The Tile and Stone Blog

Tile and Stone Maintenance

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Stylish Ways To Use Tiles In 2013

This month we have a guest post written by Zoe Robinson on behalf of the Ceramic Tile Company
 

The New Year is the perfect time for you to start the process of revamping your home. You may have lived there for a number of years and it needs updating, or perhaps had never given yourself the time to update the previous owners decor, so why not start in 2013 with new trends coming in? It is best to start with rooms such as the kitchen or bathroom as these can be quite big jobs to take on, and are the most important rooms in terms of how often you use them.

 

Something that can be put into either of these rooms is tiles. When it comes to new trends for the year many people think of clothing and home interiors such as fabrics for curtains etc. but tiles also get their moment in the spotlight with new designs and ways of using them. They can be incorporated in rooms as flooring or on the walls, and make a great practical solution. Continue reading

Copyright Ian Taylor and The Tile and Stone Blog.co.uk, 2013. See copyright notice above.

10 Tips on How to Prevent Mould (Mold) in Showers and Bathrooms

Perhaps one of the most common issues with the modern bathroom/shower enclosure is the ubiquitous mould, or if you are from the US side of the water, mold – I often have to make this distinction, as here in the UK we spell it with the additional ‘u’ – and to make matters worse, I grew up in a North Wales town that went by the name of, yes, you guessed it, Mold. You can imagine the amusement this gives my American friends, but, I hasten to add, the name Mold has absolutely nothing to do with the family of fungi which we are discussing here.

Continue reading

Copyright Ian Taylor and The Tile and Stone Blog.co.uk, 2013. See copyright notice above.

Low-Maintenance, Glazed Terracotta Tiles

Product Feature – Glazed Terracotta

 

Do you like terracotta but are scared of the maintenance issues? Well don’t fret there is a solution. This week I have invited Octavio Dias of Terracotta Fonte do Bispo; a well-respected producer of terracotta tiles from Portugal, to tell us why they still make terracotta the traditional way, and yet why their product is so easy to care for.

hand-made, glazed terracotta

Terracota Fonte do Bispo is located in Portugal, in the foothills of the Algarve Serra, in the clay-rich lands of the municipality of Tavira, from where the raw material is obtained. They are located, near the village of Santa Catarina da Fonte do Bispo, famous for its ancient handcrafted ceramics.

The basic principles of working with clay are very old indeed, and the origins of handmade terracotta have actually been lost in the mists of time. It is made of a mixture of clay (earth) and water, which are combined to make a malleable paste. It is then air-dried to release the moisture, and fired. However, all these processes, the preparation of the clay compacting, grinding, sifting, kneading, moulding, drying and firing have undergone substantial improvements over time resulting in a better quality product, with less environmental impact, optimal of resources and improved working conditions.

The process begins with the extraction of the clay from local quarries. The clay is ground and refined by mechanical means, capable of breaking the clay down into a very fine powder, then blended with water to form the paste. The tile is formed using a combination of ancient hand-forming techniques and modern technology. This creates a high-quality modern terracotta which manages to retain the hand-made, rustic look and feel.

Before firing, the tiles are allowed to dry naturally. They are then fired at high temperatures in modern propane gas kilns. This process ensures a stable and uniform material with fewer irregularities and better control of the colour and shade variations, resulting in a stronger, better quality end product and allowing a significant reduction in the emission of gases into the atmosphere.

The tiles that we produce combine the beauty of traditional, hand-made terracotta with a high quality glazed surface. Consequently our terracotta tiles require none of the usual time-consuming maintenance procedures such as regular sealing, waxing and stripping. The glazed surface means they will maintain their colour and natural beauty for many years. Because of the hand-crafted nature of the tiles, there is a natural variation in shades and no two pieces will ever be alike. This variation in tones is further enhanced by a glazed surface that creates a deep, rich and luxurious finish to the floor.

There are four colour pallets to choose from (see below). Each colour pallet contains a carefully created blend of shades, so the colour should not be judged on a single tile alone. Unlike mass-produced ceramic tiles, our handcrafted terracotta tiles are defined by a spectrum of shades which are similar but distinct with a predominant colour.

Our craftsmen have perfected the art of combining earth, water and fire, what you can achieve with them is limited only by your imagination and creativity. Other tile formats and colours, as well as decor pieces are available to order.

colours

 

colours2

For more information contact info@tileandstoneblog.co.uk  or Terracotta Tiles

The company is actively seeking distributors in the UK

 

Copyright Ian Taylor and The Tile and Stone Blog.co.uk, 2013. See copyright notice above.

Interview with Sponga USA

This recent interview with Nick Tsangaris, owner of SpongaUSA, details the company’s history, product line and plans for growth.

This interview is re-printed by kind permission of Tile Letter and was originally posted at www.tileletter.com by Lesley Goddin

Sponga USA

Nick, thanks for staying up so late in Greece to do this interview.

Thank you for giving your readers an opportunity to learn about our new/old company, SpongaUSA, LLC. And, yes in Calymnos we are eight hours ahead of Jackson, Miss., where Tile Letter is based.

 

What do you mean “new/old” company?

I’m glad you picked up on my comment! My family started in the sponge business long before I was even born. My great-grandfather was a natural-sponge boat captain. Both my grandfather and father became natural-sponge traders.

In the 1950’s my father recognized the opportunity to move from natural sponges to synthetic sponges for a myriad of industries world-wide such as saddlery, paint, cosmetics, bath, pottery and of course the tile and stone industry. We built our first manufacturing plant here in Calymnos back in 1956. Calymnos was known as “the sponge-divers’ island.” The factory has been expanded a number of times since then, but we are still on the same piece of land my father started on. And while we are very much focused on the tile and stone industry in the U.S., we supply sponges to at least 25 other countries in virtually all the other industries my father envisioned back in the 60’s. He was quite a visionary and absolutely loves the sponge business to this day. As a matter of fact, even though he is in his 90’s, my father still likes coming to the factory nearly every day to tinker around. So as you can see, while Sponga USA is relatively “new”, our roots are very “old” and deep in the sponge industry.

Continue reading

Copyright Ian Taylor and The Tile and Stone Blog.co.uk, 2013. See copyright notice above.
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