We looked at Mary’s retro kitchen transformation on Monday, but I held the bathroom for its own story — because, golly, doesn’t the “Grete” wallpaper from Bradbury & Bradbury Art Wallpapers look fabulous in her original peachy pink bathroom? Photo viewing tip: Click on the photos in this and any other story, and the photos should enlarge onscreen to 1000 pixels wide, so you can see more detail.
Mary told us:
The original bathroom is also intact. I found some great Bradbury & Bradbury ‘Grete’ wallpaper in Earth Green to watch the style of the bathroom.
[Where does your pattern lie? See our Foolproof Guide to Choosing Bathroom Colors — Five Steps to Success.]
I’m not sure you can see it in the pictures, but I also had the cabinets repainted and replaced all the hardware including the hinges which had layers of paint on them. Drawer pulls, hinges and cabinet hardware came from a local hardware store that carries vintage hardware, and it’s surprisingly inexpensive. You can find reproductions at Restoration Hardware and Rejuvenation, but some of the simple hardware is still carried at hardware stores and even Home Depot, and it’s usually less than the newer designs.
2021 update
Bradbury & Bradbury just introduced a new 1950s wallpaper collection — there are 52 patterns in this beautiful collection. So nice to have so many more options!
Link Love:
- See the listing for Mary’s colorful retro 1950s home in Dallas, Texas
- Thanks to realtor Paul Carper and to realtor Bart Stockton for the great photos, both of Carper Miller Real Estate Group.
Mara Suporlock says
I have a bathroom like that with the same colors and the same tub shape The house was build in 1954. . I need to replace 2 of the red wine parts used for the edges and corners. Can you please tell me the name of that, because English is not my primary language and where I can find to replace.
Thanks,
pam kueber says
Hi Mara, those pieces are called bullnose. Here is our category on Bathroom Tile, there are some stories that might help you find it https://retrorenovation.com/category/bathroom-categories/tile/
Mary Elizabeth says
Love that pink and maroon combo. The white picks it up very nicely.
Shelley says
Mary, the whole house is so beautiful! Kudos to you! I wanted to add a couple of additional online hardware sources; I’ve had good luck with Signature Hardware and House of Antique Hardware. Best of luck with the sale!
Janis says
I have a pick and blue bath and need to find tiles to match. My tiles on the floor are cracked and chipped Did you need to replace tiles. Love that you kept the old new again. Lovely.
mary says
Thanks for your feedback. Here are some answers to your questions.
– The floor is a variety of different sized squares and like the tile in the rest of the bathroom, it’s in really good shape.
– The window is new. The original one was falling apart – frame was rusted from being exposed to water for decades and the glass was cracked. It was beyond repair, so I opted for a new window with the frosted glass for privacy. Since it’s hidden behind a shower curtain most of the time, I wasn’t too concerned with how it looked compared to the rest of the original casement windows in the house.
– That gas heater is THE BEST! It’s totally unsafe if you have little ones around, but I don’t have any kids so I kept it. It’s so wonderful on a cold day and during the cold months, I used it every morning when getting ready for work.
– For the wallpaper, the tile color combination was hard to match, so I made sure to order samples before committing to anything.
Kathy says
This shows that wallpaper scale is an important factor. Just looking at the enlargement with the purple centers and the peachiness of your pink tiles, I wouldn’t think it would quite work, but the small scale makes it look more like a neutral green grey from a distance and it totally works. I hope the buyers realize just how expensive that wallpaper is and appreciate the quality vintage tilework.
Suzy says
BBBBBEAUTIFUL!!!!!!
Erin says
Love it! We have a tub only retro pink bathroom with a window in it we want to add a shower to eventually. It looks like the window you have is not standard – curious if you replaced it with something that is a little more water resistant?
Kate H says
Looks great! And there’s nothing better than one of those little gas heaters on a cold morning — I just love them.
Elizabeth says
I love it! This bathroom looks like it is in superb shape. Thank you for keeping it intact. I really hope you find someone for you home who appreciates it as much as we all do! I just wish I could see a close up of that floor….