Who would smash Fireclay tile on purpose?!  The interns of Watsonville Wetland Stewards would!  The high school interns are part of an after-school science program for junior high students in the Watsonville area, which is near the Fireclay Aromas factory.  The interns train for five weeks to be a part of this program and also learn how to be mentors.  In April, the interns contributed in another way by smashing Fireclay tiles and making mosaics for stepping stones for the garden at the Wetlands Educational Resource Center.  Paul Burns, founder of Fireclay, donated the tiles.  Stained glass artists Cathy Gamble and Linda Bjornson and mosaic artist Sandee Adams also helped out.

Interns Xianjia Huang and Pablo Robles with guidance from Sandee Adams of Aromas Hills Artisans.

Per the article, they had fun looking through the "extra" tiles in Aromas at the Fireclay like the ones below.

Fireclay tiles at the Aromas factory.

For the full Watsonville Wetland Stewards article go to:

http://www.watsonvillewetlandswatch.org/education_archive/wetland_stewards_events.htm

Looking to add a little more sunshine to your weekend?

The following two Saturdays, April 14 and 21, Mosaic Artist Delaine Hackney will be teaching a hands on instructional pet protraiture mosaic-making workshop at our Fireclay Tile Boneyard. $135 gets you all the tools and tricks for the two-day session to designing a winning mosaic!

Visit Delaine's website to register for this weekends workshop or to ask any more specific questions about the event.

Can't make it this weekend? That's okay, check back in with us soon for another great mosaic workshop!

[Note: This was written as a Guest post for the Coverings Blog, but we are also reposting on our own blog]

Fireclay Tile is excited to be attending Coverings 2012 in Orlando, Florida from April 17-20th. Fireclay Tile’s mission is to produce the most beautiful, durable ceramic products using sustainable manufacturing processes and recycled materials. We are innovators and actively engaged in developing new ceramic technologies while preserving “old world” methods. We focus on both the residential and commercial markets, and we would LOVE to meet with you at the show.

To take you back a few years, Fireclay Tile was established in 1986 by Paul Burns, our Chief Ceramicist. His Uncle, Chester, owned Stonelight Tile, one of the early California tile manufacturers. Since its inception, Fireclay Tile has been at the forefront of innovation in the ceramic tile industry. Some of our proudest moments have been switching to all lead free glazes in the 80's, inventing our Debris Series Recycled Tile in the 90's, and in the past two years launching Crush, our 100% recycled glass tile line, and our new Glazed Thin Brick line crafted from 30-100% locally reclaimed earth. We are scavengers at heart, and we are constantly looking around our local community for new waste streams to up-cycle into our products. Sustainability is just part of our DNA, and we couple it with amazing customer service focused on supporting our customers’ success. And we make everything that we sell right here in the USA!

At Coverings 2012 we will be showcasing our entire line as well as highlighting a few NEW products and collections including:

Crush 100% Recycled Glass Tile: The most eco-friendly and cost effective recycled glass tile produced in the USA. Crush is available in 40 colors in both gloss and matte finishes in 17 different shapes and sizes. Click here for our Crush 100% Recycled Glass Video.

Glazed Thin Brick: In partnership with California's oldest brick maker, Fireclay is launching 9 stunning glaze colors on a 30-100% reclaimed earth brick body. Glazed brick has never looked so good! Click here for our Glazed Thin Brick Video.

The Runway Collection by Kelly LaPlante: Come see 4 new designs by Kelly LaPlante for Fireclay Tile, all inspired by runway styles!

The White Collection: Come see Fireclay's take on white!

We are also extremely proud of our enormous Decorative Tile offering, including handpressed and handpainted decorative tiles. We are particularly passionate about our Cuerda Seca tiles, as we are one of the only to do a multicolor wax resist tile made 100% from our own materials in the USA.

Fireclay Tile has worked tirelessly to expand our national and international Dealer/Showroom network, and in 2011 we added 20 new showrooms throughout the US. We are a 26 year-old U.S. manufacturer, and in the past three years have completely revamped our business to focus on our core principles of sustainability and customer service.

We have a private meeting room (#2611) in the TCNA pavilion and we'd so very much like to meet with you. To set up a time, please email eric @ fireclaytile.com and find out why over 93% of our customers rate their overall experience as exceptional. We know you will love working with us. Plus, we make a killer margarita!

Our Vice President, Eric Edelson, will also be presenting at Coverings on Tuesday, April 17th and Friday, April 20th about How to Market Your Showroom Online. Both sessions are at noon, and we’d love for you to stop by and pick up your FREE Guide to Marketing Your Showroom Online.

Feel free to reach out to our ceramicists with any questions you have by checking out out the Fireclay Tile website, and we're also on facebook and twitter!

This past week I had the fortunate pleasure of visiting Colorado to meet with one of our newest customers, Decorative Materials. With showrooms in Denver, Edwards (outside of Vail), and Basalt (outside of Aspen), this family owned company covers almost the entire state. 

Each of the 3 showrooms are prime examples of beautiful tile showrooms. Featuring over 200 vignettes, it is clear that Decorative Materials cares not only about inspiring its customers but also in showcasing each of the tile lines it represents in truly a unique fashion. During my time in Basalt I had the pleasure of meeting Margot Hampleman, the founder and owner of Decorative Materials. She told me that she started her company as a small 10x10 store in the Denver Design Center over 20 years ago. My how times have changed, and today Margot oversees a staff of over 10 across 3 locations and services high-end residential and commercial customers all across the state and beyond. Stories of tile entreprenuership like Margot's are the ones we love to hear!

Decorative Materials is one of Fireclay's newest customers, and they will be initially showcasing our Debris Series Recycled Tile and Crush 100% Recycled Glass tile in each of their locations. Each and every person at Decorative Materials is extremely nice and knows tile very well. A visit to any of their showrooms is sure to inspire each of you!

We kicked off our Bi-Annual 50% off Boneyard Sale on Friday February 24th. We had some very special guests and eager shoppers visit us from Whole Foods Market.

We received a very sweet account of their experience working with Team Fireclay, and how they plan on using the tile that they purchased from the Boneyard Sale in a new Whole Foods Market in Davis, California. This is a great example of being budget conscious without sacrificing quality and overall aesthetic of a project.

"My design team and I had so much fun at the Boneyard 50% off sale. We wanted to be the first people at the sale, and in fact, got there before it started. Everyone was incredibly helpful in answering our questions. We were working hard to reduce some of our costs without reducing our aesthetic taste. For our upcoming store in Davis, we have to be creative on our materials due to budget costs.

We had some idea of what was in the Boneyard prior, but most of our design work was at 9am, in the actual Boneyard, figuring out linear footages needed. We were of course attracted to glass tile, which we bought almost all of, and figured out that all the sizes were components of each tother. For some large square foot areas, we found small quantities of amazing colors, which we figured out ways to stretch by creating wainscots and mixing.

The real work will happen now in figuring out what we need in addition to what we bought, which we think will only be about 20 square feet."

Thanks!

Gabrielle Rosi
Senior Design Coordinator
Whole Foods Market - Northern California

We'll be wrapping up our 50% off Boneyard Sale on Saturday, March 10, 2012. There is still plenty of great looking 1st quality tile to choose from. We have everything from our Crush 100% Recycled Glass Tile, Debris Series, Vitrail, Hand Painted Cuerda Seca and Hand Made Mexican Saltillos in stock.

5% of all Boneyard Sales are up for grabs between four Charities, CORA, Kiva, Habitat for Humanity, and the Humane Society of Silicon Valley. Shoppers are encouraged to vote for their favorite charity in the Fireclay Tile Showroom through 3pm on Saturday. The very deserving charity winner will be announced on Monday, March 12, 2012.

Can't make it into the Showroom for the sale, but want Fireclay Tile in your home, office or school? Use our handy dandy Fireclay Tile Dealer Locator, and find the closes showroom carrying Fireclay Tile near you.

In the spirit of St. Valentine's Day, we'd like to share another love letter from a Fireclay Tile fan, to help share the love that folks out there have for Fireclay's gorgeous handmade tiles.

Angela in Portland, Oregon has a massive Crush on her recently remodeled 1906 farmhouse bathroom. Angie worked with one of our talented Ceramicists, Sabrina from our San Jose Showroom, where together they created a bathroom using our Crush 100% Recycled Glass Tile, that Angie's 80 year old self (way in the future) would always adore.

We're delighted to see how beautiful the finished bathroom came out. There is nothing we love more than to share photos of completed projects with our team of ceramicists who see the project along from raw materials, to fired and glazed, to lovingly packing completed tiles up and sending them out into the world.

"When I started renovating my 1906 farmhouse I had one priority - the bathroom had to be beautiful with a soaking size tub. I wanted the rest of the house had to retain the farmhouse feel, but the bathroom had to be my spa.  My daughter and I love to soak away our frustrations--but when we bought our house the one and only bathroom had a small shower tub that even my then seven year-old, couldn't fully submerse in."

"Fast forward six years--to a renovation that made our thirty square foot bathroom, into a one hundred-twenty square foot bathroom, complete with a two sink vanity and 6 foot soaking tub. Finding the right tile was the biggest challenge. I bet I visited every tile store in Portland, Oregon and agonized over colors, materials, finishes and sizes. Eventually my mom shared an invaluable piece of advice with me: "If you are agonizing, it isn't right. Keep looking. When you see it, you will know it."  Then she sent me seventy-two links to tile.  No kidding... SEVENTY-TWO!  I wanted to weep.

Buried in the middle of all that tile, was a link to the Fireclay Tile website. Soon, I understood what my mom had said because as soon as I saw it, I knew.  I loved the Deco tiles, but I couldn't stop thinking about Crush. I played around with both tiles (even tried to mix them at one point), but eventually decided on Crush.  I worked with Sabrina over the phone at the Fireclay San Jose, showroom who sent me some samples and patiently answered my questions.  She even grabbed some samples and sat at her desk helping me identify the correct shade of white to go with the field of blue I had selected, because I had neglected to ask for samples for the accent and was running out of time (thanks Sabrina - it's perfect!)" {Editors Note: Sabrina says, you're welcome, Angie!} 

"I love vivid colors (I'd paint the world orange if I could) so deciding between all the lovely Crush colors Fireclay has to offer was difficult. In the end, lambs ear, wallflower and morning glory, won out over habañero and marigold-out of fear that my 80 year-old self would one day resent me."

"Now I sometimes take side trips into my bathroom just to look at it; it's like having a little spa in my own home.  Sometimes I even lean over and pet the tile because I love everything about it; the color, the texture, the feel.  Thank you Fireclay!"

~Angie Hurley
Portland, Oregon

To achieve this spa retreat look, Angie used:
Fireclay Crush 100% Recycled Glass Tile, gloss finish
Crush 3x6" Field Tile in Wallflower and Lambs Ear
Crush 2" Triangles in Lambs Ear
Crush 1x12" rail in Morning Glory

To locate a Fireclay Tile dealer near you, use our handy dandy Dealer Locator. 

Do you have an installation story you'd like to share with us? Email amanda @ fireclay tile.com with photographs of your Fireclay Tile installation, and your story--we may write a blog about you too!

This week we head clear across the country to see our friends in the Sunshine State at hollingsworth Decorative Plumbing, in Jacksonville Florida.

Worth Turner, one of the creative minds at hollingsworth, took a few moments to share a little bit about his experiences with Fireclay, and give us a sneak peek into their stunning showroom.

In 1942 Charles Hollingsworth Turner opened his first plumbing shop in Jacksonville, Florida--four generations later, still rooted in the heart of San Marco, hollingsworth decorative plumbing provides a fresh look for the old classics. Designing and selecting the perfect fixtures for your home, their carefully selected product lines represent a range of price points and personal taste.

FCT: How did you get into the design business?
WT: My background & passion is in the design field, I came back and rebranded the family business after working 4 years in Manhattan. Before we were mainly a service business with a small showroom. Now we are a full scale decorative plumbing & tile showroom. We were the 2011 Waterworks Boutique of the year, we have seen a lot of growth in the 6 months we have been open since our remodel and are bringing on more sales consultants to cater to all the design professionals that love our unique and quality products.

FCT: How long have you been in the tile business?
WT: For the past eight years, however we only carried one extensive line. Five months ago we decided to expanded and renovate our existing showroom and brought in 7 additional lines (Fireclay being our new favorite).

FCT: Why do you carry Fireclay?
WT: The main reason we brought in Fireclay was because of the broad color offering, the majority of our business comes from interior designer's and they are always looking for a specific color to match a certain fabric, stone, etc.  Our decision to carry the line has been proven right due to the outstanding customer service we have received from the entire team.  Fireclay's enthusiasm and love for their product offering has inspired us to really get out there and sell.

FCT: What are some of your Fireclay favorites?
WT: We have had the most success with the Vitrail line, the beautiful colors and glazes seem to grab every customer's eye.

FCT: What is your favorite/most memorable install?
WT: Our favorite install was a fountain that we did with the Vitrail Ogee Drop in Ultra Cream.  The fountain has a waterfall effect and the shape/color of this tile against the water is stunning.

To locate a Fireclay Tile Dealer near you, use our handy dandy Dealer Locator.

Recently we received a wonderful email from a Fireclay Tile fan that included photographs of a very beautiful Fireclay Cureda Seca backsplash that was recently installed in her urban Brooklyn, New York Kitchen.

We were touched by her compliments, and asked her if we could share her story with you--she gave us a resounding yes! Here is what she had to say about her California inspired kitchen, and how it brightens up those cold, New York Winter days!

"I have lived in Brooklyn, New York for six years, but I am originally from Los Angeles, California. Last year when I decided to renovate my apartment kitchen, I wanted to make sure to incorporate my favorite California design element, Spanish colonial tiles. I first saw Fireclay Tile at Mission Tile West in South Pasadena, California, and I thought they were amazing. (Arpita you're making us blush!) Then I saw a sample of the Cuerda Seca Lugo tile at Urban Archaeology in New York, and I knew I wanted it for my backsplash. I also wanted yellow tiles as a complement because I think it makes a kitchen cheerful."

"My designer, Karen Wright, planned a backsplash with yellow tiles, blue liner, and the Lugo tiles as a centerpiece. I love this backsplash! The rest of my kitchen is neutral (dark brown quartz counters, walnut cabinets, cork floor), so the tiles are a wonderful splash of color. The LED under-cabinet lights highlight the gorgeous peacock colors of the Lugo tiles."

I have received many compliments on my backsplash. And every time I use my kitchen, I am reminded of California sunshine and Mexican American artwork, two of my favorite things about Los Angeles. I recommend your tiles very highly!

Cheers,
Arpita Bose
Brooklyn, New York

To achieve this look, Arpita and her designer used:

Fireclay Curerda Seca Debris series, pattern: Lugo, colorway: Peacock, size 6 x 6
Fireclay Vitrail V23 color marigold, size 4 x 4, finish gloss
Fireclay Debris Series, size flatliner 1 x 6, color lapis, finish gloss
Fireclay Debris Series, size 1 X 1, color lapis, finish gloss

To locate a Fireclay Tile Dealer near you, use our handy dandy Dealer Locator.

Do you have an installation story you'd like to share with us? Email amanda @ fireclay tile.com with photographs of your Fireclay Tile installation, and your story--we may write a blog about you too!

This is part one in a series of guest blogs our friend and eco interior designer Kelly LaPlante will be writing for Fireclay as part of a new collection that she will be launching in early 2012.

Hello Fireclay Friends!

Over the past few months I've been designing an exclusive collection for Fireclay Tile—launching to dealers and designers in just a few months. Fireclay and I have had a wonderful relationship, marked with all sorts of exciting projects, custom collaborations and beautiful installations—so it was very fitting that my first licensed collection would be with them.

When this collaboration began, Paul Burns, Eric Edelson and I spent a good deal of time talking about what is missing in the tile market and what Fireclay and I can bring to the table.  From there, I began one of the most fun parts of the job—collecting inspiration!

Inspiration, of course,  is everywhere—in nature, architecture, music, food, politics... life. But to have a cohesive collection I find that it is smart to identify one great source for inspiration and run with that. I chose fashion because the idea of tile that seemed to fall right off the runway really resonated with me. I love that a homeowner could look at their back splash and feel glamorous or step into their shower and feel preppy—and I love having fun with my work— so why not use Stella McCartney and Coco Channel as my muses?

Five patterns have now been created and, as I type, the masterful Paul Burns and his team of ceramicists are turning my paper templates into prototype tiles.

I can't wait to share the final products with the design community over the next couple of months—and, in the meantime, you can view my inspirations on the Pintrest boards that I created for each look (all but one, which is so top secret that we didn't even make a board for it!) Make sure to check back in for updates about the collection, and ultimately the launch of this exciting new collection.

~Kelly LaPlante