Today’s guest post comes from Perini Tiles who take a look at a ubiquitous inclusion in many kitchens and bathrooms – Subway tiles.
Subway tiles have made their place in the world of design as a classic feature element that has been reinvented many times through the years to include an endless range of colours, patterns, materials and even varied shapes for a unique and authentic touch. These timeless tiles can be used in many exciting ways in the home as either a wall or floor finish that can be customised to suit your pretences in terms of style and pattern to create a unique finishing touch in your next interior design project.
What are Subway Tiles?
The term ‘subway tile’ refers to a specific style of tile design that is traditionally in a small, rectangular shape or format. These tiles were first introduced as a hygienic solution for New York subway stations where a sleek and simple to clean wall finish was required to maintain the cleanliness of these underground spaces, giving these classic tiles their name. These first subway tiles were often a crisp white with a simple, sharp edge, a format that continues to be a popular choice in the world of interior design today. Since then however, subway tile collections have evolved to include a range of different options, colours and even variations of the traditional rectangle shape.
Modern subway tile collections include options in a variety of marble stones, terracotta, terrazzo and even mirror finish selections for a glamorous touch in your design scheme. The simple rectangular shape has also been updated with options now including luxurious bevelled edges, sharp, pointed ends (in a similar shape as that of a traditional picket fence) and even parallelogram options that can be interlocked together with the next tile to create the popular chevron tile pattern.
Floor & Wall Tiles in the Home
The simple subway tile has long been a favourite design selection for the home, making for an excellent floor or wall tile solution in all areas from the kitchen to the bathroom. Thanks to the wide range of materials and colours available in contemporary subway tile collections, there is bound to be a perfect fit for your next home renovation or new build project, with different options being most suitable as a flooring solution as well as options that are best suited as a wall tile. Subway wall tiles are especially popular in the home’s bathroom, kitchen or laundry spaces where a hygienic and easy to clean finish is desired. Kitchen splashback tiles for example are often selected for their ability to withstand heat, staining or scratching, all of which are benefits that traditional subway tiles can provide in the home.
Subway tiles for floor use are most often made of porcelain, terracotta or natural stone for a durable and hard wearing surface finish that can withstand foot traffic. Unlike wall tiles, floor tiles are often thicker, creating a strong and sturdy finish. These tiles can be laid in a large variety of patterns and layouts to create a stylish design element in the home for that perfect finishing touch.
Creating Patterns with Subway Tiles
As a result of their simple rectangle shape, subway tiles can be used to create a variety of different patterns in the home, from the classic brick bond layout where each individual tile is staggered in length to those laid above and below it to the more contemporary stacked styles where each tile sits in perfect alignment to the next. Subway tiles can also be used to create the popular chevron or herringbone tile patterns, with parallelogram subway tiles used for the traditional chevron pattern and simple rectangles used to create the classic herringbone style.
Creating Visual Tricks with Subway Tiles
Another exciting way to use subway wall tiles in the home is to experiment with laying them vertically or horizontally in the space as a means of creating visual tricks in the home. Elongating the width of a room is simple when using the tile’s rectangular shape lengthwise across the room, whether they are used as a floor or wall finish. This technique is also effective where you want to direct the user through a floor plan, with the direction of the tiles themselves acting as a visual cue for the flow or direction of the space.
If instead you are looking to create a sense of height in a room with a shorter ceiling, running your subway tiles vertically up the wall will carry the eye upwards, creating the illusion of a taller ceiling. Creating a sense of space or direction in a design scheme becomes simple with the right layout and tile shape.
Subway tiles have many uses throughout the home making for an excellent kitchen splashback tile choice, laundry tile, bathroom feature wall option and even as a luxurious flooring solution. Depending on the materials, textures or finishes selected, these incredibly versatile tiles can be used in a large variety of ways throughout your interiors for an elegant and timeless touch.
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