Q: I'm redecorating my apartment in New York, and right now I have hit a wall (figuratively!) with regard to the half bathroom in the front of the apartment. The building used to be a hotel in the NOMAD area of Manhattan. The hotel was called the Brunswick and it opened in the early 20th century. Later, it was a warehouse for a toy company, I believe, and more recently converted into condos. In trying to capture the original heritage of the building in my apartment, as well as the industrial history that came slightly later, I decided to go with a turn of the century industrial decor in the living room/kitchen, while I've kept the bedroom modern.
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Why don't you research photos of the Brunswick to see what their bathrooms might have looked like? If not the Brunswick itself, how about other turn of the century hotels or homes?
Carrara Italian marble - drool... I'm onboard with veering towards any beautiful "designer"ish wallpaper - particularly if it's dark with some glints of silver in it.
Wow, that marble is a show stopper. Don't do anything that would detract from it. More tile might be overkill. Pick a subtle color from the marble to compliment the walls and then hang some architectural art in plain black or silver frames. Done.
That is a beautiful bathroom. I'd get some great old photos of the Brunswick back in the day, have them blown up and framed to hang on the white walls.
The marble is gorgeous. I like Pi's idea. Here's what I found on wikipedia:
"[Frances H.] Kimball and Harry E. Donnell were the architects for the Brunswick Building, a 1906 Beaux-Arts building located on the site of the former Brunswick Hotel at 225 Fifth Avenue, on Madison Square Park (source: NYC Landmarks), now the Grand Madison."
I second the comment...find some old photos of the building and use them. Besides being cool and beautiful, it would be a great conversation piece.
If no photos of your building then copies of newspaper photos or headlines from the time it was built or photos of other Beaux-Arts buildings. I thought they shouldn't be in colour . However, when I looked up Beaux Arts it lead me to a walking tour of the Historic Flatiron District. In that article there were some wonderful panoramic photos (colour tinted) of the area from past times. That might be interesting too especially since they will likely be your 'public' bathroom.
What gorgeous marble! I'd consider changing out the sink faucet hardware for something with a more period feel, and I agree--don't do anything to distract from the marble. Paint and the right artwork will go a long way.
I'm not much of a wallpaper person, but a half bath is a perfect place to use it and this one immediately came to mind for your space:
http://www.fermlivingshop.com/collections/wallpaper/products/wilderness-wallpaper-black-lacquer
I would consider changing the white cabinet over the toilet to something a little more vintage or detailed. Possible the vanity too. ( I'm having trouble getting a good look at it.) The hand towel could be a great vintage linen. Some vintage lace or embroidery framed would be a cool artwork. Not much color but hand made and vintage.
please put the toilet seat down. thank you.
i like the ideas above about pics of old images from the building or period.
also, i agree that the fixtures are all too modern. look at something classic like waterworks for inspiration.
I've been mulling over ideas for your powder room all afternoon, and have finally come up with what I think is the solution.
It's hard because I don't have a clue what the rest of your place looks like (pictures are worth more than a thousand words), and so am reacting more to what I see.
The powder room isn't minimal enough to stand as-is; it is definitely missing something, as you say. Powder rooms need to be dramatic in some way; they are not just an opportunity to be a design statement, they cry out to be a design statement. So, personally, I don't think that hanging some historic pictures of the building is going to cut the mustard: it's expected, and not dramatic enough.
You have a lot of cold, relatively slick, textures in the bathroom -- the big mirror, the highly polished marble, the porcelain and chrome fixtures. You need some warm or earthy texture for balance; at first, I thought (faux) leather wallpaper might be a solution, but it just didn't look right.
No, I think the solution is to plaster the untiled walls. Beautiful, richly pigmented, blue plaster walls. You would have texture and bold color in a single stroke, and since it is a small space, it will not be expensive.
Here is an example of what I mean:
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/look-fresco-wall-metal-tables-115588
Another problem I have is that the cabinet under the sink is just too heavy and too big for the space; it looks crammed-in. I would replace it, and have the vanity supported on chrome legs,console-style, like so:
http://www.kaboodle.com/reviews/bathroom-vanity-vintage-console-sink-white-ceramic-chrome-legs
It's pretty easy to find the parts yourself, and make it yourself; my husband and I made one for our first bathroom renovation in our first house.
It will open-up the space, and let you use a nice basket (more texture, and a neutral) for toilet paper storage.
Good luck!
I think the suggestion about displaying vintage photos of either your building or your area is probably the best bridge between an industrial/vintage home and a modern bathroom. Probably best to keep the bathroom simple and modern as you have it, and draw the attention instead to the art that will provide the design link.
@KH inNJ
I couldn't agree more. Don't do anything to detract from the "show-stopper" marble. Subtle color, black and white photos (great if you could find photos of the hotel!). I agree with other posters who suggested changing the faucet to something more period and switching out the white cabinet for something far less utilitarian.
I agree the natural beauty of the marble should be the hero and not have to fight with any other pattern or busy detail, but the room needs some drama. I think a dark gray coloured wall or walls would be perfect and add mood while also complimenting the gray in the marble. A large mirror would also open up the space as well as being useful
I love it as it is!
I agree with those who suggested replacing the fixtures and adding a wallpaper. Something in a black and white or black and silver colorway. I like the Speroni wallpaper from Osborne & Little, or the Loggia wallpaper by same company. mschatelaine's suggestion for replacing the whole vanity with chrome legs would be nice too. Although the marble is beautiful in it's own right, I think you could add a bit more to the room. The Beaux-Arts style is anything but sparse, from what I've seen.
Found a great illustration of my suggestion (been done before!) --
http://www.customhomeonline.com/bath/pair-of-aces.aspx
See how the blue plaster wall lifts the space from being dull? Without it, the room would be too cold and slick.
i would do black walls, brass fixtures, remove cabinets above toilet, large metal pendant lamp, washstand type sink, and a pharmacy cabinet for storage