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Tiles have been used for more than 4,000 years. But they now represent one of the most modern and versatile products for the home, as Sapna Kulshrestha reports

Ceramic tiles have come a long way. From basic wall and floor coverings in kitchens and bathrooms with good hygiene and waterproofing properties, they can now be seen in living-rooms, bedrooms and even public, commercial and retail spaces. Tiles have found great use as a heat-repellant floor covering in India, but they also offer endless design possibilities. “I think tiles are the new fashion statement for homes,” says Spanish ceramics designer and tile developer Maria Castillo, chief product and solutions designer of Orient Ceramics.

Tiles have evolved from white and beige-hued ceramic in small squares to everything from glass, crystal, metal, polished or unpolished, etched or hand-painted designs. An excitingly versatile medium, the effects that can be achieved by tiles are numerous. The focus on nature and natural materials persists in 2009, and new trends include bold new colours and rich formats, fabric-influenced finishes, metallic finishes, vibrant colour accents, mixing of different-sized tiles and reinterpretations of classic designs.

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One of the most noticeable trends of the last year or so is the return of bold, stark, black-and-white designs. A plethora of unique designs can be created, using simple black and white in myriad formats such as step patterns, diagonal designs, combination of horizontal patterns and textures, to create a variety of larger patterns in a modernist or minimalist design expression. “Black and white work in harmony and define the background for making a statement,” says interior designer Suhasini Rathod, who specializes in Japanese makeovers.
Bisazza’s Timeless range and Kajaria’s imported Spanish and Italian range of black-and-white tiles offer a varied assortment of such dramatic designs.

This year’s colour palette is definitely hot too, red hot to be exact. Shades of bright red can be used as accents to the many black-and-white designs, as well as on their own. In addition to bright red, other shades of red, including reddish browns and orange, are displaying a revival in popularity. Other trendy colours include chocolate brown, orange and shades of gray. Castillo also recommends tiles in shades of rich brown, beige and earth tones for the Indian home.

Palladio’s Blend series, Bisazza’s Timeless range, and those from Kajaria and Orient offer an array of vibrant colour choices to brighten up your spaces.

But it is large tiles for both walls and floors that are the hottest right now. Large vitrified tiles are being manufactured in a variety of styles and designs, glazed and unglazed. “Nowadays people opt for the bigger range of tiles for a grand look,” says architect Varun D’Mello.

Large tiles also have fewer grout lines to clean and give a more realistic look, as can be seen in the Marbonite range from H&R Johnson and Large Format tiles by Orient Ceramics.
They are also rectified tiles, which means that all the tiles are exactly the same size – resulting in seamless joints. They either emulate the look of natural stone like marble, granite, travertine or other materials such as slate, metal, linen and leather.

Another recent trend is the increasing influence of metallic designs which have moved beyond accents into complete finishes. Metallic tiles are available in steel, copper, bronze, gold or silver, with fresh as well as rusted, worn-out looks for the classic appearance. Ceramic tiles embossed with steel inlays can create a highly contemporary look and are resistant to oxidation and staining. “Stainless steel finish borders go well with stone-finished tiles,” suggests architect Vijay Kapur.