May 3, 2022 — By Ren Miller  

Get Creative With Tile & Stone

A little imagination will go a long way toward giving your home personality

Tile and stone are go-to choices for kitchens and bathrooms — especially for backsplashes, shower enclosures and floors — but you might want to polish your creative skills and consider these non-standard uses.

TABLETOPS

Courtesy of Artistic Tile

With swirling swathes of translucent ink-wash gray against a glistening ground of anthracite black, this dramatic Tempest Black Quartzite tabletop from Artistic Tile has details of crystalline, gold-hued beige and rust. The stone is quarried in Brazil and stocked in 2 cm thickness polished. Artistic Tile in Paramus and Shrewsbury.

CEILINGS

Photo ©FatTonyBMX courtesy of Arto Brick

Often called the forgotten fifth wall, ceilings are a perfect place to add an unusual design element. In this wine cellar, handmade brick with a heavy variation in tone adds rustic elegance. Called Antik Brick Cream Fraiche, the 2-by-8-inch handmade concrete tiles by Arto Brick are available from Coast Tile and Marble Supply in Egg Harbor Township.

STAIRCASES

Courtesy of FLM Ceramics

Handmade artisan tiles by FLM Ceramics are high-fire, iron-rich stoneware made using vitreous slips rather than glazes. They can be used for kitchens, bathrooms, fireplaces, floors with light traffic and more. Here, four patterns repeat on a staircase riser. Shown from bottom are Asal, Seljuk, Asia and Alborz, ($14 for 4 by 4 inch, $24 for 6 by 6 inch), available in the colors cast iron or blue.

TILE AS ART

Courtesy of New Ravenna

The Plume triptych by New Ravenna, designed to be used together or separately, is a custom mosaic featuring various shades of jewel glass in a Sea Glass™ background. The 4-by-7-foot panels — inspired by pheasant and guinea fowl feathers — include jasper, lava stone, schist, tourmaline, tortoiseshell, tiger’s eye, amber, agate, quartz, labradorite, pearl, opal, moonstone, alabaster sardonyx, ruby, garnet and carnelian. New Ravenna is available in New Jersey at A Step in Stone in Hopewell, Mediterranean Tile in Bernardsville and Fairfield, Monmouth St. Tile in Red Bank and Sea Girt, and Stratta the Tile Boutique in Wyckoff.

STONE AS ART

  • Courtesy of Antolini

     

  • Courtesy of Antolini

     

Patagonia “Original,” a natural quartz available exclusively from Antolini, was chosen to create a scenic wall reminiscent of a treasured map behind the staircase of this living room. Italian architect Andrea Laudini created this project with Antolini featuring stone that has amalgamated over millions of years, combining crystal, feldspar and black tourmaline. Swipe to see the wall with backlighting.

WALLS

Courtesy of Artistic Tile through Coast Tile and Marble Supply

Buckle up and imagine flying in a vintage aircraft after covering your walls with The Grand Tour Aviator in Nero. This 16-by-16-inch marble tile pattern by Artistic Tile and available through Coast Tile and Marble Supply in Egg Harbor Township mixes machine carving, inlaid metal and hand-finishing to evoke the early days of flight, when the metal surfaces of airplanes were riveted into place in irregular sheets.