What if you played with scale? Like... either get some HUGE hexagonal tile (if it's made) or some subway-tile-proportioned-but-HUGE tiles for the floor?

Something I am considering for my own bathroom reno, also maintaining the classic NYC bathroom look - stainless Hex tiles. Not so sure if practical for the floor... but I am looking into it.

http://www.modwalls.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=165

just wanted to add - for those who want a little "Subway Tile Style" cheaply .. CB2 has this bathmat on sale for $14.99. For such a minor detail it actually added a lot of texture and character to my bathroom!

[When not in use i hang it on the bathtub]

http://www.cb2.com/family.aspx?c=475&f=3289&q=bricks&fromLocation=Search&DIMID=400001&SearchPage=1

people so rarely put any kind of art in the bathroom, but that can be your pop of funk...we got a cute surfboard woodcut somewhere cheap and its cute and fun..key is to put something inexpensive and tough in so that if it wilts in 6 months you can put something else in...(our surfboard is still going strong 8 months in....)

Or get a couple of cool tiles and stick them randomly, friends cracked a single square tile once, and replaced it with one that had 3 fishes painted on it, it was very fun.

Go non-traditional in color for towels and paint.

Maybe juxtapose modern organic materials (in hardware and vanity) with the classic bones of wainscoting and tile.

Take a look at a previous AT bathroom contest:
LINK</a href>

My answer to adding funk to any room is paint and accessories.

Since I am a homeowner, I have always been mindful of resale. If you add too much funk, you could possibly affect the resale of the property. Renovation should add value.

At the same time, you have to do what makes you happy. Everything is about being balanced.

Back to my suggestions: Go for a bright and bold paint-start with classic colors you like and gradually work your way to bolder versions of the classic colors. Most bold colors look great with white-subway tiles and other bathroom fixtures. And you can always re-paint.

Ditto to JenPDX and 335ktt. Keep the bones of the bathroom classic (for the sake of resale value) and funk-ify it with colorful towels and accessories. I think either lime green, orange, or fuschia would be a fun color in the bathroom.

I am doing the same thing. What I have done is I am using a very large subway tile (4" high, 12" wide). I am using for grout a grey/silver which gives a different look, yet conventional.

Recently I saw black subway tile, which was quite a shocker!

I have also seen subway tile in tan/ brown.

As for concerns about resale, unless you plan to resell quickly, just make your self happy.

If the reno is well done, there will be somebody who will like it when you go to sell.

I'm just finishing up a bathroom reno, and went with subway tiles, but added a row of 4" glass tiles for a little modern twist. I'm really pleased with the way it came out. I'm working on final touches this week, but here are a few pictures of the progress so far:

http://heylucy.typepad.com/heylucy/2007/10/so-far.html
http://heylucy.typepad.com/heylucy/2007/10/progress.html
http://heylucy.typepad.com/heylucy/2007/11/luxury.html

I just used big (20") faux travertine tiles on the floor, because I didn't want to deal with all the grout lines of hex or penny tile, most of it will be covered up with bathmats, and again, I think it adds a modern twist. I love vintage, but I didn't want it to become too much of a cliché. It looks quite tan in the photos, but reads more grey/stone in real life.

OK - so I went and asked about the stainless... and perhaps not surprisingly, it is not suitable for floors (slippery).... too bad.

hi lakalass, won't the stainless steel on the floor be freezing cold to step onto?

anyone else think this bathroom already has great shower and floor tiles??

I like the look of a subway, perhaps a little larger than usual, then a glass penny round, octagon, or 1-inch on the floor. The glass tiles are such beautiful and modern colors that you could add a little bit of edge there.

I think your bathroom is great the way it is, i agree that painting and accessories to 'funk' it up is the way to go. I'd also install a more modern medicine cabinet or even a freestanding metal cabinet next to the sink - it looks like you have enough room.

good luck!

My advice? Install the subway tiles vertically, instead of the standard horizontal. You also could alternate bands of the subway so that some run end to end, while others are staggered in the conventional manner. I'd also suggest using black hexagonal tiles for the floor interspersed with random white ones.

wallpaper

subway tiles and white or gray marble is a classic combination, if you've ever been to Newport, Rhode Island, and seen the bathrooms of some of the late 19th-century mansions there ...

Get rid of that toilet and do the pillbox toilet from Kohler. I would also go funky with color or like previous comments some killer wallcovering would be awesome!!!! Go big or go home!

My New England bathroom is almost identical to the photo except I have white walls (!). But I have a large wall space and put up a 3 x 4 foot map framed with a border that matches the color in the glass lampshades. Then another smaller map on the adjacent wall. My point is that large well framed graphics can transform the space. I also have no fluff or foo fraw in my bathroom.

....and you should maybe replace the door. How about a glass door on the bathroom entrance...frosted glass of course in a painted wood frame...that would be cool too.

black and white wallpaper. ferm has some beautiful (and funky) stuff.

I second the vertical subway tile application suggestion. Kelly Wearstler did a really cool bathroom with standard size subway tile on the vertical. Check out her first book (Modern Glamour) from the library for a picture.

A herringbone pattern would be cool too, and classic with a twist. It would be very elegant with the marble floor.

subway and carrara look amazing together! also, i've seen carrara subway tiles in my local tile place-- they look beautiful, and the effect gives a kind of uneven veining to the marble, which mixes things up a bit.

if you are thinking about doing more hex tile on the floor, you should check this incredible renovation out: (actually, everyone should check it out, no matter what.

http://www.brownstoner.com/bedstuy_reno/archives/2007/11/bathroom_divsio_1.html

i mean, wowza. 1920s style with seriously sweet funkiness.

Hi AT- thanks everybody for your fab and helpful comments. Really sorry I should have said that the photo is not of my actual bathroom (my bathroom right now is a 70s horror). I think I'm going to go for a funky wall color and accessories... and will try to send pics when its done! Thanks everyone for your help

cvalgal

I think the way to go would be to use the traditional elements, for example the subway tiles, but be "honest" about it, and root your bathroom in the modern. For example, do not use a toilet and sink (and taps!) that attempt to fool you that they are vintage (my personal peeve, so much so, that I did a Master's Thesis on this concept, albeit in urban design terms). That would be the approach here, in Europe. Nothing "fake", no fake historicism.

Try to go with a wall hung toilet, and a sink that coordinates. It would be the neatest look.

Here is an example of a great suite:
http://www.livingetc.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=2663

Okay, here is an example (although I really hate the grey grout they are touting) -- subway tiles, modern sink:
http://www.livingetc.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=2540

If, by some miracle, you can get a vintage claw-foot tub in there (if you want one, that is :-) , paint the outside black to modernize it -- we did in one of our renovations, and it was truly gorgeous.
http://www.livingetc.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=2353

Another idea would be to use glass subway-shaped tiles instead of the white. You would still be paying homage to the traditional, but it would be more contemoprary:
Here are a bunch of possiblities
http://www.annsacks.com/onlinecatalog/program.jsp?cat=268004&coll=268304&prg=1418104
http://www.annsacks.com/onlinecatalog/program.jsp?cat=268004&coll=268304&prg=274604
http://www.annsacks.com/onlinecatalog/program.jsp?cat=268004&coll=268304&prg=274204
http://www.annsacks.com/onlinecatalog/program.jsp?cat=268004&coll=268304&prg=274004

For example, this one could be fun because you could use the penny rounds on the floor, and the huge 12 x 24" for the walls... with very simple all-white fixtures, it would look stunning...
http://www.annsacks.com/onlinecatalog/program.jsp?cat=268004&coll=268304&prg=1450904

Just some ideas for you...

Another great example of what I mean is the bathroom in this post:
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/fsbo/fsbo-870-w-181st-street-010568

They used really great boffi taps, etc., and sink, but combined it with the traditional subway tiles (probably original) and toilet & tub. Looks awesome!

(this bathroom inspired us to go with boffi taps etc. for our own reno, and we love the things we got from them; plus, we had a really positive experience with the people at the Boffi Soho store.)

Do it with paint, accessories, and art. Tearing out the (easy to decorate around) tiles is environmentally irresponsible unless they are damaged and NEED replacing. Aside from it being the more environmentally conscious choice, you'll also have the advantage that it's easier and cheaper to change the look. The tiles are fairly classic, especially in white, and if you try to make such a permanent feature "funky", pretty quickly it will just look "dated". Just think of all those people out there with blue toilets and tubs.

I love those old NYC apartment-style bathrooms, and would replicate the tile faithfully in white, then use strong wall color. Light fixtures are pretty easy to swap out, so you could look for something unusual. I just saw some really cheap galvanized fixtures at Lowe's that I likes a lot, with an industrial warehouse look. YMMV

To use these elements, but keep it more modern:

Keep small (fussy) details to a minimum (so, nix the idea of the tiny border tile, for example).

Run your shower tile all the way to the ceiling.

Consider *not* staggering the grout lines in the tile installation (takes some careful wall framing to make it work).

As mentioned, go with cleaner-lined, more modern sink and toilet, as well as your installed fixtures like faucet hardware.

Limit the color and shape of anything you bring in, tile-wise.

Consider glass partitions for your tub/shower enclosure.

Use ample installed lighting (like downlights or a backlit medicine cabinet/mirror).

Use spa colors like beach glass. Or consider using frosted glass "subway tile" to back your vanity wall and mirror the show enclosure. Or, back the vanity wall with frosted glass "penny tiles" pulled from a similiar white tile on the floor.

I'd be afraid a traditional bathroom with funky colors would look like you had been limited by a rental where all you could change is paint.

And, as usual, look into some of the bath renos done by Candice Olsen. She always manages to keep even the most traditional rooms fresh and modern in spririt.

One thing I would add is to make the bathroom appropriate and consistent with the rest of your home -- only go for a New York apartment style vibe if that is where your bathroom is -- otherwise it looks odd. However, there is nothing wrong with using the elements -- white subway tiles for example -- in a new way. I second Patrick(2s) suggestion of not staggering them -- it would be a more playful exploration of the material, and less like a stage set.