I think it's restful and clean-looking, not blah. I would punch up with some great patterned towels!

I never would have picked navy blue myself, but I love how this turned out. http://manhattan-nest.com/category/bathroom/

It looks like the starting neutrals are similar to yours.

Hang some art. I have professional photos in my bathroom.

I agree with Elle Town - paint it a dark, bold color! It will contrast well with the white tile and appliances / furnishings. I just painted my rental bathroom a dark grey from a blah brown, and love it (http://toraskitepress.weebly.com/1/post/2011/11/new-bathroom-color-black.html)! Brighten it up with some bright and or patterned accents (e.g., towels).

You have a pretty blank slate there... no pink tiles or anything to force a color choice on you. So pick accessories you like (you seem to be starting off with blue already) and then pick a paint color that complements (purple, blue, or green?) or contrasts (yellow or orange?) the colors of your accessories.

It's a small space, so be bold with color.

I could totally see a dusky purple in there to compliment the slight gray in the tiles.

I agree with the bold colour - and with then other calls for purple, we just did ours in a bright, bold shade - http://wormella.blogspot.com/2011/11/jazzberry-cometh.html - it really lived up an otherwise dull room. We've got a half wall of tiles much like yours by the bath that breaks it up no end..

I can say from experience, do NOT choose Benjamin Moore's bayberry blue. It should really be called Smurf Blue. Cue my repainting a soft beigey-gray.

You can do anything here. What color do you like?

Citron/mustard.

I usually go to Home Depot and look through their paint pamphlets.

I don't like the upper half. I once painted someone's bathroom chocolate brown with a white trim. At first, I did not like it, but later I thought it was okay. In the same house, we painted a bathroom lavender and white. That looked very nice.

Just painted un-tiled portion of similar rental bathroom matte black. It looks more "bleeping" amazing than I anticipated. Believe me, landlords will thank you.

I love midnight blue with white, it's crisp and fresh and always feels clean, so it's perfect for a bathroom.

I vote charcoal gray or some other dark but not black color. The dark on top with white tile looks really nice. I really like the look of a nice boutique hotel bathroom and try to achieve that in my apartment as well. Here is a shot of what I did with our small apartment bathroom. Surprisingly the dark color did not make it feel smaller.

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5226/5629719956_c6e7d00607_z.jpg

how about a rich jewel tone?

I'm voting with the other calls for purple.. I see a lovely, deep plum in there...

I think deep, dark, jewel colors would be too dramatic and out of character for that lovely latticed cabinet, which is the main decor you have to work around. Too high-contrast.

So that means muted/pastel. I'd go along with the calls for purple/lavender, but there's a LOT of tile in there and purple might be too cool. So how about a rosy peach like Behr's "Just Blush"? And your aqua accesories would still look refreshing.

From what I can see in these photos the tiles have a taupe-plum undertone, so I would go with Toney Taupe or Enigma from Sherwin Williams. Actually, if I didn't care about the deposit, I would probably wallpaper this one, but keep the pattern within the taupe/plum color family.

It is a perfect room for wallpaper.

Thanks everyone for the tips! The accents in pictures are from the previous tenants so I'm not at all wed to those colors. I am however naturally inclined to aquas, corals, etc. But I'm loving the dark blue idea or Enigma (grayish purple) that Parnassus suggested.

Will keep you posted if we make a decision, in the meantime, keep 'em coming!

If you paint it a dark color, you'll probably have to prime and paint when you leave. I like the gray; it's soothing. Is there a shower curtain? Deep purple, or dark grayish purple towels would be nice, or more gray, with a gray shower curtain, pencil drawings, and stainless accessories. Another great color would be teal, with this shower curtain.