When it comes to enhancing the appearance of a room in your home, it’s pretty tough to beat the transformative clout of a unique, visually appealing floor or wall tile. If however you’re a purist and have only used this highly versatile building material to spruce up your bathroom or rejuvenate your kitchen in the strictest conventional way, you may be missing out on some other creative uses for it throughout your home. So whether you’ve got a bit of ceramic tile left over from your last project or you’re looking for a fun and easy way to add a unique aesthetic, check out these creative ways to turn an otherwise bland space into something interesting.
Create a Kitchen Backsplash
You might be thinking to yourself, “backsplashes have been around forever, so why is it on this list?”. While it’s true that a kitchen backsplash is a staple in many homes, the backsplash is generally a missed opportunity for homeowners who’ve chosen function over style. In truth, finding a tile that is both practical and stylish is not a fu-tile endeavour, provided you know where to shop, so be sure to check out your local wholesale tile provider frequently.
Adorn Your Corridors and Small Nooks
Okay, corridors aren’t exactly great places for you and your family to congregate, so you might think that any effort spent in adding some creative elements to this space is effort wasted. Not so. You can actually add a considerable amount of visual interest by adding a busy, patterned tile. If your walls are austere, you might as well spruce up your corridor floor with a double-take inducing tile.
Add Some Embellishment to Your Entryway
Think about your current entryway for a moment; how much decorating consideration has gone into this space? If you’re like most homeowners, you probably want your entryway to look nice so that visitors feel welcome when they arrive. If you really want to add a game changing visual element to this space but are worried about the wear and tear the floors in this area go through on a daily basis, installing some natural stone tiles or even hardwood tiles might be just the thing. These materials will certainly exude a warm and rustic feeling to your guests as they enter your home’s threshold. However, if you really want to knock your guests’ socks off, you might consider an elaborate mosaic pattern in your foyer.
DIY Projects with Your Leftover Tiles
Armed with a box of leftover tiles and the Internet as your inspiration, there’s no limit to what you can do. You can make everything from art to jewellery using glossy glass tiles, or – if you’re feeling more ambitious – upcycle an old coffee or end table with a mosaic top made from leftover ceramic tiles.
Refrain from Uniform
When you’re installing a new tile floor, your instinct might be that having the most uniform material is the way to go. This is a great option if it matches your personal style and the rest of your home’s aesthetic, however, it’s important to remember that there’s beauty to be found in imperfection. In fact, the appeal of a material like natural stone lies in the fact that each tile is visually unique from all the others.
Beyond Painted Accent Walls
If you’d use the word “plain” to describe your living room, chances are you’ve been toying with the idea of adding a feature wall to the space in order to create some meaningful visual impact. Before you choose which colour of paint you’ll use, you might consider using tile to create your accent wall. Remember that high gloss or glass tiles are excellent at reflecting light, something that will make your room seem larger than it is.
As you can see, tile isn’t always about protecting floors and waters from water or general wear and tear. Tile, in fact, can be used to add a great deal of visual interest all throughout your home; so before you reach for that paint brush, or send off your unused tile to your local re-store, take a moment and ask yourself how else can you make your home more stylish and unique by incorporating tile?