Customer Reviews

The Art of Tile: Designing with Time-Honored and New Tiles

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What I like about this book is there are more photographs of the full tile installation in the room versus just seeing a photo of the tile. You definitely get the WOW factor of how impressive a tile will look viewing an entire wall or floor installation.

This book has tile I have never seen before, especially when used on the wall. For example, on page 11 there is a wall of glass mosaics that have this diamond shaped pattern that is supposed to give a "button-tufted" look to the wall. It looks like wallpaper and you know the installers were craftsmen.

The first third of the book includes and intro to tile, discussing patterns, textures, designing with tile, pattern, shape and the room photos of the tile installation. The photos show tile used as a backdrop in a sedate manner and also as THE focal point of a room. There are some really innovative and mouth-dropping tile installation and this book shows you there is no limit for being able to creatively use tile. Now with that being said, many of these WOW walls and floors must have cost a bit of coin. LOL. Just thinking of what one tile might cost, multiplied over an entire wall or floor. Cha Ching $$$$. With my beer budget, I still like to browse the champagne. You'll see tile that looks like wood, leather tile, themed tile, mosaic and tiles with unusual shapes (circles, ovals, diamonds).

For each type of tile, whether leather or porcelain or stone, the author provides pros, considerations (which include cons and what to look for during selection) and the "Nuts and Bolts" which are tips on pre-installation, finish, maintenance of the tile. I really like this section because it contains a lot of detailed information to consider.

The second two thirds of the book are the photos of the tile. Each tile has a VERY brief description, sometimes the tile dimensions and a code that tells the manufacturer. The manufacturer's list is on page 137, right before the tile photographs. This section is grouped by color and/or finish, i.e. glass, metal, moldings, ceramic. I like that it includes the trim tiles in her photographs.

With the fabulous photographs of tile installations from around the world, this tile book is the source to have for it's attention to detail, useful information, guidance and list of manufacturers and resources (yes, she lists her resources).

Jen Renzi is a staple in the design community writing for various magazine and coffee table books. Her writing is honest, straight-forward and reliable. It should be to no surprise that her book, The Art of Tile, provides a great resource for creative ideas that any home renovator can employ. Think of a guest bathroom project that goes well beyond the simple 4x4 white tile solution. Push the envelope and look at hundreds of examples Renzi showcases for pattern tiles in residential and commercial applications. All this plus a full index that describes and identifies the entire landscape of designing with tiles. If looking to be inspired, definitely pick up this book before you start any home improvement project.

If you share the writers taste you've got a find here. Most of the designs shown are very small, high gloss mosaics. The book does not represent a wide variety of styles. Very disappointed for what I paid for it. You're better off going to Home Depot or Lowes and picking out one from their display.