Dear forum community,
Originally, we planned to renovate our main bathroom (6.72 m2 (72 sq ft), built in 2006), meaning a complete overhaul including new tiles. The main motivation was to increase the value of the house and, to a lesser extent, that I am only about 70% satisfied with the bathroom’s appearance. Friends experienced with home ownership strongly advised against the bathroom renovation. Their reasons included that, due to the current skilled labor shortage, it is unwise to depend on tradespeople without urgent need, their own negative experiences with non-essential bathroom renovations, and the belief that, because of increasing housing scarcity, the property’s value will naturally appreciate.
We will probably step back from our somewhat naïve plan. Still, I would like to achieve a visual change in the bathroom. It currently has glossy white tiles with a tone-on-tone, subtle aquarium pattern (a variegated look, matte motif on glossy tiles) and a few (4) decorative tiles featuring a colored aquarium design. I would like matte cream-colored tiles and sanitary fixtures (sink, faucets, shower enclosure) in a country or farmhouse style. We have a tradesperson whose work we know well and a lead time of 10 months. What bothers me the most is the aquarium motif.
Among other things, I am considering changing the tile color, but I worry that this might be neither here nor there, could seal in spores or germs, or might peel unattractively after a short time.
Is my wish—to transform the bathroom from a “children’s bathroom” to a “neutral bathroom,” or ideally to a “country-style bathroom” with a high-quality, matte tile finish (and new fixtures, new shower enclosure, and a new pedestal sink)—realistically achievable? Or should I rather leave the bathroom as it is, so as not to “make it worse while trying to improve it”?
Thanks in advance for your expertise regarding tile painting and my secondary questions!
Originally, we planned to renovate our main bathroom (6.72 m2 (72 sq ft), built in 2006), meaning a complete overhaul including new tiles. The main motivation was to increase the value of the house and, to a lesser extent, that I am only about 70% satisfied with the bathroom’s appearance. Friends experienced with home ownership strongly advised against the bathroom renovation. Their reasons included that, due to the current skilled labor shortage, it is unwise to depend on tradespeople without urgent need, their own negative experiences with non-essential bathroom renovations, and the belief that, because of increasing housing scarcity, the property’s value will naturally appreciate.
We will probably step back from our somewhat naïve plan. Still, I would like to achieve a visual change in the bathroom. It currently has glossy white tiles with a tone-on-tone, subtle aquarium pattern (a variegated look, matte motif on glossy tiles) and a few (4) decorative tiles featuring a colored aquarium design. I would like matte cream-colored tiles and sanitary fixtures (sink, faucets, shower enclosure) in a country or farmhouse style. We have a tradesperson whose work we know well and a lead time of 10 months. What bothers me the most is the aquarium motif.
Among other things, I am considering changing the tile color, but I worry that this might be neither here nor there, could seal in spores or germs, or might peel unattractively after a short time.
Is my wish—to transform the bathroom from a “children’s bathroom” to a “neutral bathroom,” or ideally to a “country-style bathroom” with a high-quality, matte tile finish (and new fixtures, new shower enclosure, and a new pedestal sink)—realistically achievable? Or should I rather leave the bathroom as it is, so as not to “make it worse while trying to improve it”?
Thanks in advance for your expertise regarding tile painting and my secondary questions!
K
Kensington15 Nov 2021 15:01Thank you, dear Benutzer200, that was the honest answer I was looking for! So I will probably skip the tile color.
Dear Hausbautraum, I think the same and totally agree with you. As the saying goes, one person’s joy is another’s not. There are also really lovely borders; borders themselves can be timelessly beautiful. It really depends on the style and color. However, the ones I often see nowadays, combined with certain salmon-colored terracotta tiles, are no longer my favorite.
For a consistent style, I will probably put together some kind of playful Caribbean-style bathroom decor, unless we decide to take on a full renovation adventure. The floor tiles are actually quite nice, turquoise, but as stone tiles, like terracotta tiles, just in turquoise. My kids will love it—at least that’s something. All that’s missing is Nemo from "Finding Nemo" on the wall :-) Or one of those singing fish. Or Bob Marley, for the adults :-)
Dear Hausbautraum, I think the same and totally agree with you. As the saying goes, one person’s joy is another’s not. There are also really lovely borders; borders themselves can be timelessly beautiful. It really depends on the style and color. However, the ones I often see nowadays, combined with certain salmon-colored terracotta tiles, are no longer my favorite.
For a consistent style, I will probably put together some kind of playful Caribbean-style bathroom decor, unless we decide to take on a full renovation adventure. The floor tiles are actually quite nice, turquoise, but as stone tiles, like terracotta tiles, just in turquoise. My kids will love it—at least that’s something. All that’s missing is Nemo from "Finding Nemo" on the wall :-) Or one of those singing fish. Or Bob Marley, for the adults :-)
K
Kensington15 Nov 2021 15:10Hey Hutchinson,
that sounds good. But no, I don’t really like the idea of sticking tiles over existing ones. The thought of all those layers... You also mentioned that your tiles will have to be removed anyway. A guest toilet is not used that much but still a showcase, so vinyl might be a good option there? Our guest bathroom is very neutral, just plain white tiles on the walls and the floor tiled the same way as the entire ground floor (which creates a nice uniform look). I would have preferred simple white tiles for our main bathroom as well, because although they might be a bit boring, white tiles provide a great backdrop for changing decorations and bathroom cabinets.
Let us know later how living with the vinyl turns out!
that sounds good. But no, I don’t really like the idea of sticking tiles over existing ones. The thought of all those layers... You also mentioned that your tiles will have to be removed anyway. A guest toilet is not used that much but still a showcase, so vinyl might be a good option there? Our guest bathroom is very neutral, just plain white tiles on the walls and the floor tiled the same way as the entire ground floor (which creates a nice uniform look). I would have preferred simple white tiles for our main bathroom as well, because although they might be a bit boring, white tiles provide a great backdrop for changing decorations and bathroom cabinets.
Let us know later how living with the vinyl turns out!
Kensington schrieb:
Only Nemo from "Finding Nemo" is missing on the wall 🙂 Or one of those singing fish. Or Bob Marley, for the adults 🙂 Haha, get a Ruthe-themed wall decal *LOL*
https://www.instagram.com/11antgmxde/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bauen-jetzt/
Show us the bathroom… I can hardly imagine how the aquarium fits in, but I can also see that it might not be my style 😉
The hoped-for increase in value only really matters if you end up selling.
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That conclusion doesn’t convince me based on the reasoning given.
If you don’t like the bathroom, why not change it until you enjoy it? Experiment with colors or removable film. You have nothing to lose.
If you want to renovate the bathroom in 10 or 30 years to increase the value, you can still do that later. Personally, I’d find it a shame to go 30 years without correcting or trying anything in the bathroom. It might lose some resale value, but maybe it will gain coziness for you — even if it’s just visually... that’s worth more than spending 30 years living with something you only like 70%. And in 30 years, you can always modernize again (which the buyer will probably redo anyway, because they want a picture of an aquarium on the wall 😉 )
As I said: I don’t really understand the aquarium picture idea. But can’t you try removable film? You can always take it off if you don’t like it or if you sell the place. I always see a personal gain in making changes driven by dissatisfaction.
Kensington schrieb:@Ysop*** has already said, I think: whatever you do today will be considered outdated in 20 years, or to put it differently, no longer contemporary.
Preserving value — my husband and I figured that a bathroom renovated in 2022 would look better in the future than one original from the building year.
The hoped-for increase in value only really matters if you end up selling.
.....................
Kensington schrieb:
It’s less important that I only like the bathroom’s look about 70%.
Kensington schrieb:
Or should I just leave the bathroom as it is to avoid “ruining it with attempts to improve”?
Kensington schrieb:
Thanks, dear Benutzer200, that was the honest answer I was looking for! Then I’ll probably leave the tile color as it is.
That conclusion doesn’t convince me based on the reasoning given.
If you don’t like the bathroom, why not change it until you enjoy it? Experiment with colors or removable film. You have nothing to lose.
If you want to renovate the bathroom in 10 or 30 years to increase the value, you can still do that later. Personally, I’d find it a shame to go 30 years without correcting or trying anything in the bathroom. It might lose some resale value, but maybe it will gain coziness for you — even if it’s just visually... that’s worth more than spending 30 years living with something you only like 70%. And in 30 years, you can always modernize again (which the buyer will probably redo anyway, because they want a picture of an aquarium on the wall 😉 )
As I said: I don’t really understand the aquarium picture idea. But can’t you try removable film? You can always take it off if you don’t like it or if you sell the place. I always see a personal gain in making changes driven by dissatisfaction.
K
Kensington15 Nov 2021 16:22From a distance, it looks quite unremarkable. In this picture, you can only see two of the feature tiles. In my opinion, the floor tiles are nice, even though they wouldn’t match my dream bathroom. The shower, which is located to the right, is not visible in the picture; only one side of the enclosure can be seen.
K
Kensington15 Nov 2021 16:27@ Elefant: A nice picture. Unfortunately, there is just not enough space in our bathroom for something like a photo wallpaper with palm trees and a sunset 😉
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