Perception & Change: The Versatility of Tile

After a busy summer and fall, it’s time to look inward again. Time to re-examine the home you love and see what can be done to keep it in top shape. At Southwestern Remodeling, we know it as that time of year when a lot of families decide it’s time to break out the tile. Tile provides the versatility to improve the look of any room, along with the durability that we all appreciate.

When we visit with friends and neighbors, we have a lot of conversations about the color and texture of our walls, about light fixtures and about window styles—and all of these are great—but we like to remind people how great flooring can remake both the look and feel of an entire room.

Tile is a particularly versatile tool when it comes to remaking or enhancing the experience of a room. Consider some of the following “Tile Tricks” and how they might best apply to your home:

• Create an Atmosphere ~ Want it to feel enclosed and connected, go dark; if you want a greater sense of space, light colored tiles will do the trick. (Also important to keep in mind the function of the room. A high traffic space like a laundry room would likely be best suited by a very light gray—a color that allows for a spacious feel, but which will also hide dirt well.)
• Manipulate the Angles ~ Playing with tile size and with the spacing between tiles can also help you define the sense of a room. For example, if you want to provide a clean, bold look: large tiles can be a great part of the solution. Also, if you’ve got a small space and want to enhance the sense of size, you can reduce the spacing between tiles.
• ‘Pop’ VS ‘Wallflower’ ~ If you want to draw the eye to the floor and to the selected grid pattern, selecting a grout with high contrast to the tile can do the trick nicely—when going with a dark tile for a close feel, this can be a good option; conversely, if you’re primary goal is to enlarge the feel of the room, the more closely you match the color of the grout to the color of the tile, the more open the room will feel.
• The Significance of Self ~ One final (and often forgotten) thought regarding tile: make it a look that you love. It’s ok to be creative. It’s ok to consider options that you’ve come up with yourself. Diagonal tiles across the floor, tiny tiles covering the curve of the bathroom wall, a light tile border to offset the dark wood of the flooring you want in your new dining room—we love to hear from people who’ve come up with creative ideas they want to implement.

At Southwestern Remodeling, we’ve made it our goal to be the best, most helpful of Wichita Remodelers. If you’d like to see what your friends and neighbors have had to say, be sure to check out our Customer Reviews! We look forward to working with you soon.