Where to find retro vintage-style pink tile – and 47 other colors
Palm Springs Stephan is a wealth of info, and provides this info on a Southern California company still producing the 50s pink tile so common during this era. Don’t use any other pinks – they are not right! I am so excited at this find – a big one for the retro renovation community.
The source: B&W Tile, with 3 locations and online, bwtile.com. See the warehouse photo to the left – they sure look like they’ve been in this Gardena location since the 50s. Reassuring!
Stephen adds: “B& W Tile makes this tile and keeps it in stock at all times in every size imaginable, from 1″ hex tile to 6×6 inch glazed and unglazed wall and floor tiles. I talked to their Riverside location just this afternoon, and the 4.25 by 4.25 glazed wall tile in 1950s pink (their inventory number 70W) is just $3.88 per square foot….I should be able to do the walls in my new bath just like the ones in that photo.”
Thank you thank you, Stephan! Original color – vast selection – great price. And, they produce the 1950s style wall-mounted & recessed china toilet paper, soap, and toothbrush holders (see toilet holder in top photo) also from original molds. Or you can use shiny stainless from Franklin Brass.
Spread the word and prepare the mastic.
This post — one of the most popular ever on Retro Renovation – was originally published on Dec. 14, 2007
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I love the pink tile!!!
Our half-bath has pink tile similar to what is pictured. I love it, but visitors often say, You are going to get rid of that pink tile, right? What do they know? The upper walls were white, and I painted them with a Brehr color called Moondance. I thought it would be a soft gray, but it has too much lavender in it, and is too cool. It is not flattering to the warm pink tile at all. So, what is a better wall color — cream as in the photo? (Our tile is just pink, and the tile soap, cup, and toilet paper holders are white. No black or any other color trim.) Our full bath was renovated at some point, and has no tile. Someday, maybe we can tile it.
I had the paint brand wrong — it was Olympic paint, not Behr.
I’ve been collecting illustrations and photos of pink tile bathrooms and can try to get these posted soon, too. (I have a lot of promised posts to do, argh!) Meanwhile: I’d recommend that you look to the Sherwin-Williams Suburban Modern interior palette (see my Paint Color category) for paint to coordinate with pink tile. If you want white, I’d start with the Porcelain. If you do go for white paint, I’d also advise, that you add artwork and rugs in a nice strong color of about the same intensity as the pink in order to balance and punctuate it. Another idea: Wallpaper. If you can swing the cash, look at Bradbury & Bradbury’s new line. There are a couple with pink elements that would look smashing. Alternatively: Hunt all over Lexington for vintage paper – you probably don’t need very much for a powder room. Something with grey and a bit of pink and even aquamarine would be awesome, I bet. Even consider an ad in a Shopper maybe? Or ask longtime wallpaper stores whether they have any squirreled away. I got mine for $3 a roll!
P.S. You are SO LUCKY to have a pink bathroom!!!!! I’m jealous.
The very first thing my stepsister said when she visited our house for the first time was,” Ahh, you haven’t gotten rid of these countertops yet, I see,” of my beloved greenish-blue vintage formica with stainless steel edging. Feh!
Yes. We are SO leading edge!
My daughter just found your site, and I am tickled Pink!!! (No pun intended.) I’ve had my pink bathroom since 1955 and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I also have the same small pink and white tile on the floor. It needs re-grouting, which we will do but still looks good.
Georgene Birchett
For anyone in search of pink tile, look for my listings on evilbay! I have loads of 4″ pink ceramic tile. My seller name is theamishdisco (isn’t that a hoot?!), so you should be able to find all my auctions. Lots of goodies going up so I can clear out my extras before the snow flies. Mention Mid Mod Pam for a super deal.
Hello all,
I am currently renting a house, with a pink tile bathroom with a magenta top spill guard. I would like to keep as is, but any ideas on making it look like the 50 would be great. any information would be helpful
My tile! My tile!!! This is the tile in my bathroom! We need work done and I worried “what if tiles get broken?” Thank you for this resource!! My question: Good colors to go with the tile to paint the upper wall? I have a plant on the back of the commode and thought the green actually looked really good against the tile so I considered that. Other suggestions?
Hi Emily – and welcome. Pink is a very adaptable color – so you can match it with almost anything. However, you should now know that you are in the home of the wallpaper-lover-of-America, so I always suggest that…. There are lots of posts. Surf around. Also be sure to see my other site, http://savethepinkbathrooms.com. And send me a pic of yours at retrorenovation at gmail dot com. Again – welcome!
I have very sad news for you all. My grandmother has decided after 53 years to finally renovate her all original pink bathroom in brand new, mint condition! I was devastated when she told me there was no use in convincing her otherwise. RIP Pink bathroom. Goodbye unique tiles… Its a shame. A once beautiful piece of history soon too be gone.
We are in the process of buying a 1956 home with tile like this in the main bath…I absolutely love it!! There are a couple tiles that someone replaced with white (horrible) and I’m so glad that there’s a place that still sells the originals so we can put it back how it should be. The house is luckily 90% original and in great shape…it’s funny that the listing said it needed a total remodel. It’s funny how some people are so BLIND! I love your bathroom and hope to enjoy ours soon!
Woa Pam! I’m Impressed!Great looking site!
We needed just one tile replaced in the shower and got it from B&W Tile. They were so helpful, especially since we had the smallest possible order. The color wasn’t an exact match to what is in our 1959 shower, but it still looks much much better than the white tile we thought we were going to be stuck using. Thanks!
Today, I tore out the linoleum floor in my 1950 pink and cranberry bathroom in order to find the source of the leak that has caused the floor to rot. It might be necessary to take out and replace the shower pan in my lovely pink shower.
I am debating about what to use for the new floor. The choice is between putting in Marmoleum in Tan Pink # 3077, which matches my tile perfectly, or to put in a tile floor. I love the look of tile, but don’t want to use hex or octagonal tiles if they weren’t used in that period. I would like to explore the Dal Tile line, but what about this? Were hex tiles used in that period?
Joan from Ashland, OR
Hi Joan, yes, we’ve seen hex tiles. But I’ve never done a post on them. I believe that B&W Tile carries them, and there are others…. See this post: http://retrorenovation.com/2008/12/10/decorating-a-50s-pink-bathroom-with-timeless-character-beyond-retro/
Wow this is so PINK! i love it….
Hi Pam!
Do these hex tiles really fit for a 50’s bathroom or is this more appropriate to a 20’s or 30’s bungalow? I did see them at B and W, and I also saw little white squares….. I’d like to download a photo I took with two of my tiles as a possible floor choice. Is there a way to do that or should I send you a link to my picasa album?
Joan
Hi Joan. For security reasons, readers cannot upload photos. So email me with your picasaweb link…Again, yes, I’ve seen hex tiles in 50s houses – but I don’t know for sure how popular these were vs. the other choices. I think they’re fine. I recently saw some in the Re-Store – white with a little marble-ized glaze, and really liked them.
Just to comment on the hex tiles: I have a 1949 Brick Cape Cod and I have hex floor tiles in both my pink bathroom and in my yellow bath. My sister has a “ranch” home that I think was built in the 50s and it too has the hex floor tiles all the different bathrooms.
This is an awesome website, BTW. Suddenly, I’m feeling very protective of my pink bathroom.
Welcome, Gabbie. We’d love to see some pics of your house and bathrooms some time!
You know my mom had a pink bathroom AND a pink kitchen…complete with pink wall oven… range… counter top… phone. when they remodeled the kitchen…it all was ripped out and taken away. I wish i had it all now. and 2 remodels later its that standard stainless… they love it and i miss the pink something awful
Love all the 1050’s pink bathrooms…..but what about the rest of us who have other colored 1950’s bathrooms. My bathroom has taupe’ish tile with a rust border. The bathroom walls are tiled from top to bottom and are in excellant condition. I also have a working heater in the tile that looks and works great ( just needs rechroming). Any others like me out there????? I need to re-do the floors, help!
Judi Gee – OF COURSE “pink” bathrooms are just emblematic: We love and celebrate bathrooms of all colors. Are you a new reader? Hang around a while and you will see…
I am repairing an old house that has pink tiles in the bathroom. Some are missing and I do not want to remove this great looking vintage piece of history. I need to see about finding replacement pieces to get this room back to it’s original condition/look.
Hi All,
I recently retiled my shower with Tiles from the B/W location in Gardenia. I had a great experience there and highly recommend them. I am now moving into phase 2 of my bathroom renovation and I need some help and guidance. I am planning on continuing the turquoise green tile color to the rest of the walls of the bathroom in a subway tile with a black header and footer tile to accent. I will be installing a new white tub, toilet, and teak cabinetry topped with Caesar stone. My dilemma comes from the tile for the floor. I am planning on either doing the Daltile mosiac from the Keystone collection that you featured or a 3″ Hexagonal tile. My question is what colors of tile would work best for this situation? I was originally going to go with white, but I think the contrast might be too much. My condo was built in 1959 and I can send pics if they would help. Any help is appreciated.
Thanks,
Long Beach Friend
Hello!
I have the same tile scheme, but it’s in green/mint and black. I have some tiles that need to be replaced and I’m not sure where to go. Any suggestions?
Thanks for your help!
Amy
Amy — look at my Fast & Easy Product Guide page – Bathroom, for our tile resources identified to date. B&W — same supplier as the pink — has 47 colors. They might be your best bet. Good luck.
OMG! The bathroom in that picture is exactly like my aunt’s 1948 house.
My wife and I were just debating over a complete renovation or a retro refresh on our 1955 bathroom. After seeing this site our minds are made up. It will be a retro renovation. Thanks for operating this site and provideing the info on a place to get replacement tiles.
jim – hurray! be sure to take before and after pics so we can show them on the site.
Gday,
I’m in the process of restoring a 50’s bathroom, with exactly the colors depicted in the picture above ( Pink / Burgundy ). I have been lucky and found tons of the pink at a architectural salvage, but I’m having trouble sourcing the Burgundy. I was wondering if anybody has the stock number that B&W uses or, possibly another supplier. The website and B&W does not depict colors, and I’m no where near California.
John, I have heard from other readers that B&W is very responsive to inquiries from across the nation and will send samples, etc. I recall talking to them at one point, the reason they do not show colors on the website is that different monitors do not accurately depict colors and they want folks to see the tile for real before making an order. Other than that – go to a big tile store and look at all the sample boards from the major companies like Daltile/American Olean and whoever else. Good luck.