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jerzeegirl_gw

Need suggestions for MCM-style bathroom remodel

jerzeegirl
9 years ago

I am remodeling my bathroom and would like it to have a mid-century aesthetic.

I already bought my vanity, which is natural walnut, and am waiting for it to be made. It will be either on legs or floating (if the carpenter can figure out a good way). I have a slab of 3/4 inch Caesarstone Organic White on hold.

And this is where I hit the wall. I can't decide on tile colors.

These are the tile I am considering (all subway style), maybe run vertically.

Jeffrey Court in either white or a light gray (this is a machine made tile and I haven't seen the gray yet)

Sonoma Tileworks in Bossy Gray (it's a warm gray and it's handmade). I like Trellis Green too (shown in the embedded picture).

Heath Ceramics Modern Basics in Soft White (handmade). I really wanted Fern Green but I can tell from the sample, it's too dark.

Trikeenan Modulus - in Diachronic Gray (very light cool toned gray) or Trout Belly (greenish gray).

I am waiting to decide on the wall tile before I decide on the floor but right now I'm thinking faux wood tile (maybe in a herringbone pattern?) or tile that looks like concrete (maybe on a diagonal). The bathroom is only 5 feet wide so I am limited as to the size of the bathroom floor tile.

Any suggestions or ideas regarding tile and color would be greatly appreciated.

Comments (20)

  • PRO
    BeverlyFLADeziner
    9 years ago

    Original MCM baths often had 1x1 mosaics on the floor and 4x4 tile on the walls. Are you sure you're just not looking to create a contemporary bathroom?

    If you can, float the vanity. Have the carpenter create a discreet support below to hold the weight and cover it in tile. Add lights below and it will appear to float above the floor.

  • Cloud Swift
    9 years ago

    I wonder if doing a faux wood floor tile would compete with the walnut vanity which is going to look really nice in that space.

    I'm not great about doing a color scheme from scratch. One thought is to choose a shower curtain (or a picture for the wall) as an inspiration for the bathroom color scheme. I wanted something whimsical for our bathroom and at first was just seeing blah or trite, but then I stumbled across one from DENY. They have such a large collection of designs.

    Here is a link that might be useful: DENY shower curtain link

  • Bunny
    9 years ago

    I grew up in a MCM home, because it was built in 1948 and we were living in the mid-century. The bathroom floors were small square mosaics. Lots of grout if you like that sort of thing.

    I love concrete look tile floors. That was what I planned for my bathroom remodel and I ended up using something different. It's okay, but I wish I'd gone with the concrete. I also have a 5 ft. wide bathroom. Daltile Concrete Connection Steel Structure comes in 13x13. I also wish I'd gone diagonal. Not a huge regret, just one of those things I'd do differently next time.

  • tomatofreak
    9 years ago

    I think beverly27's question is valid; are you really going for contemporary? The term "mid-century-modern" has been terribly corrupted, I think, and is being used to hawk scads of products that don't really reflect that era. You might enjoy looking through the photos here. Some beautiful ideas....

    Here is a link that might be useful: Mid-century bathroom floors

  • jerzeegirl
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Of course, Beverly hit the nail on the head. I AM mixing my mid-century metaphors. When I think of mid-century I don't think of the mosaic tile floors and pink bathrooms. I am thinking Saarinen, Bertoia, Breuer, Scandinavian style. If there was a such thing as a Danish Modern bathroom, I would probably like that very much. But I am not sure how to get there and unfortunately I have over-thought "style" to the point where I am just stuck! Manmade vs handmade. White vs. color. Frankly, I am surprised I managed to order the vanity!

  • PRO
    BeverlyFLADeziner
    9 years ago

    Can you show us the vanity? We could use some inspiration.

    And I agree that wood vanity and faux wood tile floor might not be the best combo. A large scale tile on the floor would help make the room appear larger.

  • jerzeegirl
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    The vanity is the Dynasty Tarin style. It is 45" wide with the sink cabinet on the right and three drawers on the left.

    That's looks nice Beverly but I now wish I had straightened up before taking the picture lol! Funny you should use that style of floor tile because my DH just used it in his bathroom. Exactly the same color too! I sent him to the tile store to look at it for MY bathroom and he stole the idea from me! I figured the black looked nice because it ties in that black window that I can't do anything about. I

    https://www.flickr.com/photos/ceramictec/13633663405/in/photolist-mG1Jun-mG1jVR-mG1NCc-mG1KtX-mG3pH1-mG1qLP-mG1yKc-mJVUrt-mF6o1e-mF6yK8-nL9oxg-nLafqk-o5q6VH-mLL7Ba-mLL6ST-mLL69a-mLMYjy-mLMPCA

    Here is a link that might be useful: Dynasty Tarin

  • tomatofreak
    9 years ago

    I think beverly27's question is valid; are you really going for contemporary? The term "mid-century-modern" has been terribly corrupted, I think, and is being used to hawk scads of products that don't really reflect that era. You might enjoy looking through the photos here. Some beautiful ideas....

    Here is a link that might be useful: Mid-century bathroom floors

  • joaniepoanie
    9 years ago

    I used 12x24 gray tile in my 5x5 powder room. Fewer grout lines with the grout matching the tile as closely as possible means a less busy look. Love Trikeenan tile!

  • chucksmom
    9 years ago

    retrorenovation.com or savethepinkbathrooms.com for lots of ideas. That linear tile is not even close to MCM.

  • palimpsest
    9 years ago

    If your house is mid-century modern, I think there is a case for doing a contemporary bathroom that is of the 21st century rather than trying to create a period piece.

    For the most part bathrooms (and often kitchens) in mid-century modern houses looked pretty much the same as those going into more traditional houses of the period. There was not the large number of choices of material that there is today. Even Frank Lloyd Wright's houses tended to have bathrooms that were essentially "of the period" rather than bathrooms that were as purely modern as the rest of the house. He favored pink tile bathrooms in the 1950s.

    What you can do is make the contemporary details acknowledge/reference (but not necessarily "copy") any mid-century details that exist somewhere else in the house.

  • jerzeegirl
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    My house was built in 1985 but it has a mid-century vibe. Large, tall sliding glass doors, interior space connecting with exterior, clean lines, natural materials, lots of wood. There's a Tulip table with breuer chairs in the kitchen; a Danish modern sideboard; walnut and white cabinets in the kitchen.

    That being said, I think I need to stop using the term MCM because it muddying the waters. Everyone has his or her own idea of what it means. My style is eclectic - I like contemporary, clean, modern design (I like the aesthetic personified in Dwell), but I also like to add touches that make the look interesting or artistic. This is why I thought it might be interesting to pair the "modern" style vanity and Caesarstone top with handmade tile with all its imperfections. But I also like the perfection of a wall of machine made tile. It's not that I don't see things I like, I see too many things that i do like!

  • jerzeegirl
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    In addition replacing the term MCM with contemporary, I am also thinking that handmade tiles are not a good choice. I think I am going to look at glass tiles. I really like the look of Modwalls tiles. I have always like the way glass tiles look and have avoided them because my DH doesn't much care for them. That being said, it's not his bathroom; it's mine!

  • Denitza Kotov
    9 years ago

    Grey always goes well with walnut. I'm in the same boat and trying to figure out how to balance my love for mid century modern in a 1953 ranch house:)
    Last year I did a walnut and chartreuse green kitchen with white quartz counter tops.

    I'm planning to use larger tile for the floor and walls. Not a big fan of mosaics. I also love s splash of color like aqua or green for one of the shower walls maybe but haven't decided yet. Please share some pics when the bathroom is ready.
    Here is a pic of a mid century bathroom.

  • emmarene9
    9 years ago

    The two things I see that are defeating your modern look are the drop in sink and your shower curtain and rod. I actually like your bathroom as it is. I have seen a lot of modern type faucets that could add to your design. I actually did google danish modern bathroom and a lot of nice pictures came up.

  • schicksal
    9 years ago

    beverly27 - is that your bathroom? It looks AWESOME!!! How do the cabinet doors work? It looks like they open downwards at an angle? How do they stay closed?

  • vedazu
    9 years ago

    Our family house was built in 1952. First ceramic tile in our town, if you can believe it. The tile size was actually a little bigger than 4x4--almost 5x5. My mother said it was difficult to find materials at that time--right after the war, and choices were slim. I have Sonoma tile in my NJ house--doesn't look remotely like the 50's tile. I could be wrong, but I think handmade tile wasn't around, except perhaps (I'm guessing here) in the Southwest. Narrow grout lines.

  • nosoccermom
    9 years ago

    Agree to go for a contemporary bathroom. Here are some European examples.

    {{!gwi}}

  • maxmillion_gw
    9 years ago

    I like the tile you currently have, though maybe not the grout width on the floor. The new vanity will look great, especially if you can float it. I would prioritize fixtures over tile if you are on a budget.

    If you're set on changing out the tile, I think of mcm bathrooms as having rectilinear tile or more organically shaped natural materials like slate. Color is fair game - there were lots of bold colors used in that time period, or you might argue that using natural materials is keeping in the spirit.

    I don't know about herringbone and diagonal tile. Herringbone strikes me as more Remodelista than Dwell. Which is nice if that's the look you're going for. Diagonal tile can look gimmicky if it doesn't relate to the rest of the house.

    Here are some color ideas:

    [Modern Bathroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/modern-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2105) by San Francisco General Contractors Moroso Construction

    [Modern Bathroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/modern-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2105) by San Francisco Architects & Building Designers Swatt : Miers Architects

    [Midcentury Bathroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/midcentury-modern-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2115) by Mountlake Terrace General Contractors W. S. Feldt General Contractor, Inc.

    [Contemporary Bathroom[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-bathroom-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_712~s_2103) by Melbourne Kitchen & Bath Fixtures apaiser