Marble Maintenance: Sealing Marble Is No Big Deal

When I designed the bathroom in our 1940s home, I wanted it to look classic and timeless. It didn't have to be a slavish nod to 1940s era bathrooms, but I wanted it to fit the period of our building, to feel as if it had always been there. 

My Honed Marble Bath - SIx Years Later

When the design for our bathroom renovation was just a gleam in my iPad but I was starting to investigate marble for the tub surround, I was definitely concerned with how marble would wear in a bathroom. I did some research, and articles like this one from Houzz, "Why Marble Might Be Wrong for Your Bathroom," gave me pause.

"Marble is easily etched by acidic materials, such as lemon and certain cleaning products... Because marble contains minerals, there's always the risk that its iron content will turn to rust in a bathroom." 

Marble Bathroom Reveal: From Gutted to Gorgeous

It's incredibly rewarding to renovate an old home, especially a mid-century gem like this one, which had seen better days. Weeks of excavating layer upon layer of poorly executed past remodels has brought out the beauty that was always hovering beneath the surface.

Do you recall my inspiration board and final design plans?

As bad as the bathroom looked when we purchased this home, you could see it had a few things going for it. First, a separate shower stall allowed me to delete the redundant shower head over the bathtub. Ditto the curved shower rod and plastic curtain. 

A new free-standing soaking tub became the focal point, and we wrapped it in marble. 

The art deco chrome-and-glass shower door is the original, manufactured in 1946 by G.M. Ketcham MFG Corp., Brooklyn. Luckily, it was in salvageable condition. I cleaned it and polished the chrome with Bar Keepers Friend, then had it reglazed with clear glass.

I'm so happy that we were able to save it—it's the old things like this that give a home character. 

Finally, we were lucky enough to encounter surprisingly good conditions beneath the walls. 

The plumbing was in great shape.

The beams were solid.

No leaks and no mold. 

It's rare to open walls of a bathroom and find zero issues—and testament to the soundness of this 1946 building.

Ready for some After vs. Before photos? (Let's have "dessert" first!)

Choosing a Marble Slab

Today I visited a marble fabricator in Brooklyn - Empire Cabinets and Marble. And I viewed a few slabs that might work. I'm loving the deep veining of Statuary Marble.

When you go to "choose your slab" from a fabricator's yard, it comes out at you in big raw blocks like this. Having had to choose slabs before for kitchens, I can tell you that it's not always easy to visualize how stone will look once you get it inside and onto, say, a countertop. For one thing you are standing outdoors in a huge yard of stone slabs in glaring natural light.

Choosing the marble was easier somehow than those other times. I don't know if it's that I've been through this a number of times or that it's easier to visualize how it will look on the sides and top of a bathtub than countertops. Or if it's the size - we're not buying a whole slab for our small needs, just a remnant (much less expensive). Anyhow, I found the one I want and put down the deposit.

And not a moment too soon.

Final Bathroom Design

My Inspiration Board!

After many hours spent poring over Houzz and Pinterest, shopping tile stores in Chelsea, and comparing samples, I've decided that the bathroom in our 1940s mid-century apartment is going to be a modern take on the classic subway tile bathrooms of the era. 

Here's the plan.