Clawfoot Tub Marble Surround in Alhambra Triangle
About This Project
This bathroom in a 1920s Alhambra Triangle Craftsman bungalow was updated with full marble wall tile behind and around a restored chrome clawfoot tub. The original bathroom had plaster walls in good condition, which we prepared with a skim coat before tiling.
White marble tile was set in a large-format grid pattern. The chrome towel rack and fittings were installed through the tile, requiring precise core drilling to avoid cracking the stone.
Marble is porous and requires sealing before and after grouting. We used a penetrating sealer on the tile faces before applying grout, then sealed again after grout cured — a step that prevents staining during the grouting process itself.
Project Details
- Service
- Bathroom & Shower Tile
- Materials
- Natural marble tile, penetrating sealer, white unsanded grout
- Scope
- Residential
- Timeline
- Multi-day install
What We Did
- Assessed and skim-coated original plaster walls for flatness
- Sealed marble tile faces before grouting to prevent staining
- Core-drilled through finished tile for hardware installation points
- Applied penetrating sealer after grout cured
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