How Tiles Can Add Focus and Style to Your Room
Updating your home is a labor of love. So many design choices influence how a space feels for you and your guests, so it’s essential to consider all the details.
Tile is an exceptionally versatile element since it comes in an astonishing assortment of colors, patterns, finishes and sizes. Rather than just using tile to finish a floor, consider tile’s ability to change the feeling of a room and serve as a focal point in your space. Whether you choose cement or marble tile, glossy or matte, your positioning and pattern will help draw attention to the parts of your room that you want to shine. Here are all the things to consider as you incorporate tile as the focal point in your room.
Consider the Light
It’s essential to think about the light in your room when choosing your tile. Natural and artificial light can change how your tile looks throughout the day. Take pictures every hour to see where shadows fall so that you can reference these when you get ready for the tile layout.
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White marble tile offers excellent light reflection and will brighten the room immensely, whereas matte handmade Zellige tile can add some depth and warmth to a space without making things too bright.
Highlight the Room’s Flow
Remember to consider the tile pattern’s power to influence a room’s flow. With cement tile, you can easily create your own unique design that helps draw eyes in the direction you’d like. Consider a hallway or entry where you’d like your guests to feel invited into the space and pulled into the rest of your home.
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Black-and-white tile designs are an excellent way to add a focal point that will match the décor in most areas of your house, so it can be a great transition tile that adds interest!
Influence the Size of the Room
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Your tiles’ sizes and patterns can influence how big the room feels. You can incorporate larger tiles as a focal point if you’d like to capitalize on an open space. A large, bold cement tile pattern can also make a space feel larger than it actually is, a trick that works well with fully enclosed rooms or rooms with minimal furniture. Large tiles set the tone for the room, whether on the floor or a fireplace.
Smaller tiles and small patterns help draw the eye to a specific nook or seating area for a cozier feeling. If you’d rather not use patterned tile in a small space, choose solid Zellige tile for its unique edges and handmade design elements that will undoubtedly add interest to a small space.
Balance Other Fixtures
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Some spaces may have many other features to highlight or diminish. Tile can work in your favor if you correctly choose the size, color and pattern. For example, bathrooms often have a lot of smooth, plain space that can be beautifully offset by a handmade tile pattern on the floor. The tile won’t compete with the rest of the room and can show off your aesthetic in an often uninspired space.
Using well-placed tiles in the kitchen or on the walls and floors can help balance out large appliances and create points of interest beyond the kitchen furnishings.
Create Distinct Spaces
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Sometimes a large room needs definition and distinct spaces. You can use tile to design those pockets and create the desired areas. A focal point doesn’t have to be somewhere that already exists, like a fireplace or central wall. Use contrasting tile inlays to designate a space on the floor, for example. You can make a spot to feature seasonal items or an area to group furniture.
Using tile as a focal point is one of the best ways to change how a space feels while adding an exciting and functional element to your design.