Kitchen & Bath
Non-Prosaic Mosaics
Miniature glass tiles — and their ability to create numerous designs — modernize the home with a high-end look.

When David Zebley was in the process of designing a bathroom for his kitchen design showroom, he looked for ideas that would showcase the latest trends. The glass-topped cabinetry and mirror featuring a TV screen were great starts, but the room needed more, a wow factor.

“We wanted a contemporary space, clean with one real pop,” says Zebley, owner of Kitchenworks in Kansas City, Mo. He found what he was looking for in a catalog by Bisazza Mosaico. The Milanese manufacturer offered hundreds of ideas using tile, including a palette of just a few well-placed colors to multi-colored borders, patterns and images. “It’s a gorgeous product,” Zebley says. “It’s not the kind of thing you normally see in a residential bathroom, but it’s new, different and exciting.”

Zebley picked out a compelling image called Bonaparte, pieced together with thousands of tiny 1 cm-by-1 cm tiles in 14 different colors, that when viewed from afar, produce a single image. The tiles came in sheets, each with its own sequence and number, which Zebley placed on the wall starting from the bottom left corner. The other three walls he outfitted with matte white tiles to allow the mosaic to be the focal point of the space.

While the look is quite striking, Lynsey James with Carino Tile & Stone in Overland Park isn’t sure residential Kansas City is ready for it yet.

“When people see that stuff, they open up a bit more and say, ‘I could do that but not quite that much,’” James says. Instead, she says, Kansas Citians prefer to blend what is currently quite popular — natural stone — with glass tiles as accent pieces, bringing color into the neutral palette. “It blends traditional with contemporary, which is what people do in Kansas City.”

She does note, however, that sales of glass tiles are increasing around the area. “Two years ago we sold almost no glass tiles. But people started seeing it in restaurants and show homes so now it’s not perceived as ultramodern,” James explains.

Glass tiles come in a number of sizes and shapes, but the popular mosaic tiles are generally sold as pre-blended mats — some produced by computers, others by hand — using percentages, or homeowners can determine their own percentages to get a darker or lighter look as they choose.

Paul Whitaker, owner of Granite Transformations in Lenexa, sees glass mosaic tiles as an emerging trend for kitchen and baths. The miniature-sized tiles grab attention as backsplashes, showers and tub surrounds, among other places. Visitors to his showroom are responding to his new product line of mosaic tiles from Granite Transformation’s parent company Trend, which come in 4-inch-by-10-inch pre-grouted slabs, and can be adhered to many surfaces in as little as a day and with no tear out.

“Our product is as good for new homes as it is for remodels, but our niche is remodels because the tiles can go over old surfaces. It’s an additional benefit,” Whitaker explains.

Oceanside, a California company that offers hand-blended, pre-formed mats of tile, has plenty of material options other than glass from which to choose: pebbles, marble, granite and metallics. The company even makes tile that glows in the dark and recharges with light, but “it’s not for the timid,” James says.

RBC Tile & Stone in Overland Park, a wholesale-only showroom, also carries Oceanside, in addition to Walker Zanger and Original Style. (For those homeowners who like the look of mosaic tiles but prefer natural stone, Original Style offers a line just for you.) Although RBC sells to designers and builders only, it is open to the public for viewing, and a consultant can recommend an installer to order the product for you. Jen Rhodes, showroom designer, says Oceanside manufactures its tiles with 80 percent recycled materials, so it’s also a “green” product. Its pre-blended mats contain both iridescent and non-iridescent tiles and its color can be seen throughout the tile. In comparison, the line of Walker Zanger tiles that RBC carries feature color blown onto the back of the tile so its color can be seen only from the front, Rhodes says.

“If you want more of a fluid color, I’d recommend Walker Zanger because of its strict lines and traditional spa look. If you want something more personable, go for Oceanside for its imperfect edges, which are hand-clipped in production,” she explains.

Glass tiles come in many shapes, sizes or colors and can gradually grade from one color to another. “It can be worked into any project and no two installations will ever be alike,” Rhodes notes.

Artistic Tile
For a more inspired way to get a unique look with your tile, hire an artist to design the perfect complement to your special place.

Joy Baer, a local fresco painter who specializes in portraiture, still life and landscapes, uses the time-honored method of painting with fresh earth minerals and fresh water onto a natural porous surface. Capturing stories in her art, she scans in scenes she paints, glazes the tiles with the artwork and sets the tile for nearly any surface. She has the capability to paint whatever size canvas a homeowner might need. Examples of her work are available at Carino Tile & Stone in Overland Park or at frescojoy.com

Carolyn Payne hand-paints ceramic tiles. By using manufactured tiles, she assures that her work easily can be incorporated into most any interior or exterior project. Blending the look of stained glass design and impressionistic painting, Payne often fires a tile section several times to accomplish the right texture and color for a tile mural. See her work at paynecreations.com.

Steve Smith, owner of Fired Earth Designs in Lawrence, dedicates himself to simplicity of design and quality craftsmanship. His studio enhances architecture through an unlimited palette of colors, textures and shapes. As a ceramics artist, he makes his own handmade tiles for a completely custom look. See his work at firedearthdesigns.com