For obvious reasons tile is a mainstay in kitchens and bathrooms, but lately we’ve seen it used to great effect in other parts of the home as well. Aesthetically it’s hard to beat; add in radiant floor heating and we just might consider tile an option, even in the chilly climates we each call home (Katie swears on Fat Bunny’s sacred paunch that the heated slate tile in her upstairs bathroom is like standing on a warm cloud). It seems almost criminal, after all, to relegate something so lovely to just a couple rooms of a house.
This first space turns tile norms on their heads with the wood floors in the dining room and kitchen, and the magnificent tumbling block pattern adorning the adjacent room:
This room is a longtime favorite here on RHW, in no small part because of the almost-ugly-but-somehow-beautiful mustard-hued tile:
source unknown
This large-scale checkered pattern works perfectly with all those lush greens and the dark blue walls. We’re not actually sure whether this is tile or linoleum or a painted surface, but we’re hard-pressed to think of another flooring option that would look half as pretty:
This room is strongly reminiscent of Europe, though something about that brazenly brassy pineapple is throwing us for a loop. We might add a rug to this space during colder months, but we also love it just the way it is:
The tile wainscoting and those perfectly patinaed floors take this room to the next level:
The floor is as busy as the rest of the room, but something about the strong geometry of the tile makes it almost restful amid the whimsically wacky florals:
Tile in a bedroom is decidedly unconventional, but this celestial pattern paired with textiles makes it cozy:
This living room is kooky and inviting, and we love the large-scale tile with the sky blue walls:
This sunroom/passageway/entryway may not be the most unusual place to use tile, but it’s so perfectly executed with the lavender walls, simple furnishings, elegant windows and art, that we had to include it:
What do you think? Have these spaces made a good case for using tile in every room in your home? Katie is ready to snuggle right up in that star-tiled bedroom (after removing the deer head from the wall) and Mera’s pick is the last one. How about you?
I love so many of these, but I think the last space is pretty awesome.
I know what you mean about ugly? Pretty? My favorite fish, and the one that always makes me smile under water, is the white-spotted file fish. Once they lose their spots and the ugly-pretty-mustard-bruise orange takes over…there’s just somehing so compelling about them. One would fit right in with the decor of the room you highlighted above.
http://www.reefnews.com/reefnews/news/v07/v07n04/whtspot1.html
And those now ubiquitous brass pineapples that everybody and her sister has? (And which show up in 2 of your pix?) Got one as a wedding gift 30 years ago. Tossed it (garage sale) 4 years ago when we moved from NJ to NH. Grrrrrrr……..
That’s an adorably ugly fish! And it would look great in that room – better, even, than a brass pineapple.
I love the idea of tile on the walls–this B&B we stayed at outside Barcelona had gorgeous tile about a third of the way up the wall in the dining area (so I guess you could consider it wainscotting) and it gave the room such character.
I love the tile on the floor too–I think it’s a fantastic way to add some life into a space and these examples show it done very well.
Europeans are tile masters – I can imagine making a tiled floor work in my current home, but wonder maybe if a tiled wall requires soaring ceilings and a storied history?
Barcelona – yes, please.
The tile in that first photo would make me a little sicky I think. I do kind of like that weird quilt-like tile, but maybe it’s really that mustard velvet chair that I like. I think my favorite is the tile in that long hallway. I always love it when you two bring up a subject I wouldn’t think about otherwise. Now I’m going to be keeping my eyes open for the ways tile is used. Thanks!
When we were writing this post, Mera and I talked about that mustard-tile room and how it works so well a lot. The half-turquoise wall and the mustard chair are perfect, and make tile that might be disastrous in another room really sing.
The house where I grew up had slate floor in a common room (that had once been a kitchen) connected to a greenhouse. The slates were shades of grey and green and reddish brown and absorbed quite a bit of heat from the sun though the window to the greenhouse and also from a woodstove, so the overall effect was not terribly uncosy (although I do remember that whatever was dropped on that stone floor definitely broke). Most of the floors pictured above look a bit high contrast and cold for my taste. The floor with circles in the room with two orange chairs and the grey and blue floor in the long hallway are my favorite.