Bathroom before retiling.
Julie writes:
Hi, Pam and Kate! I’m a longtime reader of your dreamy site, and I lusted after your houses and your readers’ houses long before I was in a position to buy my own. I finally purchased my first home about a year and a half ago–a sweet one-owner 1959 granny ranch–and it’s my mid-modest dream house!
It was impeccably cared for by the previous owners (an absolutely adorable couple who stole my heart at the closing–it’s so wonderful to live in a house that’s been loved and loved in from day one). I found the house so charming that I was actually under contract before I’d seen it in person. (I was spending the summer with family in another state when it listed, fell in love with it via photos, and I trusted my realtor when she said it wouldn’t wait for me.) In the kitchen it has a gorgeous original 1959 Westinghouse wall oven, original cabinets and hardware (though I believe the cabinets were probably darkened at some point), and what I think is some version of the Armstrong embossed linoleum mentioned a few times on the site in shades of brown, tan, and cream. There was cool streaky tile under the carpet in the office, gorgeous red oak hardwoods under the carpet nearly everywhere else, metal eagles and matching mailbox decorating the exterior, and vintage mini door knockers on every bedroom and bathroom door off the hallway. (Bonus: it’s also a block and a half from my work.) I made very few changes beyond pulling up carpet.
Bathroom before retiling, notice the wall tile in the shower does not go all the way up to the ceiling.
The bathroom was virtually untouched, except for a 90s wallpaper border I quickly removed. It has the original vanity, double medicine cabinets, wall tile, and glitter sheet flooring. Unfortunately there was only a handheld shower and the tile surrounding the tub only went halfway up, as is so common in these homes. My handyman warned that I would likely have to replace the pinkish-tan wall tile eventually, but I made due with the handheld shower for about a year before it became clear that the regrouting attempts were not going to be enough. (One tile would work loose, get reattached, and we’d regrout. Then a couple months later, another would be loose and the cycle would repeat.) I was heartbroken and most definitely did not want to do any remodeling. But I was fortunate to have a colleague who recommended a wonderful tile guy — Aaron Hubbard of The Tile Guys in Mankato, Minnesota, (who by the way never once tried to talk me into anything modern), and I was doubly fortunate for your blog!
After a lot of sample-ordering and hand-wringing, I decided on the Interceramic Metro Light Pink from Classic Tile in NY. It’s the softest, sweetest pale peachy pink, and it’s so warm and glowy in the afternoon sun.
There were no bullnose tiles available, and I couldn’t find a trim color that really did it for me, so my tile guy suggested Schluter’s metal edge to match the silver trim on my medicine cabinet. I worried it would look too modern, but it’s perfect.
The new tile is pretty close to the original, but more pink, less tan, and in the words of my wonderful tile guy “Just a little brighter and happier.” Not to mention, it actually goes to the ceiling and doesn’t leak water into the walls — a definite improvement.
I kept the same bath and shower fixtures. I’m assuming they are not actually original to the house, but the shower head has a West Germany sticker still on it, so it’s definitely not new. I thought about putting in a “permanent” shower head, but unfortunately there is duct work hidden behind that wall in the linen closet, so the access panel goes to the tub fixtures and no higher. Rather than risk having to rip out the tile again for a plumbing leak down the line, I decided to just remount the handheld. It’s easier for cleaning anyway, and any future shower problems will be external to the wall.
When I bought the house, I thought about replacing the floor. And one point, it was covered in carpet (removed just before the listing I believe), so I spent some time on my hands and knees scraping carpet glue and pulling up staples. I adore the general design (it’s glitter!), but do wish it were a bit lighter, and I wish the seam in the middle weren’t there. I’m not sure if this is the original color, or if it darkened some with age. Over time though, I’ve decided that I’d rather have my darker-than-ideal but tough as nails original glitter flooring than any of the current alternatives, and the floor really is in good shape for its age. So for now and maybe forever, the floor stays. I removed the bath rugs for the pics because I’m still searching for the right color. (Pink emphasizes the not-whiteness of the floor, and it’s been tough to get the right shade of teal. If you have other ideas for bath rug colors or sources, I’m all ears!)
The wooden divider between the vanity and the toilet area is my favorite part by far (followed by the medicine cabinets and shutters). Everything displayed on the divider was given to me by people I love.
The glass candle holder was my grandmother’s and given to me by my mom, the mini vases were all found at estate sales by my aunt, and the amazing, mint condition, perfectly coordinated head vase was a Valentine’s gift from my boyfriend just this year. The pink hand mirror belonged to my grandmother and was used daily to fix her always-perfect big 60s hair (even for decades after the 60s). My mom gave me the swan towel holder and the little pink and white towel it holds, and most everything else is either an ebay, thrift store, or estate sale find. (Except the larger vase on the shelf above the toilet, which belonged to the very special elderly neighbor I adopted as my “grandma” for Girl Scouts as a child.
I threw in close-up pictures of the insides of the medicine cabinets (there are two of them with a plain mirror in between) as well as the door knocker (present on the door of each room off the hallway).
I also included a photo of the doorbell speaker which is located just above the bathroom door in the hallway. Technically it’s not part of the bathroom but it’s so cute, and it glitters like the floors.
Finally, a random bathroom-related item I found in the unfinished basement just recently (a year and a half after buying the house): a door that’s always kept propped open down there was closed for the first time, revealing it actually came off a men’s room somewhere. Good old mid-century resourcefulness!
Please accept my happiest, most ecstatic thank you for saving my bathroom! There’s no way I would’ve found the right tile without you. I adore the blog, and your pieces on tile sources are the sole reason I have the pretty pale pink tile of my dreams (and a large stash of emergency replacement tiles in the basement so I never have to hunt again)! Thank you for your hard work!
The post Julie’s bathroom using 4″ pink tile from Classic Tile appeared first on Retro Renovation.
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