Right now is the deadline to order all our tile for our remodel. As you can imagine, picking tile for an entire house takes a lot of time!!! We looked at a couple local tile shops and didn’t see what we were looking for. So I went online and found a lot of great tile. We wanted a textured tile, that had a lot of character and charm. Most of the tile we selected is terracotta. Some of the tile is cement with a fun pattern. I have decided life is too short to not enjoy your home and personal style, whatever that might be!
My biggest tip for selecting tile is to save images of rooms you like on Pinterest, Instagram, Magazines etc. You will start to see a pattern. After looking at my saved photos, I noticed a pattern of high contrast, depth, fun, lots of personality! Our black and white tile we did in our first kitchen remodel (6 years ago) is still a favorite because it was high contrast.
If selecting tile overwhelms you, and/or you like it simple, you could do the same tile in all the bathrooms. When I used to work with clients, I had a client where we did a simple white honeycomb throughout all the bathrooms. That was over 10 years ago, looking back now, white honeycomb is still in-style. You can easily add contrast in other ways.
I would also recommend ordering samples so you can lay the tiles out together. I personally like my entire home to flow from room to room, even in kids spaces. I had ordered some samples, not all, so I put together a design board below…
Tile Selections-
You will notice a repeat of charcoal, mustard/gold, dark green, white, black and pink. One thing I kept in mind was rugs. For instance in Finn’s bedroom (that is right next to his bathroom) I had initially selected the green herringbone tile for his floor, but then I remembered I had a green rug for him. Green on the bathroom and bedroom floor would have been too much. So I switched the green to the walls.
- Primary Bathroom- floor terracotta chevron // walls // light fixture
- Finn Bathroom- floor // shower walls chevron green // sconce
- Kitchen– star + field backsplash // pendant light // (floor will be wood)
- Mudroom/Bathroom- floor patterned // walls in beadboard
- Hall Bathroom (basement)- floor plaid // shower walls subway
- Laundry and Pool Room- floors hexagon random pattern // light
- Guest Bathroom- floors star // shower walls squares (or going with this slate, less expensive) // star light
- Girls Bathroom- floor moroccan // shower walls pink chevron // light
The Laundry room and pool room is in our basement, I really want that to be a fun spot! The floor is pricey, but it is an area that will be seen and used often. I was going to do mustard lockers, but switched to gray and a mustard light. That was why you see a light fixtures in my tile plan…it is important to think of how it all will play off the tile.
How to determine if you really like a certain tile-
- Order a sample
- Google the tile name to see if you can see it in a space. Search on google then select “images” on the top search bar to find images rather than articles.
- Pinterest is also a good source to search the tile name.
- Search the tile company Instagram account and select the spot where anyone can tag them in a photo.
- Or search hashtags, either by a tile name, tile style or design style you are drawn to for ideas.
Visualizing Tile in Home-
Even if you aren’t buying new pieces, it helps to put items you already have or wish to buy or find in a design plan and visualize the tile. It helps to see if everything flows with the look you are hoping to achieve!
Tile Sources-
- Local tile shops- you could ask your contractor, call local design stores to ask who they use, ask in a neighborhood FB group
- Cletile
- FLM Ceramics– (I found this shop because one of you recommended them!)
- Bedrosians
- The Home Depot
- Lowes
- Tile Shop
- Fireclay Tile
Share in the comments other tile sources!!!!
Love all your idea boards and can’t wait to see how this all comes together! We will be selling the home we’ve lived in for 18 years and raised our kids in….and moving to a new state! We are hoping to find a “fixer upper” in our new city of choice and I am really excited to take an older, smaller, home and make it perfect for us now…as empty nesters who want their kids to feel at home when they come back for visits. I’m sure I will be using some of your ideas for tile, light fixtures etc! I am already planning a kitchen like your CT kitchen!! Thank you for your continued creativity and positive attitude toward EVERYTHING! It’s contagious!!