Not pink

As much as I love mid-century design, I'm not a purist like some of you are. I know there's a movement afoot to save the pink bathroom, and I applaud those of you who march under that banner, but the last home my parents bought in the 1960s, before I married and moved away, had a pink bathroom...and a mint green one too...both with matching fixtures, so I have a bit of a "been there, done that" attitude about vintage bathrooms.

When I bought my little 1950 house, it had been restored by the previous owner in a style better described as "modern" than "mid-century." The kitchen, dining room and living room alcove floors had been done in slate, and then, almost as if an afterthought (or as if the money had run out and the homeowner had made a run to Builders' Surplus to grab whatever they had on hand), the bathroom had been done in an inexpensive mish-mash of cream colored tile. The floors and the shower walls were that "close, but no cigar" attempt to match.  It would have been so much better to use contrasting materials than two tiles that almost matched.

Then he threw in a cream colored marble vanity top that was yet another shade, which made the whole effect even more confusing...and blah. It was truly the only room in the house that I didn't love. Oh...and did I mention that he didn't even finish tiling in the bathroom linen closet? I guess he ran out of materials and just closed the door and pretended it was done.

Since our Christmas snow delayed starting my apartment, I decided to do a quick redo of the bathroom in the house before moving forward with the bigger project. I chose porcelain tile that replicates the real slate flooring in the rest of the house perfectly, and then chose a travertine trim for the shower to make the existing cream-colored vanity countertop make sense. I chose to tile the tub/shower enclosure all the way to the ceiling, rather than stop 7" short like the previous owner did...another decision he made that looked as if he had simply run out of tile.

I'm pleased with the results and plan to use the same tile in my apartment so it looks like an extension of the main house and doesn't repeat the mish-mash look the bathroom formerly had. I've ordered black appliances for the kitchen, light countertops flecked with black and browns with matte black sinks and faucets. All my lighting will be Tom Dixon style Beat pendants in matte black.

My contractor and all the sub-contractors are going to enjoy New Year's Eve and Day with their friends and families, and then we're going to hit the ground running on the apartment on Wednesday, so I'll probably be able to give you some before and after shots when the demolition is done.

Oh, by the way...Rebecca at Mid-Century Modern Remodel is having a drawing for a beautiful turquoise vase, and she wants your input on a new masthead for her blog. Drop by and spread the bloglove.