A 50s bathroom trimmed in two-tone blue

What a lovely 1953 bathroom. If you prefer to go with white fixtures – tub, toilet and sink – but still want some classic retro flair, choose a 50s colored field tile for the shower surround and/or walls.

Blue tiles are fresh and timeless – I used the Olympia Tile Heron Blue in a bathroom, trimmed with white 2x6s. White floor, white fixtures and a wallpaper with additional soft green and faded cherry red that pulls it all together. Interestingly, I think it’s the retro styled wallpaper that takes the bathroom truly back to the 50s and in fact, it would be easy to change to wallpaper to dial the era up or down — with all the expensive basics like tile and fixtures not having to change.

So for anyone concerned about going too over-the-top retro (like, you’re concerned about resale) — such is the benefit of accessories, carefully executed. Another way to think about it: The more expensive the feature, the more conservative you may want to be.

In this Kohler bathroom, they’ve chosen just to tile the tub, so they added more design ooomph with a two color treatment. In the rest of the bathroom, I love the yellow punch, the great built-in storage to the right of the sink, and the dark gleaming floor.