Tucked within the hills of Orange County, is a hip neighborhood full of beautiful design. In these homes, each space is crafted to reflect the individual personalities of the residents within. During Halloween, the houses are extravagantly decorated with various ornaments and fun scenes. The afternoons are filled with shouts from children playing all over the sidewalks. The air feels cool and the day is filled with laughter. To be able to remodel the cookie cutter bathroom that was within this space was so much fun. We were able to play with Zellige tile. Now when I tell you that this tile is no joke, I mean it! Each tile is handmade, and while that means that it is full of character, it also means that for the installer, perfection is not to be expected. BUT WHY?!?!? Tile is all about being as close to perfection as possible. Tile is about getting all the lines to be so straight and all the surfaces so flat! It’s about measuring within a 32nd of an inch.

But tile is about creating a beautiful artwork with whatever materials you are given. And so with handmade tiles, the variations in thickness, size, and color, are a challenge that we are up for. When talking with the clients about how they wanted this art to lay out, we showed them pictures of Zellige tile that was posted by different accounts, mostly accounts of tile brands that actually make these tiles, and we pointed out the absolute unevenness of the lines. I told Ekiah, that if he wanted that look, that we could definitely make it happen, BUT what I wanted to do, is create the look of beautiful lines, while still maintaining the natural flow of the tile. And we were all on the same page with this plan.

When we laid the tile, we paid attention to the sizes and colors, and sometimes even laid them out in groups. This allowed us to create a shower, using handmade tiles, that is a step above anything that you have seen before. But don’t worry, if you love the look of those other installs, it can be done, like mentioned before, there isn’t a right or wrong way, there’s just your preference. We can adjust so that you get something that reflects your personality, and that you will absolutely love.