7 insider tiling tips no one tells you about

There are no shortcuts when it comes to selecting the right tiles for your home. In fact, a few tiling design mishaps might spell disaster for your home interior design!

Furthermore, with a wealth of tiling options available in the market, it is not surprising that a novice 1st time homeowner will be overwhelmed by the array of tile material, design, and placement selections.

Nevertheless, fret not! Here are a couple of insider tiling tips to get you started on the right track, according to our experts.

1. Older HDB apartment makes it a challenge to choose the right tile sizes for the bathrooms

As the Water Closet (WC) and shower rooms are designed as two separate spaces in older HDB apartments,  they are much smaller than the standard HDB bathrooms.

Therefore, larger format tiles (in either 800mm by 800mm or 600mm x 600mm ) which are currently trending for modern, elegant and contemporary interiors, are not suitable for these compact-sized rooms.

Instead, Moroccan inspired tile designs, such as Mermaid or fish scale tiles, are more suitable since they are extremely versatile, and can be tiled horizontally, vertically or even diagonally to create a dynamic unique look.

2. Make DIY tile selection less challenging with tile visualiser

Mixing and matching tiles are one of the most challenging tasks, when it comes to finding the suitable colours and designs for your home interiors.

However, having the ability to visualise colours and combinations, will make it much easier for novice beginners and 1st time homeowners to find the right tile combinations. Hence, having a tile visualiser tool, such as Tile Planner or Tiles View, really helps to make the selection process easier and faster.

3. Different batches of tiles have slightly varying tone and colour

It is important to stand by an extra box of spares, as backup when there is a need to replace the tiles due to accidental cracks, chips, scratches or colour fade due to age or wear and tear.

Since different batches of tiles have varying tone and colour, getting an extra box of spares from the same batch will ensure that there will not be any colour variation for the replacement tiles.

4. Tile finishes make or break a renovation project

Mixing and matching the tiles is fun and the easiest way to make your apartment stand out. However, the chosen tiles should have a consistent finishing in order to ensure that the different tiles still look cohesive as a whole.

Aside from the aesthetic concerns, tile surfaces which have safety properties, should be considered for high traffic areas which are prone to get wet and slippery.

5. Play around with the tile grout colours to create an optical illusion of space

A rudimentary designer trick to make a cramped bathroom look larger than its footprint, is to pair the tiles with a matching grout colour, so that there is an illusion of grandeur and a visually bigger space. Conversely, using a contrasting tile grout colours in strategic places will divide the space.

For instance, to visually make a tiled room appear wider, use contrasting tile grout colours to create horizontal lines, and to make bathroom rooms with low ceiling appear taller, use vertical lines to create an illusion of added height.

6. Scalloped and feather tiles are trending now

Move aside subway tiles, and stay ahead of the curve, literally with the Morocco-inspired fish-scale or feather tiles. As homeowners are becoming more advantageous, they are willing to venture out of their comfort zone and decorate with interesting patterned tiles.

Made popular in the 1920s Art Deco era, this unique tiling pattern creates stunning backsplash in kitchen, or statement walls in bathrooms. Aside from scalloped tiles, feather tiles, which are skinny strips of tiles laid to mimic a feather pattern to create interesting accents, are the rage now.

7. Not all tiles are created the same

Tiles which are meant for bathroom are usually water and slip-proof and can withstand a high-moisture environment without swelling or warping.

These tiles are rated for wet applications and are meant to be used for the shower floor only. In addition, sealers must be applied to these tiles and grout to add to its water-resistance.

This article was first published in Renonation.