Tile Trek

This weekend is the annual warehouse sale at Classic Tile & Mosaic. You don't have to be in the market for a new bathroom in order to enjoy a visit. On Saturday my friend KL brought with her two decorative tiles she had bought previously and was looking for ideas to incorporate them into her back step risers. I was just looking.

As CTM is not normally open to the public this is always an opportunity to see what's happenin' in the world of tile.

I salivated over the many types, materials, designs, and colors of tile. I was imagining various scenarios in which I could use the different kinds of tile on display. I particularly liked this square foot of marbley-travertiney-looking tiles above. They would look great on a wall, maybe in my dining area. They would go well with all the wood in my place.

In the showroom the Malibu Tile collection was showcased. If I had a couple thousand bucks to spare I would have loaded up my car as I thought the sale prices were pretty good. I fell in love with one tile approximately 12" x 8", a scene of Catalina, but then I remembered I had a piece of bisque about that size and maybe I should save my money and paint it myself in my own style.

I ended up buying a 6" x 6" Malibu-style tile of a flying fish. The designer was in the store, Juan Aguirre (hope I spelled his name correctly). He works out the design on the computer, then the design is silk-screened on to the bisque tile, then the tile is hand-painted in the "corda seca" style with the colors separated by raised black lines (I believe a mixture of manganese and linseed). When I visited Sevilla, Spain, some years ago I remember watching an artist painting in this style with some kind of syringe like decorating a birthday cake.
Many things in life I can pass up. But a beautiful tile I cannot resist!
(photos copyright roslyn m wilkins and tile designs copyright respective artists)

Boxes and Boxes and Boxes of Tiles

Sunday, July 22, KL, KJ and I visited Classic Tile and Mosaic, 3221 S. La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90016 (between Jefferson and Washington) for the annual sale, open to the public. This is usually a to-the-trade-only showroom and I have been attempting to go to the sale for the past couple of years, but always seemed to be busy on that weekend. It was worth the wait. Hundreds of boxes of tiles lined the parking lot with plenty more inside. Some of the tables were labeled, "Take everything on this table for $1,000." It was tempting! KJ, who is in the process of tiling the steps at her front door, bought a ton of tiles. Really nice ones, I can't wait to see the final result. I limited myself to one $10 tile. I fell in love with its colors and art deco style.Even if you are not planning to redecorate your house in tile, just seeing all the available styles and patterns is fun. But don't forget your hat. The next public sale will be July 2008, so either check their website or jot down the phone number for next year. 310.287.0142.

(All photos on this blog copyright roslyn m wilkins)