I have nothing to add other than to say I LOVE your tile. I would love to have it, it’s so beautiful.

@Lyndee, I’m swooning. Amazing. OP, sorry for the high jack, though you can see how a pedestal shows off the tile better than a vanity.

I have a pedestal & store with wicker basket under sink.

Keep.

Keep. That mossy green would go great with a vanilla color, rather than a pure white. A bit of yellow would be nicer that starkness with this tile. When looking for vanities, please consider the style called "console" rather than just big wooden cabinets. A console could be a porcelain sink with counter around it and a shelf below, as in some of the photos people have posted, or could be a wooden vanity that looks more like two shelves, one being the sink and counter top, the other a storage shelf, sometimes with a drawer.

Vintage tub and Bath console sinks
Houzz Console sinks and vanities

Signature Hardware Console vanities

Signature Hardware Console Sinks

KEEP!

Keep the tile. It is stunning. Agree with replacing the floor tile with a period appropriate tile. Lucky you!

The tile is AMAZING! Why not replace the sink with a vintage one? I found this one at the Habitat Restore for $125.00. The faucets are new but from a company who specializes in vintage-look plumbing items. My house was built in 1930 so I've tried to reclaim some of its original charm. Good luck with your bathroom, it will be great.

I agree with the others. Keep the green tile!!

Hi Anna,

How many kids will be using this bathroom? Ages? Any teenage girls? Storage?

@janie gibbs - two little boys right now (ages 2 and 4) - and possibly another kid if we decide to have one more :) . (I love a classic, white bathroom for kids, which is why I was planning on remodeling it originally.)

@janie gibbs - oh and there is currently zero storage. It's not a very big bathroom--it's all you see with a tub behind. That's why I want to put in a vanity - I need a cupboard!

storage shelves and storage next to tub

Just one tall one will give you far more storage and even specially made it often costs less.

in the meantime, i would design it around something like this rug, with either wild american animals or dinos as the main point as they grow that can change. i have seen room size murals that are the insides of space ships or reefs or water with sharks swimming around.

at some point they will want their school colors etc. you can change then. but a cabinet would really best then boys need lots of towels etc.

I love the tile.

I'd keep all the tile, including floor. The labor that went into it is invaluable, and it gives you a nice white ground for the lovely greens. I'd just replace med. cabinet and sink. A console sink with lower shelf would provide some space for towels. Think about alternative storage outside the room, such as a small closet, cabinet, vertical storage, etc.

A vanity will make a small bathroom seem cramped and even smaller.

Yes, it looks old. Art Deco was the dominant style in cities at that time. But in the suburbs Arts and Crafts and Colonial were more common. Both used polychromatic tiles like you have. Emory Roth was an exception. He designed city apartments but incorporated lots of art tiles or polychromatic tiles and features that were associated with grander homes in the suburbs.

Colored subway tiles were around for a while in the 1920s as bathroom design transitioned away from the all white subway tile of the "Germ Theory" era to the wildly colorful bathrooms and 4 x4" tiles that would be dominant from the 20s until the 1960s. Soft yellows and greens were popular in the 20s until brighter colors came in.

So I think you have not only a vintage bathroom but a vintage bathroom in a really pretty

style that is seen less often than the ones with 4"x4" bright, solid color tile.

If I owned this beauty I would probably put in a metal console sink because they are less common than pedestal sinks but still period appropriate. A console sink would also give you a bit of storage while not being as bulky as a regular vanity. They usually have a towel bar and shelf. American Standard makes a few models like this one, the "Retrospect".

I might also do some Bradbury& Bradbury wallpaper from their 1920s vintage series.

Maybe a large wall cabinet like this Ronbow one over the toilet.

Hi Anna,

As charming as your kids bathroom is, if it's not functional for 2+ little boys with towels, bathtub toys, etc. it is not going to do you any good.

Personally, I'd put in whatever vanity works to keep your sanity, keep the tile, and when/if the day comes you sell you house, you can put a pedestal time appropriate sink back in.

If I had a 2yr old and a 4yr old, I'd be installing a wine bar (grin ;)

A sanity vanity - I love it :).

Something like this might be a compromise

Although I still love the openness of the pedestal style with a shelf at the bottom and I really dislike ‘temporary’ solutions from a budget/waste standpoint.

Keep the subway tile and if you really want to bring it to life add brass hardware and fixtures.

Oh, HKO and Lyndee, I love your bathrooms! Especially the orchid/mint combo. < Sighs with envy >

I also like the idea of the Retrospect console sink suggested by kelli. You can get that for about $600 from build.com.

That is beautiful!

KEEP!!!!

Yes, we can all see the undeniable beauty in a pedestal or console, but this is the KIDS bath - Mama needs closed vanity storage!!!! It HAS to FUNCTION for this growing family! :-)

Writersblock, that’s not my bathroom, alas, just an example from a book. I do however have an original 1957 gray and mamie Eisenhower pink bathroom that I am leaving intact.

i will one up you. that one was pale green with the majenta. the other, well that was turquoise with majenta!

Keep.

Hate it when insecure people bring unwarranted opinions into a practical discussion. So unnecessary.

And ironic!

im sorry did you mean me?

I didn't think anyone said anything rude. "Sanity Vanity" was funny.

I might do some research and see if there were 20s or 30s bathrooms that did have wood vanities. Will post back if I see any good vintage pics.

I think closed wood vanities were done in the 20s/30s just not as often as pedestal or console sinks.
It might be helpful if we could pin down whether the OP's bath was Colonial, Craftsman or Arts and Crafts. She could likely find a wood vanity and knobs to suit any of those styles.
These are from the 20s and 30s:

Then in the 40s it became much more common to have a closed vanity:

Cant see the pictures :(

Definitely keep the tile. It would be very expensive to do this kind today. It gives you such a wonderful opportunity to create a bit rustic looking bathroom with a vanity like this one https://homearttile.com/product/manhattan-white/. Or go with something simpler like https://homearttile.com/product/truva-24-32/

The thing that those wooden vanities in tiled bathrooms share that make them vintage and from their particular time is all that matching tile. Those large radius mud bed corner pieces are so iconoclastic!

i think the problem was actually with ms lorca, check her file. anyway if anyone else feels that way about me, i assume it was me? let me know and i will go. i can't see pics now anyway.

I had a problem where I couldn't see pictures in Houzz last week. I cleared out my browser cache and history and now it's fine.

@havingfun No. Don't go.

ok, guess i was confused again,just don't like strife due to me. i think i will try that kelli, can't play if you are blind on here.

The disappearing images thing comes and goes. The Using Houzz forum is full of threads about it.

This one might have been timed to the recent Firefox/Mozilla update. But clearing cache and history seemed to fix it right after I tried it.

Going back to the original problem:

There were some closed vanities in use in the 20s and 30s. And they became very popular in the 40s. So while not the most easily period appropriate choice it might be possible to style one in a vintage way.

That is....if the OP desires that.

Of course she may just want to get a standard vanity and might not care about matching old styles. But if she does want to style a vanity in a period appropriate way we might need to now some more info about her house? Specifically which style of the era it fits best with architecturally? She mentioned it's Tudor but what is the interior like? Arts and Crafts? Colonial? Art Deco? Craftsman/Mission?

There are vanities, faucets and knobs that might suit those styles if she wants shopping help. And as she might save a bajillion dollars by not ripping out the old tile she might be able to budget for a pretty snazzy vanity.

Late, but keep tile, replace with storage vanity for functionality, and consider water saving toilet. Floor tile is fine. Wall color a warm white.

The mirror could be replaced, too.

Replace the medicine cabinet and repurpose it somewhere else. Perhaps there is space on the wall opposite the sink. (My ‘50s bathroom has a medicine cabinet-sized built-in opposite to the sink.) It’s just too bulky for the space over the sink. I’d use floating shelves for storage. You might also be able to build inset shelving in the wall to the left of your sink. That would allow you to place a mirror flat on the wall above the sink. Personally, I’d kill for that tile!

Those are so beautiful, lucky, lucky you!

Check out the delightful combo I have to deal with in the home I recently purchased, wanna swap?!

KEEP!!

I’d switch the tile out, but only with the caveat that you sell it to me to use in my new home that’s currently being remodeled!

What an awesome tile wall! Can you post more photos of the rest of the bathroom? I’d keep the wall tile switch out the toilet / sink / mirrored cabinet & refinish the tub if possible..