bathroom reno--style advice needed

Hi,

In an effort to be up front, I am an artist who specializes in historic tile. I agree with 11:28.

You may consider the satin matte glaze colors as an appropriate alternative tile to white. These glazes were translucent (colors pooled), applied to a flat bisque and installed around colored accessories which then became accents. They became available in the 1910’s. It was a great tile and would blend well with your house.

There are some companies that can blend glazes to suit the use of pre-existing colored fixtures. Look for “nys historic tile”.

The pink and maroon nightmare could be original to the house. See “Bungalow Bathrooms” by Jane Powell for further information and zillions of photos of original bathrooms from the 1920s, including ones with white subway tile. It’s a fantastic book, also has lots of practical information about construction.

I haven’t seen that many 1920s bathrooms with white subway tile, actually — that tends to be more the teens and earlier. But a slightly squarer white tile on the walls with white hexagonal tile and a little daisy or other spotted (diaper) design in black hexagonal tile on the floors would be a very typical 1920s look.

You can also color the existing tile. But if your fixtures are pink, that won’t look good. In fact, Powell specifically addresses what to do if you have a pink bathroom. One of her suggestions is to paint the walls an even more outrageous color.