I love a good nod to midcentury design as much as the next person, but the boys’ bathroom is more like midcentury whiplash in an otherwise traditional home. Not only are the avocado green tiles dingy and depressing, the grout is past its prime, the caulk is a disaster and there are cracks all over. The vanity is top notch, though.
It’s definitely time for an upgrade, but I don’t necessarily want to take the space to a totally new era either. I plan to use classic materials that complement the time period of our home—*psst* she’s 60 years old but doesn’t look a day over 50, of course.
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Hex, penny round and subway tiles came to mind immediately as era appropriate and cost effective. For larger investments, I tend to play it safe and keep the fixed elements pretty classic and ramp things up as needed with accessories, paint, etc.
In planning this project, I kept coming back to this gorgeous bathroom (below left) from Naomi Stein of Design Manifest. The perfect line of dots above the sink is simple, gorgeous and fun. It definitely reminded me of this amazing dotted fabric I had been eyeing from Calico Corners (below right).
Penny round tile in black and white was already on my mind, but the lines of parallel dots shown above seemed like a great way to bring something unexpected to the space. Rather than do a white penny round tile and white grout on the floor, I’m opting for a dark grout and dark tile. (This bathroom is for little boys, remember? Let's leave it at that.) The dark grout will make the white tiles pop.
Another unexpected twist I love is the subway tile in 4” x 12” rather than the traditional 3” x 6”. Between the scale of the subway tile on the wall and the black on black on the floor, I’ll bring a fresh approach to classic materials that aren’t so trendy we’ll want to re-do the bathroom again in 10 years.
(Fun fact: I couldn't find a picture of what I was envisioning for the penny round tiles, so my Photoshop "artistic rendering" skills are on full display, above.)
1. 4 in x 12 in Ceramic Field Wall Tile – Jeffrey Court via Home Depot $2.37/sq. ft.
2. Penny 0.8” x 0.8” Porcelain Mosaic tile in White – EliteTile via Wayfair $8.14/sq. ft. Penny 0.8” x 0.8” Porcelain Mosaic tile in Black – EliteTile via Wayfair $9.21/sq. ft.
3. New Ladder Stripe Black and White Fabric – Laura & Kiran via Fabric.com $28/yard
4. Bekvam Step Stool, Black – Ikea $20
5. Reynal Single Bathroom Vanity – Wayfair $235
6. Prismatic Glass Schoolhouse Bathroom Light – Destination Lighting $60
7. Hattaras Outdoor Ebony – Calico Corners $35/yard
8. 1 ½” Pom Pom Trim Turquoise – Fabric.com $3.49/yard
9. Metal Mirror with Shelf, Small Dark Bronze – Shades of Light $109
10. Metal Storage Bin – Hearth & Hand/ Target $30
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