The original minty aqua tiled counter top in my 1952 bathroom was finally beyond saving. The previous owners had used a paint stick to make the grout look good in order to sell the house. Several pieces of that tile had cracks or chips and with the grout in such bad condition we decided to take it out. As all of you readers know, tearing out original features in an old house always ends of being full of surprises and thus more cost than you ever anticipated.
You remember our first refresh in this bathroom from 2015:
The Original Tiled Hall Bath is (almost) Done!
What to do? Because of budget and lack of sources for replacement tiles (that would match the original) we decided on the new “retro” line of laminate from Wilsonart. We picked Daisy in Apricot Glow because the colors are an exact match to the original wall tiles. I special ordered it through Home Depot and had it delivered to the store. Super simple. Here is a sample piece next to the tiles:
The wall tiles in this bath match the Universal Rundle Desert Tan fixtures. Since the minty aqua tiles on the counter top were not used anywhere else, I decided to eliminate that color from the new decorating theme. You might remember the color from this older photo.
The counter top had a deep tiled edge so we had the new laminate made the same way.
The first order of business was to take out the counter top and sink. As most know, these old tile jobs are set in cement with wire lathe and black tar paper. What a mess. I managed to save a few tiles which I will probably throw on eBay for someone else trying to save their original bath.
Of course all that hammering and chiseling knocked a few pieces of wall tile lose. There was #1 of unexpected issues. Those tiles seemed to be attached to NOTHING.
It was then decided that the counter top would now require a back splash (and more $$$) to hide that issue.
The original sink was made to be “tiled in” and since I was going with laminate I had to have a different sink. I found an oval sink that accepts a (period perfect) Hudee ring and special ordered it though our local Menards store. The Hudee ring was picked up on Amazon.
I kept my faucet since it was in great condition and fully functional.
And while we were at it, I had the contractor re-grout the wall tile around the sink area. It now looks so good (and clean!) we are going to have him continue on and do the whole bathroom.
I am tickled pink (or peach) with this new project. The white sink and bright counter top have really brightened up this bath.
While we had the mess, the walls and ceiling got a new coat of paint. All I have to do now is shop for towels!
For the holidays it replaced this old AMI jukebox speaker we picked up last summer at a garage sale.
We are still using the gold aluminum/ white vinyl tree in the living room. I found out (through a very helpful gentleman in a Christmas facebook group) that it is called a Gold Queen Star and was made by the Stainless Metal Craft Inc. in Chicago.
 
Check back soon for more updates here at the ranch. We have some projects on the horizon for the basement and the original tiled hall bath. As with any retro renovation project, it will probably won’t be simple. But I am up to the task!
My Pyrex collection continues to grow; these are some of my fall pieces. I use them for everything from salads to casseroles to scrambling eggs. They also look great with fresh fruit or veggies on the counter.
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Well head on over to my Etsy shop. Much of it is listed there!
midcenturythriftygal 