Sunday, March 11, 2012

Bathroom worries

So I've shared one of the two bathrooms with you and its looking promising I think.  We went with a safe tile choice there on the carrara herringbone.

On the other washroom I was more daring and I'm worried I may have missed the mark - but I'm not sure. Here's a bit of the history:  I saw the following ming green 'illusion' tile when we first started shopping and fell in love.
Ming green illusion tile
And when I say love I mean real love. I'd meant to buy a white carrara 1" hex tile when I went in but I couldn't shake this tile from head.  I slept on it for 3 weeks because I knew this wasn't a traditional choice.  I didn't even post about the tile because I loved it so much and you know how hurt you can feel when someone advises against things you love.

We finally took the plunge for the tile but decided we'd do it as a carpet with a white border.  I made the decision because I love white and loved the carpet idea and was trying to get the best of all worlds. Here's what we were supposed to have:

Ming green illusion with white thassos border

I though the above looked sensational but that's when we ran into problems.  Big problems. The green tile didn't look good when it was cut to have a straight edge and the grout lines were too big if we didn't cut. This was a big Friday drama - we had 3 options:
1) stick with original plan but go with big grout lines
2) return all the tiles we'd bought and settle for an easier, safer tile like the 1" carrara hex tile
3) stick with my first love and keep the green tile but put it all over the floor

I've never been know to settle so I took the plunge - green throughout.  Its gone down and I still love the tile but something feels off...


Tile on floor - still needs grout
Don't worry about the squiggly lines at the edges.  Grout / caulk / baseboard will take care of that.  My theories about the 'off' feeling are:
  1. The shower jamb and wall tile were both chosen when I had white tiles as my carpet border.  They were already in by the time we ran into our troubles.  Are the wall tiles too white against the green? Is the white shower jamb too creamy white against the wall tiles.  Its almost like I need a creamier white wall tile - but I don't know
  2. The washroom wasn't bright enough when I saw it.  It has no windows and only one of the 4 lights were on when I took the above pic.  Once all the other lights are set, maybe everything will be whiter and shinier
  3. Not enough is in the washroom yet - once the glass shower doors are in the light will reflect off that onto the white tiles and look OK. Also the vanity will cover some of the tile bringing more white into the space
Hubs thinks the whole thing looks great - spa like. But is he saying it to make me happy and less worried?

Hope things are going well for you out there.

2 comments:

  1. I can see why you fell in love, that green tile is fantastic! I've never seen anything like it before. I also think it will all be fine once the glass and baseboards are in. I think the simple white tiles are perfect. If you did anything else it would take away from the green tile. Let that be the star and it will be a gorgeous bathroom.

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  2. When I was reading your options I was hoping you would chose all over. I think it looks fantastic and really showcases the tile. Keep it simple is my motto. I do like a border but in this case I honestly think it would have been too much:)

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