Professional Advice on Decorative Bathroom Tile and Stone

Bath design inspiration is typically a personal experience for the client and may involve many influences. Clients often bring pages from magazines showing architecture and design when talking to our staff. For example, these sources may remind them of a special vacation that evoked a lifestyle and feeling that they want to carry home.

People often discuss terms such as spa, zen, clean lines, minimal, serene, glamorous, and luxurious. Understanding the style and look desired is extremely important. Understanding how construction materials work is crucial for success in design, architecture, building, and for the client.

Designers’ Quick Guide to Decorative Bathroom Tile

• Getting the right color, pattern, texture, and matching elements for materials can be overwhelming. You might need help with this.

• Designers need to pay attention to special details to make the overall design look complete and polished. For example, the moldings, custom details, and surrounds will help complete your overall design. Ask for details on coordinating trims.

• Consider the Material Finish: When deciding on your color palette, also consider the finishes. Finish not only effects the look of a material, but the practical application as well. Consider that finish, and even color selection may affect performance.

• Add Impact with Mosaics: You also may consider utilizing customized mosaics in stone, glass or ceramic. They can create focal points on a wall, “rugs” on a floor, insets, borders, and decorative liners as appropriate.

• Create Patterns: You can use various materials to create large patterns, small patterns, interesting shapes, and complexly blended finishes.

• Material Performance: Be mindful of the technical characteristics of the materials, specifically porosity and slip resistance. Some materials work perfectly well for a residential bathroom, but experts might not recommend them for a commercial bathroom.

• Go Green: More and more clients prefer eco-friendly materials. Current construction standards emphasize the need for materials to help with LEED certification by being environmentally friendly during manufacturing. Ask about these criteria!

• Work with an expert who knows about architectural materials and how to use them for installation and finishing. This is very important. An experienced installer can save you from headaches down the road.

Bathrooms are not updated often, so it's wise to plan and build your space for durability. This may involve investing in custom products and hiring trade professionals to ensure everything fits together well.