i know that feeling of whoa! but at my first look, it does look great, and perfectly reasonable. no one who walked in the bathroom would say what the heck. and you chose a great shower curtain.

had you chosen to put the tiles vertical i dont think it would have worked as well. makes the space...spacious!

I like it, tiles, shower curtain. The floor looks too white put a sisal rug over it.

Like Vicki said, I think the problem is your floor tiles and the grout color of the floor tile. I like your shower tile. Also, maybe think about the lighting. I think you may need an overhead light source. It would brighten the room.

I think it's lovely, but would suggest painting the vanity in a brown to match the tile.

Shower looks fantastic. Floor tile looks out of place..

I think your shower looks great. Similar to what has been stated, what I find a teensy bit jarring, is the contrast between the floor and walls. I don't quite know how to fix that, however, without proposing more expenses.

It's a very fresh, clean, neat-as-a-pin bath, however, and that is always a treat to see!

i think the suggestion of a sisal (colored) mat would be most of the way there. the brown color needs to be literally grounded.

We tiled our kitchen, dining room, pantry, laundry area, coat closet and related hallway with a tile that has a lot of variation so I know what you're going through. Each box of tile is slightly different and there really is nothing you can do about it short of going with a plain ceramic subway tile in a solid color. Your tile has a two tone effect that you probably didn't notice until now. On our tile, there was an arrow showing which way to lay it, but we never figured what the pattern was so we just intermixed everything so it looks intentional. I suspect your tile is the same way. Give yourself a chance to get used to it.

The other issue is how hard and expensive it would be to tear all that out.

Repaint the bathroom a color that works with the tile. I would pull that light color from the tile to use going a couple of shades lighter. And find a new shower curtain with those colors in it as well to pull the room together.

I think what is throwing you off is the larger tiles on the walls above the smaller floor tiles. Add a rug with texture and it will balance everything out. The shower curtain is great. If you change to a simple shower curtain you could go bold with the rug. All inexpensive tweaks.

The shower tiles and curtain look great. I agree with others that you need a rug to cover the small floor tiles. It's always a shock when we put something new up. Don't race into changing anything yet!

Your tile is just fine; pretty color. You just need a a rug and/or a bit of paint in a related (probably slightly lighter) color to tie things together into a cohesive whole.

Just wanted to make it clear that there is nothing wrong with the shower curtain - was just thinking that if the patterning in the tile is a lot for you, it's possible that subtracting pattern from other elements in the room might calm things down. Wonder what it would look like with a bathroom rug that picks up some of the earth tones in the tile. Covering some of the pattern in the floor grout might also calm things down.

I really appreciate all your comments and suggestions. I wasn't expecting the tiles would be so dark as the sample was much lighter with very little variation. I really like the idea of adding a light in the shower. I now plan to buy a rug and possibly invest in a new floor first.

Close the curtain and you won't have to look at them. Haha

Actually nikawareham's idea is not a bad one. Open shower curtains are nice, but they hold in moisture if not allowed to dry after each shower.

i like all the suggestions too, i don't think you need to ditch the white. The taupe color with a bit of cloud goes well with the white, like they said you just need an intermediary to introduce the two and they will get along great, rug, shower curtain, walls. what is the baby blue around the door, it sorta sticks out? i don't think you want a light brown fest, just a merging of the white and taupe in more than one spot? I know that paper borders are out, but you could do a thin border of glass in the appropriate mix? I saw some on sale here on Houzz earlier. i can't see around the corner but behind the sink or something like that.

I think it looks fine. If anything the white floor tiles are boring :p

I added a photo of the before.

I think the new is a shock to me as well. We had classic white subway tiles previously which made the space feel bigger. It was standard 80's bath. The tiles were not in great shape and the grout was terrible, and tub is actually blue. The tub had been previously refinished but with teenagers and multiple showers the bottom didn't take long to peel.

We wanted it easier maintenance so choose bigger tiles for less grout. From sample I thought I was choosing a lighter tile and wasn't expecting all the darker variations. We painted the vanity white in hopes to brighten the space but that didn't seem to work.

in comparison your new shower is marvelous.

I actually love the white subway minus the accent ones because they aren't standard size. May I ask what year your house was built?

i agree nikawareham! i think i would have had the tile painted rather than torn out and replaced. (sorry S J - i do like your new tile also!)

The home was built in 84. We thought of painting but the paint didn't last long on the tub so we werent confident it would last through the hot showers. We redid our mb with new subway tile so my husband wanted something different and easier to keep clean as this bath is used mainly by the kids.

I wouldn't have painted the tiles that only last about 2-3 yrs max. I just like the size of those white tiles and white is to hard to keep clean. Let's all be honest that we don't go scrub our shower daily and keeping grout white is a pain. I would always use epoxy grout in a shower as it won't stain. It costs double but it's worth it to not have to spend 3 hours with a magic eraser trying to make the grout look clean. I doubt you can remove just the center brown tile up the wall without damaging the actual wall under it, but a mosaic running up the middle would drastically improve the brown cave feel Or just add a light which is much easier and cheaper.

Something like this but with more white and tan mixed

I like the design you posted. I plan to call the bathroom company who installed my tub/tile to inquire about potential cost of modifications.

I would use the wall tile size as a guide for your floor tile.

I think the fewer grout lines that you have the better. thus, I would not hesitate using a larger tile on floor. I would suggest you might go a little bit darker on the floor tile than what you have now and match the grout to the tile to make it look as close to a solid surface as possible. it will make space appear larger. the reason for the slightly darker floor tile is to hide some of the grime will appear between cleanings.

I know you find the wall tile to be too dark, but I really like it. just remember to keep it wiped down to cut down on the water's mineral and salt deposits.

Would you consider painting the vanity the blue from the curtain? A sisal rug, bound in a darker brown for the floor, a mix of brown, blue and white towels and I think you'll be happier with that tile.

Please do not think of changing out the newly installed shower tiles. They are lovely. Art:

Add a piece of art to include the color of the tiles, Then add a shower curtain & a small fluffy rug with similar colors & some high quality bath towels with both colors. You will grow to really love the bath.

Actually the shower curtain that is up is great with the tiles & the rooms other colors.

This looks great! I like it. You should put it in the before and after section. Great choice.

I still agree that a sisal or jute rug would go a long way. I think the tile is beautiful, especially for a kids bathroom. But the ultimate goal is that you like it! So after a year if you still don't like it and can spare the cash, go for it! But try to find a contractor who will really help you visualize the new tile. We like to buy half a dozen tiles of 5 or 6 different styles that the customer picks and / or we think they'd like and put them in that room and get a more realistic view. Just some ideas

Yes, get rid of it! Not a nice color and too country.

You may wish to consider a half-glass enclosure vs. the shower curtain. It will make the room look larger not having the curtain....

what ended up being your solution?

Wait for 3 months before to take a position. If it's definitely not your voice, why not to try to paint it (there are several brand selling it with a very good quality). It could be a solution before to change all the tile.. with an expensive cost.

Another vote for new floor tile, in a warmer color and rectangular shape.
Also another vote in favor of the shower curtain.

Hey, usually, I click on posts like this and they're full of advice on all the things you did wrong or should change. Yours, happily, isn't. So that says a lot!

This post was originally started in May 2015. I wonder what the end result was........???

The tile looks great, but the rest of the bathroom needs to be made compatible to the color of the new tile...(ie: blue trim, white tile floor, ceiling) minimizing the white will really make the difference; contrast is critical! I recommend a creamy, light tan for the walls, and a buttery, light brown for the ceiling. Lastly, the floor could be covered wirh thin self-adhesive linoleum tiles, or a couple of dark brown, fluffy bath mats with some sort of design (not a solid color). Just some inexpensive ideas from an old remodeler! Good luck and I'm excited to see how it turns out! Have fun!

Beautiful tile, keep it. Give yourself time for your eye to adjust. Work other details in the room to pull it all together.

Thanks for the comments:) it's still a work in progress. We replaced the vanity, added a shelf and art work and purchased a large brown rug. The wall color is still not working for me so trying to pick a new color. I'll post a pic when it's finally done. I'm still not loving the tile so hopefully the new paint will help. Would redo floor but unfortunately the new tub sits on top of the old floor and I don't want to void our warranty with the company.

I don't understand why the tile floor would be installed under the tub? Should just be the foundation slab under there? Are you sure the tile floor isn't installed up to the tub? Weird..... I definitely think a new floor is what's missing. Very easy to remove that much tile and pop a new floor in.

We had always planned to eventually replace the floor. however the company replaced our 30 tub with a 32. They installed it over the tile for a "finished" look. We did not know they were going to this and were not happy. They said tile can be removed and add self levelling compound in the space. At our cost. Not theirs.

Odd..You'd think it would make the tub lean toward the back wall if they just installed it over a small a section of tile.Guess not..the bed must be higher.. Maybe Careful cutting of the tile next to the tub would allow for any removal.Lots of protecting going on here..the new floor would be the same height...still appearing that the tub is on top of the tile ....not understanding the leveling compound being really necessary..... Could always tile over the existing floor but then you have the whole transition thing to worry about....

I love that tile in the shower....the rest of the bathroom is a bit too white. :)

Could just be the lighting. Try a few different lightbulbs, some read blue/white/yellow. Definitely cheaper than new tiles

Could definitely be the lighting! My light in my shower made some of my marble tiles look pink! I just wanted to rip it all out it but that would be quite an expense. I looked at it for weeks & when the light isn't on in the shower, the tiles are beautiful! And finally, with the light on, I now love the shower. Try living with it for a while but you can definitely try changing the lighting to see if that makes a difference.

new floor tiles and new shower curtain. problem solved.

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