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Where Color Meets Craft Original Ceramic Tile

Where Color Meets Craft: Reintroducing Original Ceramic Tile

See Featured Blog →
New traditional bathroom floor subway green tile 3

Nicholas Potts: Historic Primary Bathroom

See Featured Gallery →
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  • Kitchen + Backsplash
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  • Floor Tile
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  • Commercial Use
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2023 img hi res full usage design Atypical design Studio photo jordan Layton wainscott offset cardamom 3x9 floor tile iron ore 2 hexagon FC596427 1

Original Ceramic tiles showcase handmade qualities with unique variations in color, crazing, and finish.

  • All Original Ceramic Colors
  • Studio Glazes New
  • Ceramic Stains New
  • Shop Shapes
  • Shop Patterns
  • Trim + Architectural Moldings
Resources
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  • Spec Sheet
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Your first 5 color samples are FREE through a rep

BOOK AN APPOINTMENT BROWSE ALL SAMPLES
2024 residential full usage 4x4 terre verte satin red jasper satin indigo satin 2x2 red jasper satin bathroom checkerboard straight set 6x12 cove base indigo satin Pluck Architecture Leonid Furmansky FC796720 2

Our budget-friendly ceramics line, Natural Press is made with your largest indoor and outdoor projects in mind.

  • All Natural Press Colors
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Your first 5 color samples are FREE through a rep

BOOK AN APPOINTMENT BROWSE ALL SAMPLES
Modern blue subway wall glass tile 2

Our radiant Glass Tile provides a freshness that pairs perfectly with today’s modern designs indoors or out.

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Your first 5 color samples are FREE through a rep

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Glazed Thin Brick Destination Eichler Blue Brick Fireplace

Brick’s hand-mixed glazes enrich its surface, delicately exposing its unique textures and variations with the colors of the environment around us.

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2022 img hi res full rights residential photo design plural design studio bathroom floor tile mini star and cross antique white grout FC 407104 2

Our bestselling tile products all ready to ship in five days or less.

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  • $12 Essentials
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  • Factory Sale
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As a member you’ll receive exclusive access to new products, a professional discount, plus personalized service from our trade team who can help bring your vision to life.

Learn More →
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  • Design Packages
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  • Find Your Rep
  • Custom Projects
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  • Virtual CEU
Enscape 2025 04 08 12 57 54

Visualize our tile in your space with our comprehensive design packages.

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  • All Design Packages
  • Bathroom
  • Kitchen
  • Fireplace
  • Pool + Fountain
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Where Color Meets Craft Original Ceramic Tile

Where Color Meets Craft: Reintroducing Original Ceramic Tile

See Featured Blog →
New traditional bathroom floor subway green tile 3

Nicholas Potts: Historic Primary Bathroom

See Featured Gallery →
Blog
  • All Blog Posts
  • Design + Inspiration
  • Project Spotlight
  • Tile School
Gallery
  • All Gallery Entries
  • Bathroom
  • Kitchen
  • Commercial
Where Color Meets Craft Original Ceramic Tile

Where Color Meets Craft: Reintroducing Original Ceramic Tile

See Featured Blog →
New traditional bathroom floor subway green tile 3

Nicholas Potts: Historic Primary Bathroom

See Featured Gallery →
Blog
  • All Blog Posts
  • Design + Inspiration
  • Project Spotlight
  • Tile School
Gallery
  • All Gallery Entries
  • Bathroom
  • Kitchen
  • Commercial
Where Color Meets Craft Original Ceramic Tile

Where Color Meets Craft: Reintroducing Original Ceramic Tile

See Featured Blog →
New traditional bathroom floor subway green tile 3

Nicholas Potts: Historic Primary Bathroom

See Featured Gallery →
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  3. Tile School: The Importance of a Dry Lay

Tile School

Tile School: The Importance of a Dry Lay

By Kali Gibson

Picket   Tile

When it comes to buying tile, we like to be there for you every step of the way. From helping you choose the perfect color to figuring out whether you need trim or not, we want to set you up for success. We'll give you a lot of advice along the way, but one of the most important things we'll tell you about is a dry lay. 


Laying out your tile with your tile installer in your desired pattern, along with your chosen grout lines before the tile is set will ensure that you'll be happy with the final result of your installation.  Whether you're installing a classic subway pattern or a something a bit more intricate (like the triangle island below), a dry lay is a must, we're going over the reasons why below:  

Image: Anne Sage Tile Shown: 6" Triangles in Calcite. 

Making Sure You're Covered: 
First and foremost, you want to make sure you have enough tile for your project; a dry lay can confirm if you are good to go. We'll always confirm square footage with you and suggest trim, as well as a 15-20% overage, but sometimes you can still come up short. If this is the case, you'll need to do an add-on order and it's best to wait to install so that you can blend the two orders (keep scrolling for more on this). 

Making the Cut:
A dry lay is a way to determine where cuts will be made in an install. This is especially true if you've chosen a specialty shape. You can see from the Ogee Drop bathroom where careful planning would have had to have taken place. From making sure the Ogee Drops met up at the corner to how they started the pattern at the top of the bathtub. 

Tile Shown: Ogee Drops in Crater Lake

Justina Blakeney's bathroom would have taken careful cuts and thoughtful planning. The installer had to align the herringbone pattern in the corner of the shower and then there's the arched niche to consider as well: 

Tile Shown: 2x8 in Amalfi Coast Matte with handpainted Elephant Star 

Color Variation: 
We rate our tiles from a low level of color variation (V1) to high (V4)--more on that here. Color variation can differ from batch to batch and between different firings. If you have a larger order, it's possible that your order went through different firings, thus there could be color variation within your order. A dry lay is a great way to make sure you're spreading out the variation for a clean, evenly blended installation, like the one below. 

Tile Shown: 2x6 Tiles in Sea Foam. 

Size Variation: 
Our tile is handmade and not modular, thus there will be size variation between tiles and this can affect the size of your grout joints. You can see in the close up of the herringbone pattern below, how the grout lines are adjusted for the size of the tiles. A dry lay can help you see where adjustments will have to be made. 

Tile Shown: 2x6 Tiles in Foggy Morning. 

You can see the nature of our handmade tiles in the kitchen backsplash below. The installers of this project had to adjust grout lines for both the size variation and the more intricate pattern--a dry lay, in this case, was very necessary in order to have this beautiful result. 

Tile Shown: Pickets in Sea Glass. 

Collaboration: 
Installing a more intricate pattern or blend of colors? Collaborating with your installer will ensure that you'll get the best installation. 

Tile Shown: Small Diamonds in Frost, Naples Blue and Salton Sea; Design: Urbanism Designs 

Speaking of Small Diamonds, while we do sheet Mosaics for you, it is still important to work with your installer to make sure they understand your vision, especially if it's a more randomized pattern, like this: 

Tile Shown: Small Diamonds in Akoya, Chartreuse, Dolomite and Calcite Gloss 

If you're installing a randomized pattern in a blend of colors, a dry lay can help determine the balance and allocation of color. We suggest working closely with your installer and to either you yourself be present during the installation or someone you trust who understands the look you're going for. 

Tile Shown: 6" Triangles in Frost, Rosemary and Salton Sea; Image: Chase Daniel 

Like any of the featured colors? Order samples online now. Need some help? Simply call, chat, or fill out our Design Assistance Form and one of our talented Design Consultants will get back to you shortly. 

Shop the Story

Picket Tile in Calcite Gloss
6" Triangle Tile in Calcite Matte
Ogee Drop Tile in Crater Lake Gloss
  • 1/ Calcite Gloss, Picket
  • 2/ Calcite Matte, 6" Triangle
  • 3/ Crater Lake Gloss, Ogee Drop

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