With an overwhelming choice of concrete look tiles, where do you start? In this blog, we compare and explore the options.
We look at the benefits of opting for porcelain concrete look tiles for your home. For example, concrete look tiles aren’t just grey, there are warmer toasty tones to consider as well as lighter, creamy hues. And how does size of tile impact your space? Have you considered tile finish and how that can impact your space from both an aesthetic and practical point of view. Plus we look at how you can use concrete look tiles outside as well as inside your home and how connecting lounge to lawn can truly open up the spacious feel in your home.
Porcelain tiles are designed to echo other materials whilst bringing you all the benefits and beauty of porcelain. You will find porcelain tiles that mimic everything from metals to marble, wood to terrazzo, limestone to cement and of course, concrete. Good quality manufacturers who are at the forefront of innovation are continuously pushing the boundaries of what is achievable with porcelain tiles, so concrete look tiles are becoming more and more realistic, mimicking the real thing material to incredible standards.
Concrete is a key feature of brutalist architecture where raw concrete was used to promote rough-hewn surfaces revealing the basic nature of construction. These trends have found their way into our homes over the years to bring products that are both beautiful to look at and practical.
A great concrete look tile can transform your space and add value to your home. This is a tile that creates a beautiful canvas and is perfect for ground floor areas as well as bathrooms.
Porcelain, a particularly dense material, is perfect for floors and walls across the home. This hardwearing material is scratch and stain resistant and is also super easy to keep clean. Because porcelain is so dense, it is perfect for busy areas, bathrooms and external areas too and all this makes it one of the most versatile materials you can choose. In addition, gone are the days of one or two designs to tiles, now porcelain tiles can have anything from 15 to 50 patterns or “faces” which also brings ultra realism to tiles.
Porcelain doesn’t require any ongoing maintenance or sealing so is pretty much install and go. Excellent installation is key so always employ the services of a professional and it is important that your installer carries out a final clean of your installed tiles to ensure any residues, grouts etc are removed from the surface. This will make your new tiles particularly easy to clean in the future.
As well as a host of grey concrete look tiles there are a heap of other beautiful colours and tones to opt for too. Our love affair with grey will always stay, purely because this colour is so practical, however, warmer tones are definitely making their way into our homes and that means concrete look tiles are echoing these hues too. From light creams and off-whites to caramel notes, taupes and more, there are some gorgeous toasty tones to pick from and this opens up a world of design possibilities.
Concrete look tiles vary hugely in design from the simplest of look and barely any movement of design bringing a micro cement feel, to concretes that are designed to emulate the salts and splatters of the real thing. Let’s take a look at three examples:
Take our Toast collection including Biscotti and Brulee, both beautifully balanced shades that bring a warm canvas to ground floors, bathrooms as well as outside. These tiles are designed to echo micro cement with a fine design feel.
Our Stride collection has a little more movement and features three brilliant shades. The gorgeous Arena echoes the colour of warm sand, Form, shown here, is a light subtler grey and Icon a wonderful charcoal.
Our Beat collection has even more movement in the tile and really brings to life the concrete look. Perfect for kitchen areas with an R10 A+B Matt finish this is a tile that comes in cool silver Grey, warmer toned Beige and stunning White.
We are often asked, does tile size matter? It absolutely does, not just from an aesthetic perspective either, size of tile can also impact cost. There is no doubt that larger tiles mean less grout lines and less grout lines means spaces feel less busy. Larger format tiles are making their way into our interiors like never before, but what do we mean by large format? For a ground floor area, a typical porcelain tile size might start at 600 x 600mm which is a good size tile. If you want to go larger and stay square, then consider an 800 x 800 or 900 x 900mm format. These are great sizes as they are large format and still easy enough to handle from an installation perspective.
If you want to go larger, say 1m x 1m or 1200mm x 1200mm then it is worth considering the impact that this may have on cost – larger tiles are not only more expensive, but install can also be more costly. Having said that, if you can stretch to it, these formats are simply stunning.
Or you may want to go rectangular. 1200 x 600mm is a great size for ground floors – it is important not to overlap tiles by more than 1/3 when installing rectangular tiles to achieve a flush finish and avoid lippage. Rectangular concrete look tiles can add real interest to a space.
Finish can greatly transform a tile. Concrete look tiles generally have a matt finish to echo real concrete. For those tiles mimicking polished concrete you will find more of a satin sheen finish. Finish is also an important consideration when it comes to slip ratings, particularly for kitchen areas where water may be present.
Our Tone Ecru and Concrete have a lovely soft Matt finish that is in perfect keeping with the simplicity of these tiles. Not only does the finish enhance the concrete look it is also practical for busy kitchen and dining spaces.
Or take a look at Docklands, our highly specified tile collection with a Soft Antislip finish that is not only superbly practical, it is brilliantly tactile and clever.
This tile has a lovely soft finish with an R11 A+B+C rating making it incredibly versatile – the slightly higher slip rating means it can be used across the home, walls and floors, bathrooms, wetrooms and even outside. We would add it is a 9mm thick porcelain so best used for smaller patio areas and must be installed onto a concrete bed outside – for more information contact us.
Running the same tile across open plan spaces can add to a feel spaciousness. It also means you can negate the need for thresholds keeping flooring completely flush as there is no need to use thresholds to adjoin different flooring materials. This also makes for super easy cleaning. Large format tiles lend themselves to larger spaces to, and we are often asked if clients should opt for the same tile in a smaller size for a smaller area. It may be tempting to do this because of concerns that a larger tile may be too big in a small area. Actually, because there are fewer grout lines, a larger tile in small area can make a space feel less cluttered.
It is also worth noting that if you do opt for two different sizes, the tiles are likely to be made in different batches so there can sometimes be a slight shade difference.
As we mentioned previously, one of the beauties of porcelain is that this material can be used inside and outside the home. We have a whole host of inside outside tile collections that feature inside tiles in 9mm thickness for inside with a 2cm or 20mm counterpart tile for outside.
The two tiles are designed to work together – they look the same so you can create that wonderful flow from inside to outside with ease. With advancements in bi-fold doors and a move to flush flooring from in to out, you really can create that continuity from lounge to lawn. The outside tiles have an antislip surface and a higher R11 A+B+C slip rating. Opting for the same size tile from in to out will also enhance that feeling of flow.
Take a look at our Italian collections of 2cm porcelain pavers all with co-ordinating 9mm tiles for inside. You can order samples of any of our concrete look tiles via our website or otherwise just give us a call if you like what we see and we can arrange to send out to you!
Concrete look tiles are a great investment that can enhance the style, durability, and functionality of any space. Thinking about tile colour, size and finish as well as durability and ease of cleaning means picking the right tile for your space to create a stunning floor that will last for years to come. Happy tiling!
Want to know more about our collections? Hop onto our website www.thetileportfolio.co.uk and explore! Need some help? Get in touch we would be delighted to take you through our collections! Simply complete the form below, we would be delighted to help!
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The TilePortfolio specialise in Italian and Spanish Porcelain and Ceramic tiles, in particular large format Porcelains and Porcelain tiles for inside and outside. Our carefully curated, stunning tile portfolios are beautifully presented online and supported by our fuss-free ‘go-the-extra-tile’ service. In addition, you can view our entire tile collection at our Northamptonshire Showroom. Visit our website for unmissable interiors inspiration. The TilePortfolio team are always available to chat, we’d be delighted to help with your project so please do get in touch.
Please note: We strongly recommend using a professional tiler for your project. Installation requirements may vary depending on the tiles you choose, the fixing products used and the specific conditions. Always check with your tiler regards the suitability of the tiles. Please get in touch with us if you have any questions.
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