jmkess's Profile

I can't believe that nobody put boiling water down as a cleaning tool. In my opinion, nothing cleans better than good old-fashioned steaming water. I heat up kettle after kettle on my stove and get to work. It opens up my drains (try it in your kitchen sink), gets out virtually any stain (especially if paired with Borax and/or Super Washing Soda) on my hideous white laminate countertops, and was the only thing that got a serious food coloring stain out of a pair of light-colored shorts! If my washing machine is dirty, I put a cup of boiling water in the bleach dispenser (we have a top-loader). I use it on nasty stains on our kitchen floor, it essentially dissolves mold and mildew in our shower, gets rid of all of the "scum" in our bathtub, and it has completely dissolved all of the grime from a hand-me-down "Cooshee" booster seat that someone gave me. Granted, it is sometimes a nusisance to walk around the house holding a kettle of water, but the results are well worth it.

I totally don't hate the Avocado green either! But, as someone with the "pink" cousin in their bathroom, I can sympathize with your frustrations!

This is what I would do!

Keep the avocado tub - it appears to be clean, in good condition, and it can definitely be a "statement" piece in the bathroom. Just swap out the drain and shower hardware with a shiny chrome, and it will look great.

I would swap out the toilet and sink for something in the bone family. I love the idea of a very retro avocado green bathroom, I just think if you're going to replace the toilet and sink, it's going to be very difficult to match that same shade of green. I've had that issue in my pink bathroom - they just don't make that same pink anymore, so any repair work I've done has been in bone, because it looks better than a mismatched pink!

It's a personal thing, I just don't love white bathrooms...I think bone is a softer color, and will make the avocado easier to work with. I was in Home Depot over the weekend, and you can get a pre-fab vanity/counter top that is relatively inexpensive, looks good, and then put in a bone drop-in sink easily. Definitely get a vanity that has storage space underneath...no floating furniture!

Add a more contemporary faucet and drain, and the bathroom will look great! A new toilet is also relatively inexpensive. I think it would definitely be wise to have the toilet/sink match that way leaving the retro tub looks purposeful, not "we were too lazy to go all the way".

If you can finish tiling the wall, I would raise the tile a little higher in the shower. If you can replace the tile, I'd go with a more current looking stone tile...but if you can't, I don't think it's the end of the world! Like I said...I have the same glossy tile...in pepto-bismol pink!

I would definitely rip down the border of wallpaper, and paint a putty brown color...I think the Benjamin Moore Historical colors have some of the best beiges/bones/browns. It'll create a nice contrast against the tub (and potential new toilet and sink). and be softer and richer than the fleshy color currently on the walls. I also think deep aqua towels, accessories, glass, etc. will look beautiful against it. And repaint the ceiling a bright white.

I also think wallpapering the entire bathroom isn't the worst idea either - depending on the paper you use...you can get something incredibly unique and really make a statement...but I think wallpaper is a personal preference...but a good pattern on the paper is a very easy way to get the aqua in...I just think paint is easier!

If you can, do a new lighting fixture above the medicine cabinet, but I actually like the medicine cabinet! I wouldn't replace it.

The floor - I'd do a beige/bone/brown stone tile floor. Nothing too expensive, but something that looks expensive! And do a beige tub mat (not aqua!).