Tile Library
Today we made an impulse stop at a little tile shop called Tile Library in Webster Groves. We are replacing the floor in the hall bathroom (the pink bath) and most of the tile in the master bath. Pictures will follow soon of the master, but right now it’s too scary to even post - way scary. I’m keeping the pink wall tile because I would like most of the bathroom to stay original and I think the pink is charming, but it is also totally unnecessary to re-tile the entire room. The floor really is pretty dingy and unlike most 50’s tile design, this one doesn’t flow as well and isn’t very crisp. I don’t want it to look too “blocky”, so large square tiles are out. I wanted the bath to still feel period appropriate, so I thought a hexagon or octagon shape would work well. I fell in L-O-V-E with Daltile octagon and dot design - it almost looks like circles. The white on white looks great in this photo, but with my pink wall, I think I need the gray for balance. Hmmmm……
Octagon & Dot in Matte White with Matte White Dot floor tile
Tile samples against my original tile.
Still deciding between white on white or white and gray
Some other neat tile examples…
Similar to the design I already have in gray and white
Always loved herringbone design
9 Comments to Tile Library
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Love the Octagon with great square. I think you are right with the fact you will need the gray to balance out the pink. All white would make the pink stand out even more.
I myself am partial to an all white hex, probably because of my mother-in-laws house, which was built by an understudy of Frank Lloyd Wright. Her bathroom has white hex tiles with black grout.
Hi Pam,
I had a feeling you were going to say something. Well, I forgot to mention that there are tiles missing and some are cracked. Trust me, the photo looks MUCH better than in person. The pink on the floor does not match the pink on the wall and the tile looks white, but is really tan, so cleaning it wouldn’t really brighten it the way I want it to. The pink wall and pink tub are staying. As you can see from the rest of my house, my goal is to preserve as much of the original elements as I can, but some things just need to be updated.
I really like the white on white octagon and that white and grey square pattern too (where was that pattern when I was looking for tile?) Is that marble or ceramic?
Don’t feel guilty about getting rid of the older tile. You’re still going with a small mosaic that would be period with the house… it’s going to look great. Most people would just throw down 18X18 granite!
I’m with Pam! Don’t do it! Leave it alone! Please! It is absolutely georgeous. Seriously, I think you would regret it. Save yourself the time, $$ and certain eventual heartache.
I love your blog!
Pam! Ok I may be the only one encouraging you to tear your floor out but it’s for purely selfish reasons! I have the same floor and i need some extra tile sets to repair a broken area in my bathroom. If you do end up swapping out your floor, would you please, please contact me to see if we can keep even a little bit of that old tile out of the landfills?
thanks so much!
merideth (but a different merideth from the prev. commenter)
ps. my house’s bathrooms would have originally had the hex tile you’re planning to put down (built in 1922) but the bathroom had a mid-century remodel…hence the floor
oops! sorry…called ya “Pam” gah!
Hi Merideth, Well, some of the tile is cracked and missing, so it really does need to go! Let me know how much you need and I will see if I have it…
Wow, we have that exact same tile in our pink bathroom too. Your photo really makes it out to look better than I know it does. And I’ve been really wanting to get rid of it, even though everywhere else in the bathroom and the rest of the house we’re fiercely protective of the original features. Our fixtures are white, but all the wall tile is pink (that “midcentury pink”) with a burgundy border.
In our tiny bathroom, the peach/tan scheme of the floor is just off enough from the pink wall tile to really clash. And we have some broken tiles that were replaced with non-matching pieces - same color, but they stick up higher!
But perhaps even worse is how gross the 59 year-old grout is. It’s impossible to get it white around the toilet, with the mosaic tiles it’d be a nightmare to re-grout.
So you have my sympathies. Although all the uproar is making me feel a little guilty about our replacement plans!
request for tile H30231 sample picture