Tile AND Wood: Why Not Both?

If you can't make up your mind between a tile you love and the warmth of wood, why not opt for both?

by Jeff Schlarb

by Kingston Lafferty Design

by Benjamin Wood

If you'd like to explore some creative designs for your own floors, give me a call!
Happy designing!

Schluter: The Product You Never Knew You Needed

When I am hired to design a bathroom for a complete remodel, clients are always surprised at how many decisions there are to make. Of course that is why a client hires me, to take care of or guide them through the myriad choices and elements to consider. And one of the unexpected aspects of a bathroom remodel for clients is how tile edges are going to be finished. If a tiler puts a tile on the wall without thinking about how it is going to be edged, the raw, unglazed edge of the tile will be seen. And no one wants that. It is visually unappealing but it also exposes the corners to chipping and breaking.

In "the old days," a tile edge at the shower or bath tub was finished with what is known as a bullnose tile. Instead of being a flat tile, a bullnose tile has a slight rounded edge which returns to the wall.

A bullnose tile still has its uses and can look charming in certain bathroom settings, but clients now want bathrooms that are more contemporary, more sleek, and in these cases, there is a great way to edge tile that fits that bill.

There are a few companies that make metal edge strips but the premiere manufacturer (and they pretty much own the market) is Schluter-Systems. They are now the industry leader, so much so that when people speak about these metal edges for tile, they refer to them as Schluter, much the way people ask for a Kleenex when needing a tissue.

Founded in 1966 by Master Tile Setter Werner Schlüter, the metal edge idea was born in 1975. At first it was a simple "L" shaped piece of metal...one edge tucks behind the tile during installation and the other visible side hide the unglazed edge of the tile.

As you can see by the images below, there are many uses for a Schluter edge...they come in different finishes to coordinate with a color scheme or shower and sink hardware. They can be used to edge a niche, a wall, a shower entrance, anywhere an unglazed edge of tile will be seen.

There is a Schluter edge with a finer profile, appropriately called Finec, for those who don't want to see as much of the metal finish.

A square edge called Quadec provides better coverage around the edges of niches.

For a softer look, the Rondec is gently curved.

For a different type of design, there is the Schluter Diadec which is angled at 45 degrees, and the Indec which is indented allowing for a unique look.

The Schluter Designline offers the chance to insert a decorative band of metal or color in any design scheme.

And for even more design, the Quadec-FS is an in-wall double-rail strip profile featuring a recessed section to which field or accent tile is bonded.

Of course not just for bathrooms, a metal edge Schluter strip can be used anywhere one can install tile. They are extremely useful in kitchens to edges a backsplash and I have even used them on fireplace breasts to edge tile.

Finally, Schluter is not just for walls. The Schiene profile for floors is ideal for creating elegant transitions between same-height floor coverings.

If you have a bathroom you've been yearning to remodel, contact me and we can put Schluter to work for you!

Happy designing!

The Shower Drain: Now You See It, Now You Don't

Sleek, contemporary bathrooms have been popular for quite some time now, but I am finding more and more clients want bathrooms that are not only sleek and contemporary but which also approach a kind of minimalism.

One of the ways to get a streamlined appearance in a bathroom is to limit the amount of objects and elements like the shower drain. And there are some wonderful products on the market that make the drain virtually disappear.

I love using channel or linear drains in showers. These types of drains are a trough installed at one end or side of the shower. Since it's not a center drain, the shower pan itself does not need to be sloped in on four sides but instead can be sloped in a single direction. This eliminates the need for smaller mosaic tiles which adhere to the contour of the slope. What we get is the ability to use larger tiles. Channel drains can come with metal grates like these examples from Easy Drain USA and Infinity Drain.

But to truly camouflage the drain, California Faucets' CeraLine is a linear drain that accepts the tile from the shower pan, so you can barely tell it's there!

And now we can go one more step and make the entire shower pan and drain a single piece. This integrated drain and pan by WETSTYLE called the Glacier shower receptor is a supremely minimal statement.

MTI makes shower bases with integrated hidden drains as well

And if you have a smaller shower without room enough for a single slope or if your home is built "on slab" (on a concrete foundation where moving the drain location involves jackhammering cement and is therefore difficult or prohibitive), California Faucets makes the Style Drain Tile, a tile-in center drain, so you can still camouflage the drain and achieve a sleek look!

If you'd like a modern, sleek bathroom, give me a call.
Happy designing!

Snedker Studio's Marbled Wood Flooring

As part of Copenhagen's Snedker Studio, textile designer Pernille Snedker Hansen creates marvelous painted wood floors using the ancient handcrafted art of marbling (the technique used to create classic endpapers for books). By swirling paint onto a fluid surface and dipping planks onto the paint, the marbling design is transferred.

Her Refraction Series #1 fits together beautifully and can be configured in a bookmatched pattern...

...and Refraction #2 can be configured into a chevron pattern.

I think her Wave pattern might be my favorite. She says her aim with this technique is to invoke old-growth tree rings and this pattern feels wonderfully organic.

And for some curves, the Arch series creates a pleasing, rhythmic pattern.

Here's how she does it!

I would love to use these incredible, one-of-a-kind planks for a project. Anyone?
Happy designing!