marble floors in a smaller bathroom

[Anonymous]

We are ripping up the ugly old vinyl flooring in our bathroom and planning on replacing with tile. Because the bathroom is smaller, I am not worried about material costs because we need such a small amount of tile and labor is labor. I was thinking about marble. Would it be stupid to have high end floors in the tiniest bathroom on the planet? Would that look out of place? The walls are just white tiles from the 50s (they are in really good condition) on the bottom half and painted on the top half.

[Anonymous]

Put in what you like. Small marble tiles are priced pretty competitively, and marble is lovely.

[Anonymous]

OP, do you mean like the 1" square inch tiles or like the 14" square tiles or something else? I would't love the small squares as a bathroom floor. I love the high end idea, I don't know if marble is recommended as bathroom flooring. Go to a good tile/design store and walk around (or at least be directed by) a designer. There's some great stuff out there (especially if there's no limit on price).

[Anonymous]

We've seen some really neat marble bathrooms, so I don't think marble is crazy for a bathroom. I've been to a few tile/design stores and they are all super excited to sell us marble and then when they hear we only need 24 sq ft for our tiny room, they are irritated. I am actually thinking about this option from home depot:

http://www.homedepot.com/Flooring-Floor-Tile-Wall-Tile-Tile-Natural-Stone-Tile/h_d1/N-5yc1vZar8k/R-202508328/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

[Anonymous]

We have about the same size bathroom, and found a really cool, kind of timeless modern marble at Ann Sacks. They had it in stock, we got it delivered within a week or so, and just love it. It wasn't the cheapest marble option, but with such a small space you can splurge a bit on the material; as a lot of the cost is in the labor regardless of what you're putting in. We figured if you have a small space and are going to all the trouble of changing the flooring, might as well make it great! Also, if you get a honed marble, and a smaller scale (think ours were 1/2" x 3" mosaic pieces, or close to it), then it's not too slick for a bathroom.

I've also seen really interesting stuff at Architectural Ceramics and Waterworks, although have not ordered from either place.

[Anonymous]

I think it could look great. However, I have marble floors in my bathroom and must caution:
1 - The floor does not handle water well and easily gets water stains (the stains are very hard to remove).
2 - Marble gets very slippery when wet (it is a real safety issue).

[Anonymous]

You know, I found marble-look porcelain 12x12 tiles and they looked fantastic in the bathroom of the house I just sold. not as slippery as marble, and they were about $4/tile.

[Anonymous]

We have marble in our small bathroom. We went to a design center and learned that small (like 1 in) tiles actually make a smaller bathroom look bigger (and bigger tiles actually make a small bathroom look tiny). The marble tiles we picked are honed and b/c the are smaller, with all the grout, they aren't slippery at all.

FWIW, I think it makes sense to go to a place that specializes in this stuff. They have some great design tips for small spaces.

[Anonymous]

We used a honed, small marble mosaic on our small bathroom floor and shower floor last year. the honed marble is not slick due to the grout lines. We do use bath mats for comfort not, safety reasons. We have not had a problem with water stains but, I did reseal it within 11 months. We think it looks fantastic.

[Anonymous]

We have large marble tiles in our small bathroom and it looks great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are ripping up the ugly old vinyl flooring in our bathroom and planning on replacing with tile. Because the bathroom is smaller, I am not worried about material costs because we need such a small amount of tile and labor is labor. I was thinking about marble. Would it be stupid to have high end floors in the tiniest bathroom on the planet? Would that look out of place? The walls are just white tiles from the 50s (they are in really good condition) on the bottom half and painted on the top half.

Are you only doing the floor? If you have a period bath, with subway tile or 4x4 white, then I would only do a marble in a traditional pattern. So, do a basketweave, or penny rounds, or hex. Otherwise, I think it may look strange if you go with something bigger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are ripping up the ugly old vinyl flooring in our bathroom and planning on replacing with tile. Because the bathroom is smaller, I am not worried about material costs because we need such a small amount of tile and labor is labor. I was thinking about marble. Would it be stupid to have high end floors in the tiniest bathroom on the planet? Would that look out of place? The walls are just white tiles from the 50s (they are in really good condition) on the bottom half and painted on the top half.

Are you only doing the floor? If you have a period bath, with subway tile or 4x4 white, then I would only do a marble in a traditional pattern. So, do a basketweave, or penny rounds, or hex. Otherwise, I think it may look strange if you go with something bigger.

The tiles are 4x4 white. Tub, toilet and sink are also white and new. Sink is this: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100668681/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053&superSkuId=202618359

so, will this still look like a period bath and need traditional tiles?

[Anonymous]

Can you recommend a company to reseal your hardwood floor?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are ripping up the ugly old vinyl flooring in our bathroom and planning on replacing with tile. Because the bathroom is smaller, I am not worried about material costs because we need such a small amount of tile and labor is labor. I was thinking about marble. Would it be stupid to have high end floors in the tiniest bathroom on the planet? Would that look out of place? The walls are just white tiles from the 50s (they are in really good condition) on the bottom half and painted on the top half.

Are you only doing the floor? If you have a period bath, with subway tile or 4x4 white, then I would only do a marble in a traditional pattern. So, do a basketweave, or penny rounds, or hex. Otherwise, I think it may look strange if you go with something bigger.

The tiles are 4x4 white. Tub, toilet and sink are also white and new. Sink is this: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100668681/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053&superSkuId=202618359

so, will this still look like a period bath and need traditional tiles?

With the tiles and the vanity, it's pretty traditional to me. I personally think if you go with a traditional pattern then it will look better with the old tiles. We did a marble basket weave in our powder and people constantly ask us if the floor is original. You can get them on 12" sheets, so they're not difficult to install. If you do go with the modern, like square, I would go much larger, so that wall tiles are smaller and aren't competing. But, I think of large tiles as "spa" like, and I'm not with that bath it fits. IMHO.

[Anonymous]

Good rule is the smaller the room, smaller the tile. If you like marble, go for it. It does get very slippery...you could go with a tumbled marble, otherwise known as travertine.

Remember to get the right grout and seal it appropriately, it will make a world of difference.

If you're near Rockville, check out the Tile Shoppe or Architectural Ceramics, both have great showrooms.