This week’s Retro Design Dilemma comes to us from reader Pat — who has just become the caretaker for the 1953 ranch home where she grew up — after moving back in to care for her aging mother. Pat is trying to clean up the home little by little — and is a little overwhelmed with the task at hand. Deciding to start the process by fixing up her peachy-pinky-beige and maroon bathroom — Pat knows the peeling wallpaper and missing grout will need to be fixed. What she’s not sure of: What kind of treatment should replace the aging wallpaper? Pat needs help with ideas on how to decorate this mid century bathroom.
I have a 1950s bathroom in a ranch-style house that was built in 1953. (I grew up there and have now moved back in to assist my mother who is no longer able to live alone.)
The bathroom has maroon floor tiles, and in the 80s my parents replaced the tub surround with beige 4″ x 4″ tiles because water got behind the wall and the original tiles had to be removed.
The tub and toilet are the original “flesh” color (for lack of a better description, but I’m sure you know what I mean).
My parents also replaced the original vanity, not sure when but now have an oak one w/matching mirror, probably from Home Depot or something similar.
It’s got a few layers of wallpaper; the present one is peeling, but underneath it’s all rough and bumpy from the old glue and the previous layers.
I’m just wondering about what kind of wall treatment I could use after I remove the old wallpaper, and if we replaced the vanity and mirror, what would look appropriate?
The dark lines you see between some tiles are missing grout (the whole shower enclosure needs to be regrouted), and there is some rust along the seam on the tub.
There is so much to do in this house, this is just a very small part! I’m doing the best I can but it’s overwhelming.
Thank you!
Readers, what should Pat do with the walls when the peeling paper is removed? How about the mirror and vanity situation?
Kate’s solution: warm & woodsy
Aside from tackling the removal of all of that peeling wallpaper and missing grout, I would remove the shower doors and replace them with a curtain. The curtain will be easier to keep clean — plus the right shower curtain will help tie the room together. It is hard to tell the exact shades of maroon, peachy-pink and beige that are found in your tile, tub and toilet, but this butterflies shower curtain from Overstock.com seems like it might have the right colors for your space.
Since the shower curtain is patterned, I would keep the walls a solid color. To add more interest and contrast to the space, picking a light green from the shower curtain and using it as the wall color will help visually pull the space together. Red (maroon) and green are complimentary colors that work well together.
For the mirror, I’d choose a simple, frameless oval shape — like this Moen mirror from Home Depot — which will feel light and airy by comparison to the large, oak framed mirror currently in place.
To finish up the look — green hand and bath towels will repeat the green wall and shower curtain color again, for further cohesiveness. For a slightly retro kitschy look, add a pine cone bath mat and a shelf over the toilet with some cute vintage knick knacks, like this family of chipmunks Pam found on Ebay. Alternately, if kitsch isn’t your thing, a solid bath mat in one of the colors found in the room would also work wonderfully.
Pam’s solutions: Playing up the ruby red jewel box
What a wonderful daughter you are, Pat, to be there to help your mother! Here are my thoughts on your bathroom:
- As other readers have mentioned in their comments: Safety First. Please consult with properly licensed professionals to ensure you know latest safety guidance on securing this bathroom against slips and falls. I bet that they even have this advice at the doctor’s office! Now on to decorating….
- To me, that rich red mosaic tile floor file seems to be the major star of your vintage bathroom. It sure looks gorgeous. However, that beige-colored tub and tile and toilet. Umm, not so much. So, I would most definitely play up the ruby red… and treat the beige like a neutral.
- If your safety experts agree with the advice to take out the sliding door and install properly secured hand rails instead, I would take out the slider. That way, you could use a bold shower curtain to add color and pattern — and it would play down the expanse of beige tile. I would find gorgeous ruby-red towels to go with.
- I would add a beige-colored toilet seat… and as another reader suggested this morning, I’d change out the sink to match the other fixtures.
- Since in this design I added a very bold shower curtain, I think I would just paint the walls — probably a classic ivory. Nothing too harsh.
- I might leave the oak vanity as is… the oak tones kind of meld with the beige-colored fixtures. I think I’d change the pulls though — I might choose an oak pull to keep it simple.
And…
- Since you asked for wallpaper, Pat, how about something like the design above. As described above, I looked for a wallpaper with a ruby red design. It was actually difficult to find this color in the several places I looked. But finally, I found this light and airy floral by Brewster. Wallpaper is such a personal design decision… and this is not particularly retro — I’d call it traditional… but I wanted to show it to illustrate how I got to it: (1) the color of the pattern is close — ideally you want to match that ruby red floor, (2) the field, or background, seems to work — I did not like how brite white fields looked in this bathroom; a color that picked up a bit of your beige tone (but not toooo much) seemed to work best, (3) the scale of the pattern looked right — you need to bridge the mosaic of the floor and the squares of the shower/tub surround when you choose the wallpaper, (4) the wallpaper kept the room airy, and (5) the price was not too bad.
- I’d add ruby red towels and a creamy shower curtain in the same color as the field color of the wallpaper.
Thank you, Pat, for submitting your Retro Design Dilemma — good luck with all — and let us know what you decide!
Amy H says
The first one is my favorite!
There are some tips for removing the shower doors over at Young House Love:
http://www.younghouselove.com/2013/06/dont-eat-while-you-read-this/
The pictures there give an example of how big an impact it could have in your space.
stacia says
My parents’ house has the same flesh-colored fixtures. Such a non-color! Their tile is creamy colored with beige-y speckles, with black towel bars and black bullnose trim. Unfortunately, they always tried to play up the beige instead of the black; dramatic decorators they were not!
I love Kate’s woodsy suggestion. The bathroom is a great place for kitsch. I see lots of deer, owls, and chipmunk figurines around. Very cute!
lisa says
Wow, I love all three mood boards but especially the “warm and woodsy.” +1 on changing out the toilet seat for a pink one AND for changing out the vanity knobs. It would be easiest to leave the vanity in oak, but I can’t help but wonder how it would look painted. Maybe sort of plan a paint idea, but do that last in case you decide it isn’t needed?
I’ll add: consider covering the window with privacy film. Much easier to deal with than a curtain or blind in the shower.
If the walls are a bit bumpy, consider using a textured wallpaper that is made to be painted over. They are a good solution to hiding damaged walls that you don’t want to deal with repairing. You can get a sort of random texture that looks a bit like plaster, or various geometric and floral patterns. Search “paintable wallpaper” on a site such as Home Depot.com.
ChicagoMel says
My bathroom is also beige/tan with maroon accent tile on the floor and I’m not in love with it. I was so excited to see this post this morning and after seeing the mockups I can’t wait to go home and order a pine cone bathmat, woodland figurines and a woodland theme shower curtain. I can’t wait to start loving my master bath! I wouldn’t have thought of a woodland theme in a million years!
Kate says
Glad you are inspired ChicagoMel! 🙂
lynda says
Kate, did you notice the pine cone shower curtain at Kohl’s? It might have the pinky beige color, hard to tell. It has the pale green too.
http://www.kohls.com/product/prd-1154720/saturday-knight-ltd-pinehaven-fabric-shower-curtain.jsp?crosssell=true Certainly goes with the pinecone rug.
Kate says
I hadn’t noticed that shower curtain…I do wish it had a bit of maroon in it though — to go with the floor tiles.
Mary Elizabeth says
After reading everyone else’s comments, I second the motion of getting rid of the shower doors and replacing them with a curtain, even if you need to leave the chrome trim in place to keep from damaging the tub. Older shower doors can be unsafe, as they were made of glass that splinters when it breaks, rather than safety glass that falls apart into little cubes. So if your mother falls in the shower, you’ll have more to deal with than a broken hip.
Also regarding potential falls, I also agree with the importance of putting up grab bars immediately. You can have it done at the same time you are having the shower walls re-grouted and sealed.
And please remember what I said about bath rugs. A rubber-backed mat that is only used for stepping out of the tub is fine, as long as you hang it back up when your mother is done bathing. My father-in-law had a terrible fall in his bath when the cotton mat slipped out from under him. The tile floor you have with the small tiles is probably just fine.
Looks like you have a window in the room, and in that situation 1950s codes didn’t require exhaust fans. If you have one, though, check it to see if it is working, and have one installed if you don’t. I agree with the person who said that you should be sure their aren’t moisture issues in the room before spending any money to fix it up.
I like both Kate’s and Pam’s decorating palette suggestions. But remember to get color chips for the floor and fixtures before purchasing paper, shower curtains or curtains. (By the way, you can make a curtain out of a second shower curtain if you can’t find curtains to match.) We can’t tell by the photos, as in one photo your tub looks definitely pink and in one it looks more beige.
As for painted walls vs. wallpaper, once you have steamed off the paper, cleaned and repaired the walls and sanded them, you can decide what will work best for you. Remember that latex paint is cheaper and easier to put up than wallpaper. If you have do-it-yourselfer’s remorse, you can get a new gallon of paint and repaint a better color. Remember too that many paint stores will now give you small quantities of paint to test out on your wall. One of my friends was redoing her downstairs bath and had about ten colors of blue samples on her wall before she picked one.
You have a lot on your plate now. I wish we could all hop a plane and come to wherever you are to help you out. But since we can’t do that, we can see you through your project her on RR. Let us know how it all works out.
lynda says
I like Kate’ green addition to the bath. I also wanted to say that we bought two of the Moen tilt mirrors at Home Depot. It is a great price for the mirror. They installed easily and they look great in an updated bath. You might want to change the light fixture too. A little more streamlined one without the curves and flair would look nicer. Perhaps you can change out the laminate counter. I have found that you can order just a length at Home Depot and get the iron on end pieces and the side splash. You have to then cut your own hole for the install. It is a lot cheaper than having someone measure and then come out and install a new top. The waterfall design with a back splash is the cheapest profile.
Not sure if the burgundy would be too much color, or be just right. http://www.formica.com/en/us/products/laminate-homeowner/details?di=NA_US_LAMHOME_7966
Or maybe something like this: http://samples.wilsonart.com/p-958-avalanche-melange-9175ml.aspx
BeckyD says
The floor is beautiful. I really like Pam’s color scheme. Ivory/beige looks lovely with that deep red color. It also makes the red look deeper and richer. I agree with Pam’s advice too, about leaving the vanity alone apart from switching out the knobs. Unless it is in worse shape than the photos show, it is fine the way it is and you’d might as well save the money for something else.
I agree with everyone else about removing the shower doors. It will make it SO much easier for your mother to get in and out. Also, it will make the bathroom look bigger and instantly more up-to-date.
I see no pressing reason to change out the medicine cabinet. Unless it is damaged inside or something. Otherwise, it is just a simple wood medicine cabinet and matches the vanity. Nothing wrong with that. If you really, really want to change it, I would at least replace it with another medicine cabinet. Otherwise you will lose that extra storage space. If you replace it, you will need to find something that will fit in the same hole, which could be a challenge. You could, of course, cut the hole larger or frame it out to be smaller, but if you have other changes to make elsewhere, why bother? I would leave well enough alone and just focus on what really needs to change, which in my opinion is removal of the shower door, grout repair, and removal of the wall paper.
I second Pam’s shower curtain ideas and first suggestion of simple ivory paint. Paint is easy to change vs. wallpaper. Ivory paint with a beautiful shower curtain to pull out the red, will look so clean, fresh, and elegant.
Scott says
As Pam, Kate, and pretty much everyone has said the tile is awesome so playing off that will really make the room come back to life.
Like you, all I really had to start with was a decent floor, but the right paint colors made my very low budget bath makeover come out great.
Call me crazy, but why not pink walls? A nice cooler shade of pink I think would rock that floor and you will find all sorts of amazing vintage decorative ceramics and wall art items with tie into those colors. Then paint the lower vanity maroon to fade away with the tiles, add some chrome knobs and towel bars and you will have a totally different look without spending big money.
Can’t wait to see what you do with it!
Pat Wieneke says
You know, that bumpy wall under the wall paper may be a sand finish to the walls. I remember that being very popular in the early 50’s houses in the neighborhood I grew up in. And it makes a great back scratcher! If you want to get rid of it, you will have to hang a liner paper or scrape it off. I would just paint it some nutral color.
I really like the pine design shown above. If you are going to have to do a lot of work on the house, I bet plumbing and electical are in the near future and they can run in the thousands. So you may want to keep from spending much money on the bath. It actually looks like it is in good shape after seeing all the 50’s and 60’s baths in the houses we looked at when buying this one.
You may want to paint the mirror frame and cabinet the color of the walls. Maybe a shade darker, but just a wee bit. You have a lot of color going on in there, anyway. Sort of let them disappere into the walls. Use a good primer and either an oil based semi-shiny paint or the newer cabinet paints to avoid chipping and that flat, “I’m trying to match the wall” look you get with flat latex coated paint. I’d do the wood work in there, too. It seems to me that most of the nicer old bathrooms had painted wood work.
Doing the grout is another issue. I was told by a mason once that the grouts of older tile, brick and stone jobs was just a bit different in content that the new stuff and the new stuff sometimes will not adhere to the old stuff. So look into that before you commit to the job.
If you sew or can find someone who does, if the shower curtain is cotton and not nylon, you can get a second one to cut out appliques to sew onto your towels or mat. Make sure you wash them first. I lost three inches off the length of a cotton shower curtain running it through a hot washer and drier. You can also use it for a window treatment for any bathroom window. A valance, cafes or tie backs, window shade, what ever. There are make your own pull shade kits that are not hard to use, just hard to find, I found out. Anyway, just some ideas.
Jay says
Warm and woodsy for me! Any oportunity to sneak in the color green.
Robin, NV says
Yes! I totally agree. The green looks really fresh and clean in there.
Robin, NV says
Definitely get rid of the glass doors – not just because it will be easier (and safer) for your mom to navigate the tub but removing them will make the bathroom feel bigger. Trust me, I have two bathrooms with this exact layout and it’s amazing how much bigger they feel now that the shower doors are gone.
As others have said, I love that floor. I’d use it as a jumping off point for color selection. Personally, I’m not a fan of the tan tiles in the shower surround. If the tile needs to be redone, I’d suggest a salt and pepper white tile with maroon trim. It would brighten things up a bit. I’d also check out the Restore for a chrome trimmed medicine cabinet, the wood trimmed one is wrecking the retro vibe in there. You may also find some lighting that would look more appropriate. As for the vanity, I think simply changing out the pull nobs for the round ones Kate found would make a big impact.