Embracing the Gold Tile: A Bathroom Refresh
Daena
last year
last modified: last year
I recently refreshed the bathroom in our 1924 home, which I believe was last updated in the '60s. I chose to keep the goldish bathroom tile and run with a jewel-toned look with warm woods. The Van Gogh print above the toilet was my color inspiration. I stripped and refinished the doors, added some new reproduction hardware and cleaned up the originals, replaced light fixtures, installed new period-appropriate floor tiles, swapped out the toilet and a sink I found on FB Marketplace, painted the walls (SW Rookwood Sash Green), added a vintage medicine cabinet, sourced replacement shower handles so everything would match, and installed bamboo blinds. Much of it I did myself, while my awesome handyman helped with a few of the more technical jobs. This was a fun project!
boring before
boring before
my mood board "vision"
after (the rug was temporary; I replaced it later)
after (taken on a dark day, it's usually brighter)
after
enjoying the fruits of my labor
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Comments (18)These are great suggestions! I have a 1950s bath with salmon pink tiles on the walls and small porcelain floor tiles in different shades of pale pink/salmon pink. I've redecorated it three times and have found that it's easiest to start with choosing a shower curtain. This last time around I ordered four shower curtains from Pottery Barn when there was a free shipping promotion: a ticking stripe (cream with black pinstripes), a toile, something vaguely beachy, and another I can't recall. None looked right. I finally found the shower curtain linked below on Ebay (the first photo where it looks quite dark is not accurate). It has enough of the salmon pink to work with the various shades of pink. I ended up painting the walls a Benjamin Moore taupe/cocoa color called Interlude, rebuilding the vanity with a wood finish (well, my DH did that!), and using dark brown baskets to hold items on the open shelves. Until I found the shower curtain I was really stuck. If you decide to do a more sophisticated and hotel-type look, Restoration Hardware has some excellent and high quality shower curtains. We have their diamond matelasse shower curtain in another bath and it has looked great for years. It comes in many shades including grays and neutrals. I don't know how to post two clickable links, so here's the link for the RH shower curtain: http://www.restorationhardware.com/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=prod1158661&categoryId=search Good luck, and enjoy your new home! Here is a link that might be useful: Ebay shower curtain...See MoreH E L P -- pink bathroom tile
Comments (16)Mine is pink tiled half way up, ST&T are still pink and the wallpaper above is grey background with a soft airy print. I use grey, or burgundy towels, but my favorite at the moment is the kind of mauve ones. All of them pick up colors in the paper. The paper you're thinking about sounds interesting too--more today. Mine's been up a long time. But as far as the cabinets, I'd stay neutral and save the punch for towels and accessories. So much easier to freshen up the look....See MoreSO MANY LINES & POTENTIAL! 1970s avocado tile rental bathrooms
Comments (16)This is a long term rental! I am so loving the photos tqtqtbwprovided. That's exactly what I had in mind when I mentioned the black white and green :). We will hopefully paint the walls the same color as the "white" tile this weekend & i can update with photos! We have taken out the shelving behind the toilet, and have left both bathrooms bare so we can decide on a rug! I'm afraid to pick anything white since the tiles aren't a "true" white, they're more of an ivory shade. Of course that, too, could change with the lighting. As far as the floors, the grout is actually a dark grey color - so i'm not sure bleaching would help :(. I have gone so far as to look up temporary vinyl flooring because the floors drive me crazy. I feel like they throw the entire idea off in my head. Other than that, I'd have to assume we'd be relying on bath rugs/mats to cover what we can? The countertops will have to stay as-is, so i'm trying to work around them. I feel like they're doable until the landlord decides to update....See MoreReveal - small bathroom refresh
Comments (7)Here's the "after": Normally I'm not a fan of white walls (at all) yet here they are. I tried many, many paint samples and decided a richer paint just wasn't in the cards for this room because of too much contrast of the white countertop (darn that budget!) and the toilet in such a small room. I also wanted to highlight the mirror and other dark elements in the room and decided to just give in and paint it white -- walls are SW Alabaster (matte finish), ceiling is SW Extra White (flat). Vanity is BM Silver Pine (aka Jack Pine). I chose this color because it pulls out the subtle coloration in the floor and adds a bit of oomph to the room with the white walls. I re-used the old vanity hardware. If I stumble on something snazzy I might change it out, but is fine for now. Mirror is an Etsy purchase, as are the towel hooks (only one showing in this pic), the toilet paper holder, and the door hardware in the next pic. Need something over the toilet -- enjoy going to local art shows, will wait for something to sing to me. Here you can see DH fixed the door -- I think it came out great! He stained it Special Walnut, which is what the mirror is stained. The shower curtain nicely hides the mis-matched tile and ties in with the vanity. It is longer, and I'll probably put it up higher in a month or so when I'm positive the paint is cured good and hard -- don't want to take a chance damaging the paint fiddling with the tension rod on the drywall right now. Thanks for looking!...See More
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