apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Use Mr. Clean on the subway tiles and you might find that they clean up very nicely - just to start off with.

I would definitely consider reglazing the wall tiles a bright white.

Paint the walls a bright torquoise!

pick a wall color that goes with off white, like aqua, then hit the window with a small bit of fabric in a contrasting color (an apple green, say). just something folded up roman shade style near the top so you don't lose the light. change out your shower curtain and towels to match and add aqua washcloths. also, add a plant stand plant.

add coordinating art to the wall and voila!

I'm convinced those are white tiles. They may literally be grey. Grey and that color of maroon were VERY popular back then, because I have some vintage wallpaper sample books, and several of the patterns are that color scheme.

The first thing that came to my mind when I looked at your bathroom was Waterworks. They have been playing off of the retro vibe that you guys already have for years. I went to their website for inspiration and came across a photo of the Amelie suite. It pulls up a photo with beige/grey tiles, black chinoiserie paper, and a black vanity. That could be the ticket to working with the tiles the color they are. Even though the wallpaper is black they have warmed it up with red hued bamboo mirrors. It is very well done. So with this in mind my suggestion is to play with red toned bamboo for the window treatment and accessories, do something exotic on the walls above the bullnose and punch it up with classic chrome accessories.

I think that your bathroom will look more "luxe" if you paint the walls a deep neutral (I think that a rich, blue-grey could easily work). Use a very simple window treatment in the same color as the towels, bathmat and bath curtain. Get the best quality linens you can afford. Also, eliminate all clutter.

It already looks very interesting and has a ton of potential with those old tiles and high ceiling.

Luxe but not dark? How about a rich but slightly powdered version of celadon, rose, or apricot (apricot might be too close to yellow)?

a small bathroom is a great place to play with super bright colors that might otherwise be overwheliming in, say, your living room. something rich like magenta or a royal purple could compliment your less-than white tiles and bold new sink.

I stayed recently at the Hotel DeLuxe in Portland and was blown away by the old school glamour of their bathrooms. Unfortunately I lost my pix when my camera card got corrupted, but here is what I remember: large mirror (to the ceiling), no frame, with light fixtures and glass shelf mounted to it. Subway tiles and marble floors with light light grey/purple paint. everything else was white and shiny. The color pallette of the rooms were awesome too, and featured a lot of off white which could help if your tiles are actually that color. here are some links that might help:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g52024-d112198-Reviews-Hotel_deLuxe-Portland_Oregon.html
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g52024-d112198-Reviews-Hotel_deLuxe-Portland_Oregon.html

I have a narrow tiled bathroom of the same vintage. We went with bright turquoise.

We found shower curtains and bathroom accessories at Target in multi-toned turquoise. I would look at accessories/towels while thinking of colors. It can sometimes be easier to find a paint to match a shower curtain you love rather than the other way around.

While I think the teal/turquoise/aqua thing would work, and might even be what I would do myself, you say you want a "luxe feel". That color palette would give the bathroom a mid-century, retro feel.

If I'm interpreting your desire for "luxe" in the appropriate way, then I suggest a deep red victorian wallpaper.

WHITE: A big part of what is making your wall tile look cream is the contrast with your Super-White walls. If the walls were darker, or even just not "Super-White", the tiles would instantly appear lighter.

For a "luxe" look, take advantage of your ceiling height.

Also, it's difficult to tell from the small photo, but it looks like the cabinet under your sink is a later addition, and doesn't go with the room. Consider investing in a new sink and cabinet (even consider a cabinet not made for a sink, but putting a countertop and sink on it... something French Provincial inspired, if you want to go all out).

Next replace the medicine cabinet with a huge/tall wall-hung mirror hung very high, coming from the ceiling all the way down to the sink (heck, you could save some labor and just hang it in front of the medicine cabinet, no one would know).

Then get some big curtains to hang from the ceiling on either side of that little window, leaving them open the full width of the window, but obscuring how small the window actually is (it would appear that the window would continue behind the curtain, creating the illusion of a big window). Use the same fabric as the curtains to make a matching shower curtain. Throw in some tassels.

That would give you a "luxe" look on a small budget.

If you have pre-war in NYC, keep the subway tiles or replace them with new subway tiles, longer and thinner (which are relatively inexpensive) and you can even run the pattern verticle instead of traditional horizontal to give it some added interest. They will also look good if you want to keep your current floor tiling. Go with a Waterworks or Restoration Hardware look (browse their site for inspiration). It goes well with the pre-war NYC thing and people like that look if you plan on selling.

PS: a light gray on the walls would work but if you replace some of the fixtures and the sink/etc, the bathroom will look updated/renovated without spending a tremedous amount of money and you could keep them white or go with a "distant gray" color.

orange!!!

I was about to say exactly what Chris suggested -- floor to ceiling curtains on the far wall.

Also, place an oversized mirror on the wall opposite the vanity, to expand the space.

Then splurge on "sunlight" bulbs in all the fixtures. They really give a sense of natural light.

For colors, I'd go with ballet-slipper pink, which makes everything rosy, but keep lots of black accents to keep it chic, not sweet.

We have the exact same tiles in our bathroom and painted the walls 'Claret' by Ralph Lauren. Super luxe, super sexy, very happy with the choice.

i would thoroughly clean the floor and wall tile before making a color choice. i've used Cerama Bryte (for glass top stoves, not abrasive, and i've used it on my kitchen tiles), and it works well.....just rinse thoroughly.

is the second photo of the sink the one you have purchased but not installed?

colors: just picked up a folder which lists all the available ben moore sample pots, so that's what i'll use for suggestions. Pristine and Pink Moire are soft, complexion flattering for all morning faces, no matter the hue/gender! Morning Dew or Vale Mist are interesting greens. Soft Cranberry or Georgian Green are deeper, more dramatic choices. at $3.99/pot, you could try all.......

I would go with whatever colour makes your tiles "pop" the colour you would like them to. We had the same problem and after months of trying different swatches, settled on a warm light grey (Farrow and Ball's Shaded White) and quite matte. This makes our old cream subway tiles look clean and shiny in contrast - and more white than yellowed. We also liked their Stony Ground. Honestly, we went with F&B because of the smaller choice of colours - we had to make a decision finally. Get paint samples and see what looks best with your light.

Thank you everyone!!! It's Rachael here, and I only have a second right now - but just wanted to start in responding by thanking you for all these great ideas. More later... but, Maude, yes -- the second photo of the sink is the one we've purchased but not yet installed. I would have loved to go all out and get something French Provincial, Chris (NYC), for the sink... but alas, we are on enough a budget and Restoration Hardware had a fantastic sale on that sink/vanity with the carerra marble top that we ended up purchasing. I wanted to save some money for things like that fab ceiling to floor curtains idea. I too have thought about a huge oversized mirror on the wall opposite the vanity... and hanging a different mirror over the medicine cabinet is an awesome idea to save a little more cash too!

More later on the color ideas... you all have given me so much great stuff to consider! Thank you!

I have a similar bathroom (though not as large and yes I'm jealous) and tried several colors, including light blue and a lavender grey. Finally chose a rosy pink, benjamin moore pink swirl (2171-70) because hey, it's a bathroom! You want to look good in the morning, and trust me, greys will do nothing for your complexion. Whereas pink, as girly as it sounds, makes everyone look wonderful. Also looks good with black and white. I get lots of compliments, though folks usually preface it by saying "I usually hate pink, but...