Phew, stripping tiles with non toxic paint stripper is a labour of love (and stripping them with toxic paint stripper makes you giddy!)
We're getting along slowly but surely, and I thought I'd show you how we're doing, plus some little features I'd love to revamp. the plan is to paint the blue bits of wall an off white and have a yellow, black and off white scheme.
Strip (tease!)
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| 80 years worth of paint. First cream, then green which I think may have been clarted on in the '50s, then another cream layer, and two layers of white... chip, chip! |
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| Some of the stripped tiles... they still need to be cleaned up |
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| Some more stripped tiles, looking rather grubby, I swear they're clean, we just need to re grout them |
Layers yet to be peeled
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| a big old wall and beneath the sink... not looking forward to that one! |
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| Another wall Pass me my paint chisel... I'm going in! |
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| I look at this and weep... we still have to strip all the fiddly nooks and crannies! |
Some Original Features (Or so I believe)
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| MMMM art deco towel rail |
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| Armitage ware bathroom ceramics. A predecessor to Armitage Shanks maybe? |
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| This is a lovely little beading feature which runs along the bath edge... just need to clean it up now |
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| A rather grubby 1930s ceramic soap dish begging to be scrubbed |
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| We don't have one of these, but I'm keeping my eyes peeled... wouldn't it be wonderful |
But we do have this... the Pièce de résistance...
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| Art Deco loo roll dispenser? Done! |
... On that note, I feel it's best to leave.
Pip pip
G x
20 comments:
Just remember it will be worth it in the end!
Having once divested a large room of wood chip wallpaper with nothing but a paint scraper you have my heartfelt sympathy. joking aside it is worth it and what you have already done looks great.
Out of interest what made you decide to take a chance on cleaning them back?
Ello Miss Magpie. Why did I decide to strip them? I'm a massochist?! No, not really! I knew they were there as I could see the tile shape beneath the paint. I also knew each level had a different colour scheme... see this link
http://bakedoandmend.blogspot.com/2010/10/tiles-going-1930s-au-natural.html
(The bottom floor in black and cream is gorgeous!)
no one knew what the original colour was for our floor as most of the bathrooms have been torn out. Then one night, I was having a bath andd a little piece of paint flaked away... and there was this sunny yellow staring at me. Next thing I knew I was peeling paint away with my fingers, broke all my nails, made a big flakey, painty mess and got told off by 'im indoors!
Whoops!
As someone who had to deal with a 3 month bathroom reno ordeal, I do sympathize! You're lucky that you can salvage the original tiles, though! We couldn't, due to problems with mould underneath and broken tiles that we could not find an identical match for. Can't wait to see the finished result!
Woargh, you're making good progress on what must be a real b*tch of job, though! It'll look right gorgeous once you've finished!
What a mish but it will look lovely when it's finished. Great to see a flat where the original fittings haven't been ripped out. xx
Gosh that looks like hard work but it'll be worth it! We have one of those lovely mirror splashbacks, I have seen them on ebay occasionally and not for horrendous prices either!
Oooh, that'll be lovely when it's finished!
Our bathroom is a new extension on a victorian house, but we're in the middle of giving it a bit of a make over at the moment. Black and white floor tiles. We're doing the opposite of you though and painting the tiles! They were already painted blue, I tried removing some of the paint thinking they might be white underneath, but they are a horrible mottled beige. So we're painting them white and adding black tile stickers in a checkerboard pattern!
This will look awesome when it is finished :) I don't envy your job though.
Thanks for the link to your previous post, I would have done exactly the same as you. No doubt to the same reaction from Himself if I did! What colour are you going to do the walls? Oh and I'm intrigued as to wjat tje hint of green is in the first picture.
The green I believe to be a 1950s re-paint, all the walls were that colour beneath 2 layes of white and cream. Top bits of wall, off white :D
Miss Magpie... can you see the comments benath each photo as I've written about the green paint layers there, just worried it's not appearing! :)
Oooh, hard work but it looks like it'll be worth it in the end. Original features are great and to have the bathroom more or less intact is amazing. Tres envious and also watching carefully as I'm planning to strip out our 90s horror later this year in favour of a 30s style... I have all this to come!
I really, really like the original colour combo- very fond of that old gold colour, even if it does remind me of my recent disastrous knitting endeavours :(
Anyhoo keep up the hard work, it will be worth it!
Tups x
Yes I can see the comments :-)
sorry thst was me just being vacant and not putting the green in the picture with the green you mentioned in the comment,Doh. It appears I couldn't spell yeterday either!
Ello Miss Magpie, please don't apologise, I wasn't having a dig at you at all :) I just wanted to check that blogger wasn't playing up... which it does... a lot! The other day my pictures vanished, then the captions... it's an awkward thing sometimes!
Oh Gem your flat really is amazing - and absolutely worth the hard work!x
Cor! It's looking so much better! Good work! I wish we had some loverly tiles to uncover now.
I was told off by the other half for tearing a lump off our boring, painted wallpaper recently. Alas, (although I was SURE there was more to be found - this place is ealry Victorian - surely ther's SOMETHING left..), i didn't find anything interesting undreneath- the previous occupants must have stripped the place bare. How tedious! So jealous of your loo-roll dispenser! Hee hee! xxx
I love your blog! I'm so glad I found it. We have an art deco bathroom as well. It needs a little bit of work, like yours, such as re-grouting the tub. Thanks so much for sharing!
Hi Gemma
Are you still looking for a splashback? I have an original one in white that's in good condition with the mirror but no shelf. If this is what you're looking for, let me know. Email me pv.breward@gmail.com.
Regards
Vanessa
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