcelain tiles that resemble marble. The bigger tile stores that deal with contractors usually have showrooms with experienced designers to help coordinate tiles.