apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I have a massive problem.
My bathroom tiles are a right bugger to clean.
They have some sort of scale or really tuff soap scum that I just can't remove.

Whats a good way to remove this?
I want a clean bathroom I don't feel clean after a shower hahaha

At The Vanilla Bean, a restaurant in eastern CT, they have a blackboard in the women's bathroom (don't know about the men's). I assume this was to discourage people from scrawling graffiti on the walls, though it's not really the kind of place that would happen anyway, but every time we go, we look forward to going to the bathroom to see what people have written and drawn.

So naturally, though it took a few years for me to make the connection, I put up our big chalkboard in our bathroom, where it's occasionally inspirational.

Sorry, Ben, that wasn't in response to your post...

Have you tried Tilex for soap scum, yet?
It works wonders in our bathroom.

Once it's clean, I use a quick vinegar and water spray after every shower to keep the walls clean and mildew free. Its a slight hassle but its easier to clean this way.

If you really want to go absolutely crazy, turtle wax buffed into tiles every year will help prevent mold and mildew build up.

Ben-
Sounds like you have hard water. Try an anti-lime product like Lime-Away.

Any thoughts on a good light brown/cream paint color for a bathroom? I typically like bolder colors, but my boyfriend just moved in and in the interests of combined household harmony, the bright orange bathroom has to go. (The greyish purple bedroom stays, though.) I wouldn't mind a yummy latte color, but I'm worried that brown paint could look dismal in the bathroom. Recommendations?

kristin - What color are the tiles? Sounds like maybe they're white, since you're not saying, but DO say!

Kristin,

We did an icy-blue color in our bathroom. It's close to white, and actually reads white unless you have a reference (in our case white tiles). It's very calming and clean/fresh/invogorating looking. We painted all the walls and the ceiling to get a total immersion feel.

I've seen a brown bathroom at an open house. If the right mix with tile and accessories it can feel very warm and relaxing, very earthy. It did not seem dismal even without a window.

Oh right - tile color! The tiles are off-white. Thanks for the comments, everyone.

Kristin--
You have my ideal bathroom tile color. Were I you, I'd choose an oystery cream (very light). Everything will glisten and look very lovely!

I think it also depends on the light - both the amount/type of natural light, as well as the lighting fixtures in the bathroom.

I'm always a big fan of dark, rich colors. I have a small office in my apartment, which does not get much light, and everyone advised me to paint it something "bright" to "brighten it up." I, of course, decided to paint three walls a deep taupe-ish color, and the other wall a dark brown. It is one of my favorite roooms now, very cozy, very comforting.

yay, pphillipp, fellow fan of the dark wall! I painted the far wall of my galley kitchen a steely-charcoal color and it made the room seem hugely bigger.

kristin--
I really like water-inspired colors for the bathroom... anything from the light aqua green of beach glass to the crazy turquoise of swimming pools. Maybe there is some inspiration there? Just watch that it doesn't go too green. Green bathrooms (imho) are a mistake.

Another alternative is to do something closely related to the bedroom color, especially if the rooms adjoin. Maybe a color watch or paint-texture technique starting from that same color of paint?

And, I posted this somewhere yesterday, but I find great "deep color/color combo" inspiration inside the many Starbuck's around town.

But, um, and if you are trying to find a middle ground of color to satisfy you and your boyfriend, what does your boyfriend think?! ;)

whoops, meant color "wash"

i like bathrooms to feel "clean/fresh" rather than "warm/cosy", so i too favor cool, water-inspired colors over earthy tones. which is why the bathrooms in my current place drive me crazy--all brass fixtures (INCLUDING shower enclosure, which means replacing them would be $$$), dingy bisque walls & tile which give the impression of having once been off-white & yellowed by age, & worst of all, countertops/sinks made of some plasticky almond material, swirled i suppose for that faux-marble look. blech. the combined effect of all those yellow-brown undertones is to make you want to attack the entire surface area w/ industrial-strength bleach. oh and no windows either, so add the yellowish light from the (brass of course) light fixtures to the mix. no matter how clean the bathroom actually is, it always gives you that "not-so-fresh-feeling". so far my solution has been to spend as little time in there as possible.

just wanted to add that i didn't mean to imply that earth tones in bathrooms always end up looking dingy or dirty. as with anything else, when it's done right, it can look very nice, as many people mentioned above. on the other hand, when it's not done well, it can be very very bad indeed (as in my tragic example).

p(too) - just curious, why are green bathrooms a mistake? does it have to do with how it might affect the light quality, like how some fluorescent lighting is supposed to be unflattering b/c it has a greenish cast?

sooj--
yep, unflattering to skin tones. This is of course both personal opinion and blanket genrealization.

And now, a random bathroom-related question... why are urinals so taboo in home remodels? Obviously, not as a replacement for the toilet, but as a water-saving alternative (when appropriate, by gender and "function" of course...)

i've wondered about the urinal thing too. my guess is that it's a space issue?

(and obviously, in those rare instances when space permits the additional fixture)

Ugh, I wish some of you friendly ATers were around right now.

The contractor is coming over in the morning to do an estimate for my kitchen and I'm not sure what to ask for, how to handle his visit.

Based on past AT input, I thnik I want SS appliances, but after than I'm still pretty stuck on issues like -- are Ikea cabinets ok, i think i want a linoleum floor is that too old fashioned and weird?

Most of all I fear how much it's going to cost!

Chris, you would do well to follow your gut instincts on some things.....Ikea cabs are a good value, and Linoleum is brilliant - tough, cleans up like a champ, lasts for ages, and now that Armstrong is back in the game there are great patterns available. HEY! You know what you like, right?

Chris--
It's hard to know what to ask, since I'm not sure how you set up the visit with the contractor. Is he there to help design the space/point you to specifics, or just implement your own ideas?
But some things to keep in mind...
Keeping water and gas connections where they are (or close) will be the biggest thing to keep costs down. Many designers save on the cabinets and splurge on other things, so I'd say Ikea cabinets are a viable consideration (although a contractor may steer you to other sources... try a visit to the kitchen planning spaces at Ikea as another research tool). I'd also say saveon your cabinet carcasses, and upgrade things like countertops. I could see a white solid surface flecked with tiny amounts of red, blue and turquoise (Corian, Zodiac and others...)

Given your penchant for color and some vintage elements, I think Lino (or Marmoleum) would be perfect choices, and allow you lots of color choices, and even the opportunity to piece together stripes or patterns if so moved. Also think the Lino visual texture could be amazing with solid surface materials as mentioned above.

Don't forget to build into your plan a carefully thought out lighting plan... task and mood lighting, but hold the fluorescents, please.

Keep us posted. Good luck!

I just put down "linoleum-like" squares (12"x12") in my kitchen - a vareigated orange color - and love them. They are not the real deal, so probably don't wear as well - but were *ridiculously* cheap. Although, I must say - my neighbor got the "real deal" from some store in Chelsea for her kitchen - probably cost about 8x what mine cost - and I notice hers is not wearing any better than mine.

But depending on what's underneath, you may have to have a sub-floor put in before laying it - an uneven floor with cracks is a great way to have your linoleum rip (or to have cracks in your tile grouting).

(And Patrick, I just bought a quart of deep, graphite-colored paint to do one of the walls in my kitchen, so STOP COPYING ME.)

great minds paint alike

hey, what's this funky "enter this code" business?!

hey, sooj, you posted too soon... my "obviously" comment was not aimed at you!!

sooj, add metallic, floral wallpaper that is discolored at the seams, the occasional, fussy, floral, "decorative" tile and the world's ugliest shower door and our bathrooms would match!

I am thinking of posting pictures just for a laugh (and to reap great advice) So far, friends have advised leaving it alone since: it is funny, it is a rental, it is a period piece, any changes other than total remodelling would just implicate me in the crime.

P(too): I just noticed that we can use colons again! woo hoo!

no worries, p(too), i know the "obviously" wasn't aimed at me! sadly, no one has offered an explanation for the urinal taboo...

mary--
Because I post rather frequently (insert collective gasp of disbelief here), I have found it hard to type with colons ANYWHERE.

sg - my condolences on your bathroom. metallic floral wallpaper AND fussy floral "decorative" tile, in addition to all the charming features i described from my own bathroom?? good god. if your friends are correct in labelling it a "period piece", we can only hope and pray that this period NEVER makes a comeback.

urinals, porcelein, shaped like orchids
(a SF artist, surprise, has a gallery show up of them--prelim google hasn't found it; forgot his name, will find the clipping if anyone wants).
multiple taboo breaking, so fine or foul!?
(i'm soo for urinals + like such a mix of function and outlandish beauty...but oh my.
judging from the newsp. photo, they're attractive though.

i want to be a urinal and low water usage toilet with bidet salesman.

I met with the contractor over the weekend and was very impressed. He had some great ideas for better use of the space. He suggested Ikea cabinets. He thought I was a bit strange for wanting Silestone or Zodiaq counters and a lino floor. He LOLed at me about the lino floor and said that he "doesn't do linoleum."

I think the store you're talking about -- Arnsons -- is the downtown lino dealer. If it doesn't wear well though, I don't want it.

I took the day off, in part to deal with the kitchen re-do. It's taking on a very modern slant. Ptoo, I'm going to email you the colors and ideas and see what you think.

Thought I didn't get to see your comments before the contractor came over, I think what you said is very wise. Thank you.

A urinal is only useful for half the population and for half of the purpose, so it mightn't be a taboo, per se, but kind of a practicality thing.

But to the extent that it might be a taboo, methinx it could be the complete lack of them in spaces where women find themselves (other than at the Laura Pels theatre on Sunday afternoon after all the men had left the men's room and there was still a long line of ladies waiting), that would make it kind of a jarring daily sight.

If you're in the very elite group that has the room, has the money, feels the need for this kind of option in your bathroom. You would probably want to go ahead more than one bathroom, while you're at it.

I also think that a urinal would be in competition with other optional fixtures in a luxury bathroom, such as a shower big enough for more than one person, a Jacuzzi, etc., that make it not as popular.

I think that with filthy rich couples where their parents' wills required they be and stay married in order to get money, but would prefer not to be, perhaps each having their own his-and-hers bedroom-and-bathroom suites would be fine! If his is men-only, a urinal-o-rama would be great.

OR... if the couple is composed of two men, it would be great, as long as they also have a toilet.