Success in the tile hunt!

11 years ago

I posted earlier about various combinations for tile for my shower walls. I was going in a white on white direction, because my husband is opposed to color. The floors will be honed faux-marble, and the counter is quartz that looks like marble, so I knew I had pushed him to the edge of his tolerance for decorative finishes. I decided on doing white subway on the bottom half of the shower, and 6x6 white on the top half (or vice versa). My husband agreed that I could have a small band of a pale, unobtrusive color in between, so that was today's agenda.

So it was really fun (unlike the rest of the shopping I've done for this bathroom project!). I found out that Status Ceramic, a local Seattle company that makes all handmade tiles, has a seconds room that they'll let you visit. I made an appointment, and spend a couple hours digging through boxes and going over different combinations. They have absolutely gorgeous tile! Most of it I would never be able to afford at the retail pricing, so I was really glad to learn about the seconds room. I bought a few different sizes of their field tile in a color called borage, in a crackle finish. I also picked up some of their super ornate deco tiles. All for a very reasonable $70!

Here's what I think I'll do on the main wall of the shower, which is 48" x 36". Fixtures will be on one of the shorter walls. In this design, I've got subway below, a band of 6x6 in color, then white 6x6 above. I was originally going to lay the 6x6 on the diagonal, but then I came up with this idea of framing a pair of the fancy tiles. What do you think?

A close up view of the inset:

Here's an idea for the backsplash on my 60" vanity:

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Comments (7)

Pipdog
11 years ago
It looks beautiful!! Very calming colors. Can't wait to see the finished product.
Mendy328
11 years ago
I absolutely love this combination! Is that a light blue or more of a gray? If you don't mind me asking, how much did you pay for those decorative center tiles? I may have you send me some!
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sas95
11 years ago
That tile is lovely, but did you check with the store to see whether that tile is suitable for shower applications? Most crackle finish tile is not recommended for showers. There have been a few threads on this here.
kmcg
Original Author
11 years ago
Glad you like them!

mendy, the color seems to defy description. It looks pale blue-green to me, but then it can look more gray-green too. Glazes vary too, so there's a bit of variation even among the limited number of tiles I got. The big deco tiles retail for $54, and I paid $15 each.

sas95 - thanks for the warning. I was in on one of those threads, and it was very alarming. I spoke to the owner of the company and an employee and both said they've had no problems with people using the crackle glazed tiles in a shower, as long as it's not on the floor or in a steam shower, and as long as they are properly sealed. I'm willing to do that sealing for a small number of accent tiles, but I would never have dared use them for an entire shower.
Mendy328
11 years ago
I'm curious as to what you are doing with the rest of the bathroom...floor, vanity, counters, etc. I am considering painting my walls with Benjamin Moore's "Woodlawn Blue" and your tile looks to be an exact match! Very calming.
Mendy328
11 years ago
I'm curious as to what you are doing with the rest of the bathroom...floor, vanity, counters, etc. I am considering painting my walls with Benjamin Moore's "Woodlawn Blue" and your tile looks to be an exact match! Very calming.
kmcg
Original Author
11 years ago
Mendy - I'll have to find Woodlawn Blue - thanks for the comment.

My bathroom is small, about 8x7.5'. We are gutting the 1906 bath that has no shower, no storage, and no electric outlets, so pretty much anything will be an improvement. I decided on maximum cabinet space, including a 60" single vanity and nice big linen cabinet, both in a cherry finish. Counter is Chroma Quartz faux-marble. Floors are faux-marble (I wanted marble basketweave but DH said no way). Shower tile as shown above. No tub. Lots of white trim and chrome fixtures. With some nice green-blue walls, of course, now that I'm going with this tile!