Planning a bathroom is an exciting but busy time. What seemed like a simple job, and a few choices, is now a behemoth challenge! It’s like all things – once you scratch the surface, you’re suddenly very aware of what goes into making something great.

On this blog we share tips on getting a great bathroom design to help you with those complicated choices.

This week we’re going to focus on choosing the right tiles for your new bathroom.

Choose your favourite tile first

You’ll need a selection of tiles before you make your final decision but don’t be scared to choose a tile that you really love. Get all the suite and design in place and then make the decision on the bathroom as a whole. Don’t take the tiles home to see how they’ll look in your existing bathroom though as there are so many variables from light, to the old suite that will affect how they look.

Think about cleaning and maintenance

And then come back down to earth for a while. Intricate, detailed tiles or ones with lots of grout lines will cause you some more cleaning. Even if you have a cleaner, this might give you more maintenance in the future and it’s worth consideration.

Think about the size of the room

The size of the room doesn’t mean you’re limited by the choice of tile and it doesn’t mean you need small tiles for small rooms. Far from it. A large tile will mean fewer tiles to tile the room and that means fewer grout lines and that’s less ‘noise’ for the eye and a cleaner look.

Some further tips on tiling a smaller room are:

• Large or small tiles work fine.
• Lighter colours are best when you’re limited on space.
• If you want a little style, go for patterned tiles.
• Reflective, shiny tiles are great in small rooms.
• Tile floor to ceiling to make the room feel bigger.

Consider the suite you’re choosing

Now clearly the tile you’re choosing needs to match the suite. Not just in colour, but in style too. Even if you’re going white with the suite, the design of it will determine the theme of the room so don’t go Victorian with the design in one place and Art Deco in another.

Add some colour!

Tiles are ideal for adding colour to your bathroom and even if you’re not keen on going all out with a colour for the whole room, you could still have a feature wall, maybe behind the basin or bath to give your room a stunning “Wow” factor.

How many tiles will you need?

If you’re going to tile your entire bathroom then you’ll need more tiles than if you were only going to tile around the bath/shower/basin. Most bathroom designs now opt for a fully-tiled room, and it’s far better for hygiene and easier for cleaning in the long run.

That said, work out your design and decision as this will affect the cost of your tiles and you might be able to up the budget on the tile you choose if you’re not tiling the entire room. You can find some more tips about tiling your bathroom here.

Tiling your floor?

If you’re tiling your floor, then this will have an influence on the tiles that you choose. Many tiles are suitable for the floor too, so you’re not limited on choice, just the colour and texture you’re placing on the floor.

Some tiles will look great on the walls, but not so on the floor. If you’re tiling the walls and the floor with different tiles, put them together to make sure the colours, patterns or designs complement each other. Too similar and it could look odd.

Also consider whether you’re having underfloor heating too as this may have a bearing on choice.

One great advantage of using the same tiles on the walls and the floor is that we can join the grout lines up from floor to wall and this makes the whole room look cleaner in design.

Standout grout?

You might want to make a big deal of the grout lines and go for a dark, contrasting grout or maybe a silver to match other accessories an make a real statement. This will change your tile decision and you might want to rethink the size now, too. Just a curveball for you!

Choose well… but take your time

The tiles are the largest part of your bathroom and the time spent deciding is well worth the effort. You’ll mostly likely be looking at them for 15 years (on average) so get a tile you love, one that works with your room, and one that will stand the test of time.

If you need more help, come and see us in our Coventry bathroom showroom and we’ll gladly help you decide what’s right for your new bathroom.