Tile Tips: Choosing The Right Tile

Friday May 29, 2009

Choosing the right tile is a big task for most people, and it involves a lot more than just picking a colour and style that you like. When choosing tiles, there is a lot of technical, professional and design related information to absorb to ensure your tiling ends happily and not in some monstrosity that frightens you into moving house.

Before you think about design and style, you really need to have a good understanding of where the tiles will go and what sort of abuse the tiles will have to endure. For example, a bathroom tile will probably need different qualities than a kitchen or living room tile. Tiles come in a range of different materials and will vary in porosity, which is the amount of water a tile will take in.

You may need tiles for the wall, which will typically be thinner, or tiles for an area with heavy traffic. These will be thicker and may have a special coating to enhance grip or repel dirt and water. Even the grout should be chosen especially for the intended purpose. With the range of tiles numbering into the millions, narrowing down tiles to suit the right area will probably be helping you out anyway.

Tile Style

Once you find a tile that suits your application, you will then want to start forming ideas about space and style. If you are having trouble selecting the right tiles for the job, contact one of our listed professionals for more information and advice about tiling. Hopefully, you will also already know about waterproofing and other necessary procedures before moving on.

While it can depend on the space in question, your budget and tile availability, generally larger tiles are in vogue. The larger the space, the larger the desired tile from many style points of view. It comes down to personal taste, but in many cases the effect of larger tiles have been shown with positive results.

For smaller spaces, such as hallways or laundries, you may be able to create an illusion of space by the way you lay the tiles. Angling the tiles on a diagonal will allow the grout lines to draw your eyes to the edges of the room creating the illusion of space. Spaces such as benchtops and even small chopped up bathrooms are often quite suited to smaller tiles.

Tile Colour And Design

This is an area where taste really does tend to rule all. One person's lime green paradise is often enough to induce vomit for the next person, and when it is your tiles in question, you are the one who needs to be really happy, after all. However, there a few basic tips that can keep you happier for longer and erase doubts about the colours and design that you will most likely have to live with for years to come.

Most of us know that lighter colours will make smaller spaces seem bigger and more palatable. Hence, small bathrooms and laundries are often clad with luminous white tile. While you don't have to go that far, you can make use of space with warm, lighter colours and even some classy highlights where possible. Think about the possibility of blending different types of tiles, and even different materials where possible to break up space.

In the same token, tiling a large space such as a living area with tiles that are too bright could turn out to be overwhelming, and you may lose elements like warmth, if that is important to your overall image of space and feel. Look up some examples of people who have gone before you to gather ideas, or call one of our tile experts for extra opinions.

A glass band or patterned but subtle layouts are popular ways to invoke unique and stylish tile designs. Just make sure you manage proportions correctly and plan to use colours that will blend together and transition without being too stark or harsh on the eyes. Naturally, keeping the theme of the house, and even the climate is equally important.

Beware of Trends

One of the great things about tiles is the amount of time they can last when cared for and chosen properly. In the past, tiles have shown to last up to 50 years, which is matched only by hardwood. Carpet, on the other hand, will show wear much more noticeably in under a quarter of this time.

However, with your tiles potentially lasting use over several decades, it's only natural that trends and current styles will come and go. It is important to choose tiles that you are comfortable with, and with so much time, effort and money spent on tiles, you naturally want your tiled area looking the best. But when it comes to kooky designs and the ostentatious, often the trend will wear thin long before your tiles do.

Before installing that pink salmon benchtop, ask yourself if you will be happy with this in 10 years. There are some excellent new designs coming out sure to meet a range of objectives from classy to inspired, so choose tiles carefully, take advantage of our and contact a professional tiler today about choosing tiles.

Back to News Index | Back to Home