Rustic Beach-themed Bathroom Tile Ideas – 10 ways to get the breezy, beachy look
Few things are more relaxing than lying on a beach and listening to the waves as they crash against the shore. Spending time at the beach is a sure-fire way to boost your mood and energy levels, making you feel happier and healthier. Although we can’t all live near enough to a beach to visit every day, we can bring elements of the seaside into our homes, helping to create that relaxed beach vibe.
Bathrooms lend themselves perfectly to a coastal theme and with a huge range of tiles to choose from, it’s never been easier to bring the feel of the beach into your home. Keep reading to discover how to create the perfect place to relax and unwind, and how clever use of tiles can help you to get the easy-going beach look.
What is rustic coastal style?
To achieve an effortless-looking rustic coastal style interior, you’ll need to channel the casual beachy vibe and integrate it into your home with carefully chosen materials, colours and accessories. Natural materials like wood and stone and the colours of the sand and the ocean are key to creating the laid-back, beach-themed look in your bathroom.
Rustic beach-style bathroom tile ideas
Whether you live near the beach or have an urban retreat, it’s easy to bring a rustic, beachy vibe to your bathroom. Here are 10 different ways to channel the relaxed beach look:
Zellige tiles
With their irregular texture, zellige tiles are perfect for creating a rustic look and adding depth to the walls of your bathroom. White tiles will help to create a bright and airy feel in your bathroom, no matter what size it is and are a good choice in rooms with little to no natural light. If you are working within a budget, this look can also be achieved by vast range of ceramic or porcelain tiles with high shade variation – such as the Rio Range
You can create contrast with a dark floor or add a splash of colour; tiling wall indents, splashbacks and borders are all good ways to introduce a little colour.
Recommended Tile: Rio Blanco
Mosaics
Mini mosaic tiles are perfect for adding interest to a specific area in a bathroom, and they’ll work beautifully with more rustic materials like wood.
Mosaic tiles are available in a range of different materials. For a beachy look, try tumbled stone, mosaics made from mother-of-pearl or coloured glass, or even metallic tiles.
Patterned floor tiles
Creating a rustic-looking, beachy bathroom doesn’t mean sticking to wood and white, you can have fun with colour and pattern too. Use brightly coloured tiles to remind you of the sunshine, sea and sand. Patterned tiles will create a more informal feel than plain tiles and are a good way to bring character into a room.
Wooden floor tiles
If you want to create a natural, rustic-looking bathroom, you’ll probably want to incorporate wood somewhere in your design.
Wood-effect porcelain tiles have come a long way. You can choose from a huge range of wood finishes from whitewashed and warm honey tones to distressed and parquet-style floor tiles. You can also opt for non-slip and antibacterial and air-purifying qualities for ultimate peace of mind.
Although natural wooden floors are beautiful, they do come with drawbacks, especially in areas that frequently come into contact with water. Wood-look, porcelain tiles give you the best of both worlds; realistic looks and extreme durability.
Recommended Tile: Naturae Forest
Wood and metal effect tiles
We love this beautiful, laid-back beachy bathroom. To create a similar look you can mix wood-look tiles with rustic, metal-effect tiles. Keep the rest of the room bright and airy for the best effect and accessorise with plenty of beachy found materials and rustic fittings.
White tiles
If you’re struggling to choose a colour scheme for your beach-themed bathroom, white is always a good choice. It’s timeless, elegant and will always look good. You can add interest with colourful accessories, or keep it neutral.
Adding plenty of wood and stone will help to stop a white bathroom from feeling too clinical. You can also vary the texture of the white tiles, for example using glossy metro tiles on the wall and matt, wood-effect tiles on the floor.
Travertine tiles
Natural stone tiles are key to creating a relaxed, rustic-looking bathroom. With characteristic variations in colour and texture, real stone is one of the most attractive tile options. Stone tiles will add warmth and texture to your bathroom walls and floors, opt for sandy-coloured tones for a beach-themed look.
Tip: Choosing tiles in different sizes will help to create a more rustic, relaxed feel.
Pebble tiles
For a quirky take on the rustic beach theme, you might want to fit attractive pebble mosaic tiles. These tactile tiles will instantly transform your bathroom into a boho beachy haven. Because pebble mosaic tiles incorporate real stones, they’ll be beautifully varied.
You can choose from a range of different colours to suit your style. Natural pebble tiles are suitable for use on walls and floors and are a great non-slip option, not to mention that they’ll feel fantastic under your feet.
Star tiles
Add vintage glamour to a rustic-style bathroom with porcelain star tiles. These celestial-style tiles are taking the design world by storm and are perfect for transforming floors and walls.
Combine star tiles with distressed-style wood-effect tiles for a shabby-chic-style beachy bathroom.
Recommended Tile: Regal Negro
Driftwood style tiles
Take a walk along any beach and you’re likely to find washed-up, distressed wood. Saltwater-worn, wood-effect tiles will turn any bathroom into a casual beach-hut-style retreat.
Wood-effect porcelain tiles are extremely durable (unlike driftwood!) and are extremely easy to clean and maintain. Distressed-effect tiles are one of the best ways to bring a beachy vibe to your bathroom. These tiles will also look effective laid horizontally on the walls.
Rustic Beach-style bathroom tile tips
● Adding texture to the walls and floors is key to creating a rustic, beachy style. Wood effect tiles, natural stone tiles and pebble or shell mosaics will all help you to achieve a laid-back coastal look. You can combine several different tile styles to great effect.
● Stick to a coastal colour palette of white, cream, beige, brown, blue and yellow.
● Natural materials are important in rustic styles, think wood, stone and metal. You can get realistic-porcelain versions of all these materials for lower maintenance, or go for real stone for added luxury.
● Creating a rustic-looking bathroom can be great fun. We suggest getting a few tile and paint samples together and creating a mood board to help you nail the beachy look.
Atlas Ceramics has an extensive range of beautiful beach-style tiles to choose from. Browse our selection yourself or call one of our experts for advice.