Bathroom Tile Design

Bathroom tile design involves two important components for it to function well: light and color. The space afforded by the bathroom itself is a fixed constant. It is with the tiles that our creativity can be given full reign. The first step in bathroom tile design is choosing between maximalist styles and minimalist styles.

Maximalist and minimalist bathroom tiles

You have two main choices when it comes to making a decision on the design of your bathroom floor tile: maximalist and minimalist. We begin with these two before we jump to color selection. Determine first which of these two bathroom tile designs you prefer more.

Maximalist bathroom tiles are vibrant, colorful and often clash with simple lines. Maximalist styles require a vibrant environment, or the designs stand out completely. 

Minimalist bathroom tiles on the other hand, thrive on simplicity. Minimalist styles often utilize clean lines, solid colors and symmetry. Like a quiet iceberg in an endless stretch that is the Antarctic Ocean, minimalist styles require a closer look for fuller appreciation. 

Base your choice on your personality. For example, if you prefer relaxing solid colors such as mint green, then avoid maximalist styles. If on the other hand you prefer eclectic mixtures of icons, abstract images and color, choose maximalist. It all depends on your personal taste. 

If you like an immediate sense of order and permanence, choose a minimalist design for your bathroom floor tiles. Clean lines that all travel in one direction provides a wonderful sense of order.

How to add variety to the design of your bathroom floor tile

If lines are not your thing, then light solid colors would liven up your bathrooms. In the event that just one solid color bores you, try alternation.

 Alternation involves choosing 2 or 3 other tile colors and placing one after the other. If the colors are in harmony with each other, the color progression would flow smoothly and the effect would be beautiful. 

Now, if you are satisfied with just two colors (one light, one dark) then you can aim for a “chessboard” design. A chessboard design follows the linear color progression of traditional chessboards. 

If your tiles are marble-like, choose pure white and black. The chessboard effect would be stunning, and walking in your bathroom would be like walking through a marble chessboard. 

For those who would like warmer earth colors, go for hues of yellow (for the light color) and brown or green (for the dark color). The effect of these kinds of combination would be warm and homey. 

One way of experimenting with color without spending extra cash is by sketching. First, acquire a catalog of bathroom tiles from your neighborhood home depot and experiment with the colors available on the catalog.

Mosaic Bathroom Tiles

Bathroom tile design does not have to be limited to traditional applications. We now properly live in a postmodern age, where the chic and kitsch collide, meld and produce something else.

Bathroom tile design in this sense becomes a truly artistic medium. If you despise linear designs and boring symmetries then it is time to shake things up with creative new bathroom tile design ideas.

During the Middle Ages in Western Europe, artists began using stained glass to decorate church windows. Stained-glass art soon became a regular medium where the faithful and the artistic met eye to eye.

The concept of mosaic art soon came into vogue as like-colored pieces are put together to form something larger than life.

You can accomplish this too. Here’s how.

Making your own mosaic bathroom tile design

1. Decide on a design first. Ideally, your bathroom should be devoid of tiles, as you would be designing from the bottom up. You can place the mosaic on the widest wall, or on the floor.

Alternatively, you can choose to create two mosaics of different sizes. The smaller mosaic would become a central detail of your bathroom. The larger one would be your central piece, set on the floor.

Popular choices would be the Mona Lisa, details from the Sistine Chapel and the Guernica painting from the cubist master, Pablo Picasso.

2. The difficulty of completing the mosaic would depend on the amount of detail you want. The more detail, the more tiles and colors you would need. The tiles should be cut to different shapes and sizes. Randomness will become your advantage later on when you assemble. If you want to bring together a Mona Lisa, you would need at least four colors.

Flesh or light yellow would be used for the skin. Black would be used for the dress and the hair. Black would also be used for the eyes and the mouth. Green and blue would be used for the backdrop. For the backdrop, you can choose not to cut the tiles to small pieces.

3. You must make your own custom sketch of the design you want. Color the areas carefully. If possible, use gritted paper.

The color concentrations should be followed as faithfully as possible. The setting compound should be applied on every piece. The surface should be wiped clean after the use of setting compounds such as white cement.

4. Let your work of art dry for at least three days. Afterward, it would be safe to take a bath and walk across your new tile mosaic.

Bathroom Tile Installation Mistakes

Bathroom tile design is fast becoming popular both in television and on print media. Do-It-Yourself (DIY) television shows often feature how anyone can literally transform their bathrooms with the installation of new bathroom tiles.

Experimentation is a prized talent with bathroom tile design. Unfortunately, there is a difference between experimentation and bad artistry. Remember that when you set bathroom tiles, your work would be permanent.

What are the mistakes that we should avoid when working with tiles? We hope that the following tips would shed light on common mistakes and bad practices in tile setting and design.

1. Some DIY-ers use “alternative” tools when cutting their bathroom tiles. This is a very, very bad idea. If you do not have a tile cutter and you plan to renovate soon, it is time to invest in one now.

It is risky to cut tiles without the proper tools. Bathroom tiles are generally heavy and solid. You can cut your hand with the edges of poorly cut tiles. If you use steel saws, your tiles will end up being irregular. In addition, it would take too much time. Remember that cutting the tiles is just the first step in the whole process.

Setting the tiles would literally take hours. How would you set the tiles perfectly to match the design in mind if they are irregular? Tiles should be uniform in size and dull-edged.

Remember too, that you would be handling those tiles all the time. You might find that working with gloves can be difficult. This is especially true if you plan to set your bathroom tiles with white cement.

2. Color selection is also a common problem. Usually people think that exotic-colored bathroom tiles would look great on their bathroom walls. If you wish to experiment, then go ahead and use unusual colors. However, make sure that the color combinations flow naturally with each other.

There should be harmony. If a visitor were to use your bathroom, the visitor should feel relaxed by the sight of your bathroom tile design and not stressed by the colors. You should avoid heavy and dull colors. If you wish, you can instead turn to light pastel colors if you are indecisive. Pastel colors always bring out the best in bathrooms.

3. Heavy tiles should be placed on the floor. They should not be placed on the walls or the ceiling. Light and reflective bathroom tiles should be set on the walls, as these tiles will receive half of the attention of potential spectators. If you wish, you can add some rough-textured tiles to accent some parts of the wall.