They Spent $18K Remodeling This Blue Bathroom, but Everyone Wanted the Old Tile Back
Reddit user u/dworkin18 spent $18,000 replacing a blue 1980s bathroom with white marble-look tile, a larger tub, a dark vanity, and brass fixtures. The homeowner called the finished space her dream bathroom, but many readers focused on what disappeared during the remodel.
The original bathroom had blue wall tile, a matching blue tub, toilet and sink, a mosaic floor, and a framed sliding shower enclosure. Commenters argued that the tile and colored fixtures should have stayed, while the homeowner made it clear that retro style was not what her family wanted. Contractor labor accounted for $13,000 of the project cost.
Blue Tile Covered the Original Tub and Shower
Square blue tile surrounded the tub and continued across the shower walls, with painted walls above it carrying a similar blue-green tone. A matching tub sat behind a metal-framed enclosure with textured sliding glass panels.
Small wire baskets and colorful hanging storage occupied the shower wall. Several commenters said they would have replaced the shower doors but kept the blue tile.
Even the Sink and Toilet Matched the Blue Tile
Blue extended beyond the shower through a matching toilet and round sink set into a white vanity. Small blue, white, gray, and pink floor tiles carried the color across the room, while white cabinetry and a large frameless mirror filled the sink wall.
A narrow closet beside the vanity provided open shelving behind its door, giving the small bathroom storage without taking space from the vanity wall.
Large Marble-Look Tile Replaced the Blue Shower
The rebuilt tub area uses large white marble-look tile across three walls and down to the floor. A rectangular tub replaced the older blue model, while the framed sliding enclosure was removed and a recessed niche was cut into the back wall for bath products.
Brass appears across the showerhead, tub controls, spout, and grab bar. The homeowner said the bathroom would serve in part for bathing a toddler, which was why no curtain or glass enclosure had been installed when the photos were taken.
White Tile Took Over the Rest of the Bathroom
The mosaic floor was replaced with large marble-look tiles that continue the finish used around the tub. White walls and doors surround a dark vanity with a white rectangular countertop and undermount sink.
A white toilet replaced the blue fixture, while brass towel bars and faucet hardware repeat the metal used in the bathing area. The closet remained beside the vanity, preserving storage without changing that part of the room’s layout.
Readers Kept Coming Back to What Was Removed
Many commenters saw the original blue surfaces as features worth preserving rather than finishes that needed replacement. Suggestions included changing the shower glass, vanity, and fixtures while leaving the tile and colored bathroom suite in place.
Others preferred the remodel, but the homeowner had no interest in preserving the retro look, writing that her family was “not a retro style family in the slightest.”
Would You Have Kept the Blue?
The before and after present two different approaches to the same small bathroom. Blue fixtures, mosaic flooring, and square wall tile gave the original room a coordinated color scheme, while the remodel uses larger surfaces, fewer colors, and brass accents.
For the homeowner, the choice was clear. She wanted a larger tub and a bathroom without the retro finishes that had defined the space since the 1980s.
All image credits go to Reddit user u/dworkin18.
