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Recently the Ceramicists at Fireclay have been talking a lot about glaze color variation and how it impacts our fired ceramic tiles. Our recent blog post on The True Beauty of Color Variation in Fireclay Tile was meant to educate customers about the beauty of color varation and describe the mechanics of how it happens, and today we take the next step to actually showing you color variation and how it impacts each of our colors.
For our main two types of ceramic tile, the Debris Series Recycled Tile and Vitrail Series Handmade Tile today we launch BRAND NEW glaze color pages that show individual images of each of our colors, reflecting the potential rang of variation for each.
We invite you to click the respective color below to be taken to a world of color and wonder! Enjoy!
| Debris Series Sea Blue | Vitrail Series Kiwi |
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Wnat to experience Fireclay Tile first hand? Check out a free sample pack!
We are all accustomed to using ceramic tile for its intended purpose - kitchen, bathrooms, floors, wall coverings, etc. But there are so many other wonderful uses for ceramic tile and especially Fireclay Tile! Here we present three quick ideas for turning your ceramic tile into something fun and extremely useful:
Ceramic tile has some fantastic properties - it is durable and will last forever, is an extremely clean and hygenic surface that won't get moldy, and is unique and beautiful, especially when featuring Fireclay's beautiful colored glazes. For a coaster it will easily protect your most precious hard surfaces (such as wood), and if using it as a hot pad our ceramic tiles are high fired and can withstand heat you might give it.
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You can easily DIY these product with a few rubber feet at the corners, and paired with a beautiful tile you have a unique creation that will complement your kitchen. Lately we've been making a lot of decorative coasters/hot pads using our Cuerda Seca decorative tiles, and they have been a hit with customers and friends.
If you happen to be near our San Jose Factory Showroom stop by and make yourself a set!
If you like making pizza you will LOVE a Fireclay pizza stone. There are a lot of options when it comes to pizza stones, but as Planet Green points out a DIY approach using a ceramic tile like Fireclay's 12x12 unglazed Debris Series makes the perfect option. It's a high-fired ceramic product that is light-weight, easy to clean and store, and makes delicious pizzas.
Why a pizza stone - amazing crust, consistent heat throughout the entire pizza, and most important your friends will be very impressed!
We currently sell these pizza stones through our ebay store, so pick yours up today!
One of our favorite customers, Jesse Cool, the owner of the extremely popular Flea Street Cafe in Menlo Park, CA, recently turned us on to a creative use for our Debris Series Field Tiles. She recently visited our Factory Showroom and purchased about 50 Moss colored 2x2s. We thought maybe it was a replacement for something, but she later informed us that she was using the tiles for butter trays in her restaurant!
We love these creative ideas, and encourage others to think of fun ways of using tile for alternative purposes. Ceramic tiles cleanliness, natural ingredients, and our lead-free glazes all make for a perfect product upon which to have fun and get creative!
If you have other ideas, please comment and let us know! And if you want to purchase tile for any of these purposes, look no further and let one of our fantastic Fireclay Tile dealers or our team know how we can be helpful!
Ever wonder what makes the variation in our tile colors so beautiful and unique? Curious why tiles that have been fired in the same batch sometimes vary in texture, color, etc? Why is it that every individual tile is unique to a certain degree? This can be a common question in the tile world and one we at Fireclay are quite familiar with. BUT it is also one of the reasons we love what we do and the uniqueness of the products which we make. Color variation is what makes Fireclay so special and wonderful! The key things to know are:
- It happens! Because of this we grade each of our Debris and Vitrail Series colors V1 to V4 to indicate potential range of color
- Color variation and range in ceramic glazes is beautiful and one of the many reasons people choose Fireclay Tile
- Educate yourself or your customers about color variation so you know what to expect and can fully appreciate the beauty
- Order ~10% extra in case your job requires more than you originally anticipated
- Matching color or a control sample is a very challenging task and is not a guarantee. Hence, we have a $350 color set-up fee for custom work or non-standard colors.
At Fireclay Tile we custom manufacture each and every order we receive. Rather than stocking product and limiting our selection, which means your tile may look mass produced, we have developed a proprietary process to ensure a quick (~4 week) turnaround that allows an infinite range of possibilities and uniqueness for your tile. It’s a great process and one that produces absolutely stunning ceramic tile, but being that it is a handmade tile we want to make sure you, our customer, are aware of color variation – why it happens and what it means.
Color variation occurs in high-fired ceramic tiles where the glaze reacts slightly different at high temperatures and the amount of O2 circulating in the air. Certain colors react more than others, producing more color variation within an individual batch. Unlike paint which is mixed and then dries a final color, glazes only show their true colors when combined with a heat catalyst that brings forth beautiful, deep, rich colors. People are drawn to glazes because of this richness and depth – it’s something you will never get from glass, plastic, or paint products. But because of inconsistencies in heat and because our tiles are handmade, many of our colors experience subtle color variation that one must understand so as not to be surprised when they see it. We and others believe it is this variation which truly brings forth the beauty of Fireclay Tile – it’s not mass made, rather it’s made for you by Fireclay Tile!
Some glaze colors are more effected by differences in heat. An example is a color with a peach tone or green/yellow, which will be more effected by the temperature. White, on the other hand, does not vary much because there is almost no color, and black which has a very strong stain does not vary much either. To help you better choose your colors we have ranked each color V1 to V4 to express how much variation to expect for each Debris Color and Vitrail Color. The ratings are:
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V1
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V2
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V3
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V4
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| Little Color Variation | Subtle Tone Shifts | Tonal and Subtle Hue Shifts | High Tonal and Hue Shifts |
Here are some examples (note: computer monitors do not always show exact color match):
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Debris Series Example Colors & Color Variation Grade
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| Tusk (V1) | Brown Bear Satin (V2) | Bryce Canyon (V3) | Bamboo Matte (V4) |
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Vitrail Series Example Colors & Color Variation Grade
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| Ebony (V1) | Cranberry (V2) | Prussian Blue (V3) | Basil (V4) |
We guarantee you an absolutely stunning product that is beautiful, vibrant, and unique. Understanding variation ensures that you are not surprised when you see slightly different shades on certain colors, and do not view those shades as imperfections but rather benefits of purchasing a handmade tile. We've included a few shots highlighting some subtle variation which we love!
- Always refer to our Color Variation Grades and compare those grades with the Debris Series and Vitrail Series colors you are interested in.
- If you are looking at a V3 or V4 color, feel free to ask us for a sample to purchase or visit a retailer near you.
- Purchase your tile first and then follow with paint colors, countertops, or cabinetry. The tile will be the focal point, and it sets the tone for the rest of the space. Plus, it will certainly out-last any other product because of its durability and strength.
- When placing your order, we suggest ordering an additional 10% more than you need just in case something should happen or you mis-measured. We can try our best to re-make part of your order, but it may come out looking slightly different.
- Don't expect an absolutely perfect match to your sample. We will always give our best effort and our quality control department will try its best to always catch true imperfections. It is a handmade product, though, which means exact matching will almost never occur. We will come close, but when ordering colors you must realize that matching is not a guarantee.
- Order from our current set of Standard Colors. Old or discontinued colors should not be considered unless you pay a $350 color set-up fee.
We hope this provides a better explanation of color variation in ceramic tile! Any questions please never hesitate to email us.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Kathy Norton and Mitchell Keith
Last week we were fortunate to have Daniel Cronin visit our Factory Showroom and Offices and take some incredible still photography of our products. You can view the entire set of product shots on our Flickr site
We loved all of his shots, and some of our favorites were as follows:
Basic 4x4 Field Tile (Debris Series)
Relief Debris Series Decorative (12x12)
Raised Vitrail Series Decorative (2 4x4s)
Cuerda Seca Tile (6x6)
Set of Field Tile
any many many more here...
About Daniel Cronin: Daniel lives in Portland, OR, but does work throughout the West Coast. His website has great representations of his work, and we think very highly of him.
In an effort to better communicate our history, product offering, and product details, we have launched a new video series that we will be adding to constantly. We are really excited for this next step fo rour company, and hope it allows you to learn a bit more about us in your quest for beautiful ceramic products!
Some of our first videos include:
History of Fireclay Tile
Overview of our Debris Series of Recycled Ceramic Tile
Overview of our Claymonde Series: Sheets of Color
Boneyard Showcase
Overview of Saltillo Offering
We look forward to unveiling LOTS more content overtime. If you have suggestions of things you’d like to see, email us and let us know your thoughts!
Thanks!
- The Fireclay Team
<p>We have recently launched a 2009 Fireclay Tile Catalog featuring our collection of unique ceramic products. The catalog can be viewed <a href="http://fireclaytile.com/products/list/category/debris/offering" title="here">here</a>.
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