It was a pleasure to help Sue create her dreamy Victorian vintage bathroom, and the results are truly a sight to behold. With this bathroom’s amazing history, we were able to help preserve the vintage look while updating Sue’s bathroom to a modern, contemporary feel using vintage Victorian tiles. The black and white contrast with her iconic hot pink bathtub is a match made in heaven, and we love the sleek and chic results.
We caught up with Sue to find out more about her recent renovation project.
Victorian Vintage Bathroom
Our house started as a grain store but it was soon extended and gentrified by Victorians, and later generations who put their stamp on the property — a mix and match of styles which has since lost any sense of coherence. We wanted to resurrect some late Victorian and Edwardian aesthetics and our vintage bathroom was the final missing piece to our jigsaw.
Our bathroom looked dated with a tired 1970s feel – insipid vinyl flooring and cream walls – but it had one redeeming feature… our cast-iron bath! As time passed, we decided that the decor had to change; we sought inspiration from friends, Period Living and the ultimate ‘visual discovery engine’ that is Pinterest. We wanted a Victorian-style vintage bathroom with panelling and dark wood to showcase the unique bath. It was painted navy but I wanted something bold and radical as a nod to the present day. But what colour? Something bright and contrasting, perhaps Russian velvet? Future generations may look aghast at a pink bath but we love it. We hoped the effort would pay off.
Working with the builder, we stripped the whole bathroom of everything – above and below the floor. We had to remove the doorframe and the builder built a trolley to manoeuvre the extremely heavy bath onto the landing. It lived there for several weeks whilst all the new plumbing was put into place. Lots of angle grinding, plastering and sawing. A warning to everyone about dust — it gets everywhere, upstairs and down. Would it all be worth it?
We started looking for vintage bathroom tiles to complement both our pink bath and green walls – not an easy task! We decided that black and white Victorian floor tiles would be the perfect finish, embracing simplicity and avoiding excessive embellishments. While harking back to the Victorian era, we felt that the tiles would withstand the test of time and defy fleeting trends, unlike our vinyl flooring!
Thank goodness for Direct Tile Warehouse who offered Regent Victorian Black and White Diamond Pattern Tiles, which achieved our dreams and aspirations. We thought that things couldn’t get better, but they did when we worked out the costings – so much quality for such a reasonable price. The delivery was quick and efficient and the customer service was superlative.
What a difference the tiles have made both aesthetically and practically. They look stunning and they have brought our vintage bathroom back from the brink. Just as important they are non-slip so there are fewer worries about grandchildren and those of us from a certain demographic coming a cropper! Job. Well. Done. Our bathroom is now one of our favourite rooms in the house.
Vintage Bathroom Renovation - Regent Victorian Black and White Floor
Vintage Bathroom Renovation Closeup - Regent Victorian Black and White Floor Tiles
Friends are already asking us where these amazing artefacts came from and how we completed our vintage bathroom look, and the answer is simple and clear – Direct Tile Warehouse.
Would you like to kickstart your renovation vision with Victorian vintage bathroom tiles? Shop our range here.
Do you have a tile tale to tell? We would love to see your tile transformations – send your pictures and comments to [email protected] or tag us on social media @directilewarehouse.
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