Hello Hue! { Back to Venice }

So of all the beautiful, vibrant colors of Venice, I chose a photo that is practically black and white.  Yep.  I think I was scared of a crazy-clown color scheme.  And Venice by night is a totally different beast than Venice-by-day.  Most of the tourists have gone, the streets are quieter, the alleyways more mysterious.  Plus I love gray and yellow.  I have ever since Sarah did that farmhouse bath.

But lately, gray-and-yellow have been everywhere.  Weddings, nurseries, prints, sheets, fabrics, outfits, dinnerware, and don't even get me started on the chevrons.  It can so easily skew...Pinterest-twee.

{via, with apologies}

So how to capture the dark, secret, aged elegant feel of Venice-by-night in a budget-friendly grown-up bathroom kind of way?  First, paint the walls gray.

 

{Charlie and Co.}

But add a nice dark vanity with a gray and white Carrara marble top. Pottery Barn sells similar styles for over $2500 - without the marble top.  I hate the whole 'buy it for less' deal, because unless it is the actual item you are looking for and you find it at a discount store, it really isn't the same thing.  And it probably doesn't have any of the features you liked about the original (e.g. heft, durability, construction, finish).  So... you'll likely be buying a new one.  Soon.  Which doesn't add up to 'less'.

However, this is not a cheap vanity - just fewer bucks than PB.  It imagine it will be serviceable.  Plus the carved detail is a little Venetian. I don't hate the mirror, but it looks a little top-heavy.  I don't want to worry about a concussion while I'm brushing my teeth.

{vanity}

And add in some carrara mosiac tile (maybe this is a small bathroom, and you can splurge on $10/sf), some aged brass fixtures and, since I apparently have to buy something for every room from PB, some towels. 

{sconce}{fixture}{tile}{towels}

You're practically brushing your teeth in romantic, moonlit Venice!