Five tiles, one salty horizon.
Five basic tile families, told the way they oughta be told — barefoot, breezy, and with a cold one in hand. Trim yer sails and read on, sailor.
Porcelain
Arrr, porcelain be the trusty first mate of any tile crew — fired in the kiln so hot it laughs at salt air, sandy feet, and the occasional spilled margarita. Tough as a sea dog, smooth as calm water, and it'll keep its looks long after the parrots have gone to bed. Floors, showers, walls — wherever ye drop her, she holds her ground.
Ceramic
Ceramic's the easygoing deckhand — lighter on the wallet, lighter in the hand, and happy to lounge on walls and backsplashes all day. Softer than her porcelain cousin, so we keep her up where the heavy boots don't go. Glaze her in any color the sea can dream up and ye've got a kitchen that hums a steel-drum tune every time the kettle whistles.
Natural Stone
Marble, travertine, slate — these be the doubloons of the tile world, hauled straight out of the earth and no two pieces alike. Bit fussier than the rest, needs a swig of sealer once a year and a coaster under yer rum. But step into a stone shower at sunrise and ye'll swear ye washed ashore on some Mediterranean island ye can't quite remember the name of.
Mosaic
Little chips of glass, pebbles smoothed by the tide, hex tiles the size of yer thumbnail — mosaic is the buried-treasure tile, laid one piece at a time by hands that know what they're doing. Best on shower floors where the texture grips like a barefoot deck and the water finds the drain without a fight. Looks like a tide pool, feels like a foot rub.
Wood-Look Plank
All the cozy of a weathered hardwood porch with none of the warping, cupping, or 'don't drip on me' lectures. Long porcelain planks printed to look like reclaimed oak, driftwood, or whitewashed pine — pour the pool water, walk in wet, let the dog shake off. The boards keep on smiling. It's island living, lacquered for the long haul.
Found yer tile?
Let's chart the course.
Send a few snapshots of the room and tell us the vibe yer after. We'll point ye toward the tile that fits the house, the budget, and the lifestyle — no parrot required.