6 Modern tile laying patterns

Asha Bogenfuerst Asha Bogenfuerst
Residence at Sonale village, M+P Architects Collaborative M+P Architects Collaborative Balcony
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Incorporating the ideal tiles for your home is not only about the colour, pattern, texture and material, but also about the tile laying patterns. There are various ways tiles can be arranged in order to form patterns. For example, tiles can be staggered or alligned and etc. The way the tiles are laid out can have a big impact on the room. This ideabook is a visual guide on various modern tile laying patterns and spatial design. We hope you will be inspired to try some of the creative and unique designs here. Let's check it out shall we? 

1. Parallel assembly

Modern tile laying includes the use of contemporary wall and floor tiles. This modernity is characterized by natural stone, ceramic and fine stone tiles. Large-format laying materials, which cover the rooms in squares and rectangles, are very popular. Often, these geometric tiles begin with a size of 60 x 60 cm or 30 x 60 cm and sometimes show themselves in huge dimensions from 120 cm. Such large formats are most efficiently laid in parallel. Especially in the case of square tiles, this classic installation method corresponds to our aesthetic refinement, which immediately starts with the harmonic sequence and exact geometry of the tiles. Parallel assembly is self-explanatory and means the consequent stringing together of tiles.

2. Association

In public spaces, this tile laying pattern is found in many places and is particularly evident in the architecture of historical buildings. Just think of the industrial buildings of the late 19th and early 20th century, whose exterior and interior walls were composed in the same pattern. Also in the expansion of hospitals and clinics of that time, the laying of room walls was based on the laying of tiles. The same applies to many metro stations of European metropolises, the walls of which are covered in this way. Metro tiles, which we otherwise only knew from subway stations, are increasingly moving into kitchens and bathrooms . The appeal lies in the industrial flair, which is enhanced by high-quality ceramic tiles and impressively impresses in the bathroom design. To move away from this model and to put tiles in a modern style, you have the following options:

Joint color:  Anyone who wants to use this traditional pattern for modern tile laying can use the joint colors. In many colors, interstices can be designed and combined with metro tiles. Especially in an unusual joint color like red or black the laying pattern is emphasized in an innovative way.   

Half-dressing: The tiles are laid at regular intervals to the adjacent tiles and the staircase steps are used for the pattern.   

Third division, quarter dressing and others: If you use these offset possibilities with the modern tiles, the final result will show in a more irregular picture. By dividing the width of the tile into three, four or more sections, the distances between the tiles are reduced when laying. Before installing the wall or floor tiles, we recommend to make a small sketch showing the laying pattern as a complete picture.   

Wilder Verband: This pattern is probably the king's discipline of modern tile laying, which presents itself in an even more irregular sequence. Here, ceramic tiles of different widths form a line, which is still offset above and below.

3. Lay the top edge

Here, rectangular wall tiles are shown in wood optics, which have been installed in a vertical orientation and parallel to the bathroom wall. This method is not necessarily new, but has never been one of the classic solutions for baths. With the advent of the Holzoptik tile, a floor and wall cladding is now available for the bathroom design, which greatly enriches modern tile laying. In color, shape and dimensions, wood-colored tiles keep what they promise and are identical with their prototypes 1: 1. For modern tile laying, this means that the slats in wood optics can form all the patterns that also form parquet floors in other living rooms. For bathroom walls must be rethought and the traditional wood paneling serve as an example. In this way, tiles in wood optics are joined together as wall-mounted panels and clad walls in this modern tile laying pattern. 

4. Herringbone pattern

The wood-fiber tile follows the patterns used for laying wooden parquet. Herringbone is an attractive classic that is characterized by elegance on the living room as well as on the bathroom floor. A bathroom is also an eye-catcher when the tiles are laid in a cube-dressing or Old German dressing. In the bathroom design, there are hardly any examples for these variants. So how about you proving yourself to be a trendsetter and laying modern tiles in your bathroom in this way?

5. Partial laying

Our  experts makes it clear how tiles are laid out in a modern way, by only partially covering the bathroom. The floor and the wet area around the shower and bathtub fall under this part and thereby form a parallel dressing. For all other room sections you can find alternatives to the tile. A great advantage of this tile laying pattern is it is perhaps the most cost-effective!

6. Individual laying patterns

Now we have dealt with some tile laying patterns which are based on common models and show themselves in a whole new picture by introducing new possibilities with regard to the tiles and joint design. But you can also get rid of all this methodology, and find an individual and perhaps even playful approach to modern tiles.

We hope you've enjoyed this guide. For more inspiration, have a look at 12 pictures of bathroom tiles for Indian homes.

Which tile laying pattern did you like best? Please share with us in the comments section below. 

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