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jennole03

Showstopping bathroom tile - need advice on other design elements

Jenny H.
10 years ago

Hi! Long time lurker, first time poster here.

My husband and I are embarking on our first master bath remodel and finally found a tile we could both agree on - Mission Stone and Tile's Hex Appeal (photo attached). I wanted a tile that was real stone and with a hex pattern to keep with the age of our home, a 1950's bungalow. My original vision was a 5-inch carrara marble hex with a weathered wood vanity and white subway tile in the shower. However, my husband wanted something with a bit more pizzazz and he loves contrast. We saw the Hex Appeal tile this weekend and went for it - bought 85 square feet to cover our entire master bathroom floor. We LOVE it and it speaks to both of our aesthetics... BUT now I'm having trouble designing around such a graphic, statement tile and working it into the overall design of our home - neutral, calming, Scandinavian, mid-century bungalow. Any suggestions on vanity finish, hardware finish, paint colors, shower tile, etc? This is a full gut job so all ideas are welcome. We plan to install a double vanity and a large walk-in shower with dual shower heads - no tub.

We love grays, blues, greens, golds and lots of natural texture if that helps at all!

Any ideas???

Comments (19)

  • Jenny H.
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Here are a couple photos of the master bathroom from the real estate listing. Again, total gut job, but thought this might help give everyone a sense of the space. Also, we've already added clerestory window on either side of the bathroom - TONS of natural light!

  • Jenny H.
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Far end of bathroom.

  • enduring
    10 years ago
  • jrueter
    10 years ago

    Love your tile!!

    I am seeing a soft, soft grey subway in the shower (possibly with a darker grout?),

    [Traditional Bathroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2107) by San Francisco Interior Designers & Decorators Niche Interiors

    a warm grey on the walls and a weathered wood vanity with pretty details like this:

    [Traditional Bathroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2107) by San Francisco Interior Designers & Decorators Niche Interiors

    I would keep most of the other elements (shower floor, lighting, mirrors, towel bars, etc.) relatively neutral and unassuming, letting the floor be the star, but that floor will enjoy having a few glam details to keep it company!

    Alternatively you could go really bold and graphic, but not sure how you feel about that?

    Jenny H. thanked jrueter
  • pricklypearcactus
    10 years ago

    First of all, I love the tile you've selected. I'm not an expert on 50s style, but when you say "neutral, calming, Scandinavian, mid-century" I think of a floating wood vanity with slab doors. Crisp white (maybe quartz?) countertops and white fixtures. I'd usually peg chrome to be appropriate for MCM/50s, but you said you liked gold so perhaps polished brass would work. Lots of frameless glass for the shower if possible. I'm not sure if I have a specific suggestion for shower tile. I personally would probably try to continue that tile on the shower walls. Otherwise, maybe a white ceramic/porcelain hex or square tile wouldn't steal the show from that beautiful tile. You could probably do any wall color. I think white would be really nice, but you could also do a pale green or blue.

    Jenny H. thanked pricklypearcactus
  • sjhockeyfan325
    10 years ago

    I LOVE that tile for the floor, but I wouldn't personally continue the same tile in the shower (except maybe on the floor of the shower) - it would be too busy for me. How about a penny-round for the shower, either in white, or black, or even a more contrasting color?

    Jenny H. thanked sjhockeyfan325
  • Nancy in Mich
    10 years ago

    I am assuming that Hex Appeal has large hex tiles, like the size of the tiles you have now, not the smaller style hex. If this is true, then I think it would look best to go with an oversized subway in the shower. An 8 x 16 or 6 x 12 tile. I like jrueter's suggestion of a soft gray tile there, but classic white would be nice, too. I would use a black glossy half-round tile accent stripe in the shower and outline the shower tile with a glossy black bullnose. That way, you are following a traditional tile combination, but in a fresh way, with oversized tiles and a large half-round line instead of the smaller pencil black accent line. I would also tile around the windows in black tile. Then I would use a carrara-like vanity top. You can use real carrara if you are not afraid of fluorescent green toothpaste or mouthwash staining it. (Why so much dye in our hygiene products?) Either the wall color or the vanity would be blue. A dusky gray-blue, or a soft clear blue. If the walls are blue, then I like the weathered wood vanity that jrueter chose. Or mirrored vanity doors like in the link below. If the vanity is blue, then I would go with a pearly gray semigloss on the walls. I would do fixtures in a silver color - soft brushed nickel or shiny chrome or nickel - your choice.

    Houze had New Ravenna's version of a large black and white hex, but theirs has a grayer stone between the black lines. There is an example below. Let me see if I can get another link to load in this post:
    [powder room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/powder-room-traditional-powder-room-new-york-phvw-vp~959506)

    Here is a link that might be useful: New Ravenna's

    Jenny H. thanked Nancy in Mich
  • enduring
    10 years ago

    OK Nancy, that does it! The mouthwash and tooth paste will be moved to the shower when I get my carrara marble counter installed!

  • sjhockeyfan325
    10 years ago

    Oh my word - those Ravenna tiles are magnificent.

  • williamsem
    10 years ago

    I love that tile. Every time I see it I try to figure out a place to use it, but I'm out of places in this house :-)

    I'm looking forward to seeing it in your room, please post pics when you have some!

  • Jenny H.
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Wow!!! I'm so impressed with all of these ideas - keep them coming! I think each would work, but would make for a very different look - high contrast, traditional, MCM, etc. I shared all of these ideas with my husband and I think we're both leaning towards subway tiles in the shower - either light gray or white - and probably oversized as Nancy in Mich suggested. Each hex pattern is about 6 inches in diameter so they're quite large and we agree a larger subway would balance it out. Any ideas for grout color if we go with white subway? A light gray grout? My husband loves the idea of accenting the shower tile with black or graphite-colored trim and bullnose pieces to tie in the dark accents in the floor tile, so we'll likely do that, as well. Pricklypearcactus, we definitely want frameless glass for the shower but still waiting on our quote... scared to open that email. :) And I think brushed nickel is the winner in the fixture department, though I may throw in a little gold by way of accessories to warm things up a bit.

    We're still trying to decide between a few things:
    - Pickled wood, white or dark gray painted vanity and either floating or shaker-style
    - Solid white or marble-type (quartzite?) countertop
    - Light gray or gray-blue on the walls, but I think this depends on the other finishes.

    And jrueter - thanks so much for including photos. That really helped us visualize how the gray subway would look. We'd never even considered anything other than white!

    Williamsem - I'll be sure to post pictures of the finished product, but you'll have to be patient with us. We're buying everything now, but not installing until after Christmas. :)

    Thanks again all! And please do chime in with any other ideas/suggestions - you've been SO helpful!

  • williamsem
    10 years ago

    Ha! I'm used to hanging out in kitchens, where you can get all caught up in helping with somebody's floor plan, and then have to wait almost a year for first install pics, then even longer for final reveal pics!

    Early 2014? No problem :-). As long as they are coming eventually. I haven't seen it installed "in the wild", just marketing materials.

    It's going to be a beautiful bathroom.

    Jenny H. thanked williamsem
  • Jenny H.
    Original Author
    8 years ago

    Hello to all who helped us in the design of our first bathroom reno - my sincere apologies for taking so long to post these photos!! We recently sold our home to be closer to family and had professional photos taken for the listing. I thought you all may want to see the finished product (professional photos, followed by not so professional)! Thank you again for your helpful advice. :) Happy to share resources, just ask!









  • enduring
    8 years ago

    I love the vanity and the floor. Beautiful bathroom. I like that you went with the lighter grout on the walls.

    Jenny H. thanked enduring
  • capeterson_tx
    8 years ago

    I would LOVE your resource list. Particularly for the floor tile and the vanity. What a lovely space.

  • Jenny H.
    Original Author
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    @capeterson_tx, the floor is Hex Appeal from Mission Stone and Tile (http://www.missionstonetile.com/products/hexagon-mosaics/hex-appeal) with platimun grout from Lowe's. The vanity was made by an awesome local craftsman in Austin, TX. If you're in the area, his contact info is below. He was VERY reasonably priced and the vanity was flawless. The paint on the vanity is BM steel wool.

    Keith Humbert

    MidTex Custom Cabinets

    615-456-4812

    gtmandr@yahoo.com

  • beaniebakes
    8 years ago

    Beautiful.

  • PRO
    Diflart
    5 years ago

    Beautiful! We have another Hex Appeal tile (Italy Bianco Carrara & Grecce Thassos)

    Diflart's ideas · More Info
    www.diflart.com