If you are planning a bathroom project where you plan to put tile in a shower or in a tub surround – WAIT and read this first. We would like to show you  some easy and cost effective ways to use decorative tiles to give your shower or tub surround a custom or designer look.

First things first, let’s talk about the different types of decorative tiles:

• Listellos – these are decorative tiles that are often referred to as liners, feature strips, borders and a variety of other terms.  Listellos are usually long rather than square.
• Inserts – inserts are usually 4×4 or 6×6 decorative tiles that are sold individually and have a decorative design that indicates that they are to be used sparingly and not to cover a large area.
• Mosaics – Tile size 2”x2” and smaller are usually referred to as mosaics and are often used with different colors to create a pattern or decorative inset. Some of these smaller tiles also come in different shapes, such as hexagon.

Here are some ideas about what you can do with them!

Remember that sometimes simple is better. If you fall in love with a decorative tile, mosaic or insert – that doesn’t mean that you have to use as many as you can, everywhere you can. Another way to think about these types of tiles is as accessories or jewelry. Sure, the shower or outfit will look fine without them, but think about how much better an outfit looks when it is properly accessorized.

• Use a listello as a decorative band. These can be installed at chair rail height or around eye level.
• Create a picture frame border on the back wall of a shower or tub surround and change the inside of the picture frame to a different tile or different direction.
• Use decorative inserts to randomly scatter throughout an area. Remember that sometimes simple is better. If you fall in love with a decorative tile, mosaic or insert – that doesn’t mean that you have to use as many as you can, everywhere you can.
• Mosaics can be used in many different ways. Mosaics usually come on a mesh-mounted sheet for easier installation. These sheets can be cut into different size strips, squares or any shape you can imagine. You can really use your imagination when it comes to mosaics as to how they can be applied. Unlike listellos and inserts, mosaics can be used in large quantities for drama and effect.

These are just a few ideas of how you can use decorative tiles to dress up an area or give it a designer look. Feel free to come by our showroom and give us more detail about your project so we can find the best way to use decorative tiles in your project!