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Remodel & decorate in Mid Century Style

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Home / Bathroom / Tile

Video: My affordable beige tile bathroom. Yes. Beige.

pam kueber - Updated: August 21, 2020

Retro Renovation stopped publishing in 2021; these stories remain for historical information, as potential continued resources, and for archival purposes.

So I had the bathroom clean… I put on makeup… The good camera was all set up on the big tripod… and DH was on the scene to help me shoot this video all about my bathroom renovation — completed with affordable beige ceramic tile from Home Depot. Then, the camera froze up, and we couldn’t get it back on. So I grabbed my little Canon that also shoots video — and, well, the show must go on.

Which is to say: This isn’t my greatest video, but, if I didn’t do it then, I was never gonna do it.

In this first of three segments — all about the renovation of my small, 1951 master bathroom — I talk about why I chose beige 4″x4″ field tiles, with white bullnose.

Beige ceramic 4″ x 4″ tile:

  • A totally accessible color if tile — available immediately and inexpensively from Home Depot, Lowes and other big box stores…
  • An everlasting gobstopper timeless tile color — as is light grey, but I’ve never seen that color stocked on the shelf at Home Depot…
  • And it’s super easy to punch up with color via wallpaper or a patterned shower curtain and then, with towels.

Yes, I installed a beige bathroom.

Oh, and this is embarrassing: I swear I cleaned the bathroom. But, the yellow cast of light is making the floor grout look pukier than it really appears in real life. And, crikey, I need to figure out how to really clean the non-skid surface of the Kohler tub, which turned that kind of bottom-of-your-feet color within a month of installation and which I’ve never been able to get white again. Anyone? Bueller?

Two more Beige Bathroom videos to come:

  • My Beige Bathroom: Features I Like
  • My Beige Bathroom: Things I’d Do Differently

Want to see my other bathroom design videos — including the one that went viral, Things I’d Do Differently — click here.

CATEGORIES:
Bathroom Tile

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45 comments

Comments

  1. Joe Felice says

    February 23, 2014 at 9:08 pm

    “Crikey?”

  2. Rebecca Scollan says

    September 3, 2012 at 2:06 am

    I’m a landlord with 70 buildings in the historic district of Albany, NY. The ONLY way we’ve found to get those non-slip tubs clean is Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. You will never see them until the tub is dirty again of course. We tried using a generic brand to save $$ but it didn’t work nearly as well.

  3. Melissa Toombs says

    August 22, 2012 at 5:55 pm

    My favorite part of the video is when you pause to look in the mirror and decided to fix your hair before moving to your next sentence. Nice.

    • pam kueber says

      August 22, 2012 at 9:31 pm

      🙂

  4. Blondie7 says

    July 28, 2012 at 7:46 pm

    Very nice bathroom Pam. Awesome video…which I enjoyed very much. BTW….You look sooooo pretty in your video.

    • pam kueber says

      July 28, 2012 at 8:21 pm

      Thank you, Blondie!

  5. J D Log says

    July 28, 2012 at 4:28 am

    I had a crystalisation problem with my blue toilet a few years ago due to drought flushing was limited. I tried all sorts of chemical cleaners nothing worked. I was on the point of replacing it with another blue unit I had then a friend suggested vinegar the secret is to top it up and let it soak for 2 or 3 days if the problem is really bad. Then a bit of careful scraping in this case (or your case a good scrub) and it looked as good as new, I think this could be adapted to the bath tub if needed and baking soda will give it a nice shine after, I have not tried mixing the both togeather

  6. Carole says

    July 27, 2012 at 9:01 pm

    You have absolutely no idea how much I’d give for beige and white, or simply white. I have the most gawd awful blue fixtures (the walls were too when we moved in) that anyone has ever seen. White is clean. Beige is clean. The two together are clean. And color can be added in with accessories, towels, wallpaper.

    Love that floor tile.

  7. christa says

    July 27, 2012 at 8:57 pm

    Bathroom is so cute, and so are you. Love the wallpaper, and the tile looks great.

    For the bottom of the tub, I have tried everything: vinegar, ammonia, bleach, Comet with bleach, Magic Eraser, Barkeepers Friend, TSP. Nothing has worked. I think the Comet or Barkeepers Friend works because it leaves white residue behind, so if your tub is white it looks clean. If your tub is yellow like mine, it looks like your tub is still dirty AND now it also has powdery residue all over it. Sigh.

    • lynda says

      July 27, 2012 at 9:22 pm

      My last comment!! Several blurbs on the net say this works:
      TUB. To clean non-slip strips on the floor of a tub or shower. Use WD-40 and a stiff scrub brush. Also recommended is a product called TRR, which stands for toilet ring remover. You can find TRR in most drug stores or WalMart. It is a liquid cleaner. You don’t want the pumice type of bowl cleaners.

    • pam kueber says

      July 27, 2012 at 9:29 pm

      Thank you. Now I don’t feel so bad. I am going to reach out to my contacts at Kohler on this one and see what they recommend.

      • Christa says

        July 28, 2012 at 12:47 pm

        I sort of remember trying the WD-40 method, and not being too thrilled with the result (or with then getting all that grease out of the tub).

        All things being equal, Magic Eraser did get the tub much cleaner, if not back-to-new clean, and it’s easy to use.

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