We’re knee-deep in tile these days, laying patterns at multiple projects before installation, watching palettes coming to life piece by piece. There’s something magical about a finish that’s at once functional and endlessly expressive. Tile sets the tone underfoot, on the wall, in corners you might not even notice. Laying it out is a game of pattern, proportion, and patience. And when it clicks, it feels less like a material and more like a story unfolding, one carefully placed piece at a time.
Above, Lisa configures hand-burnished tiles made from Oaxacan clay, for what will become a feature bath wall at #POOLSIDECOOL
Currently, the walls at #POOLSIDECOOL are receiving final finishes, featuring hand-sculpted and burnished pieces made from Oaxacan clay, tiles screen-printed with glaze and fired to strike a balance between machined precision and human touch, and others that rely entirely on the alchemy of the kiln, where each firing creates galaxies within the glaze. No two are alike. Together, they bring depth and individuality to a room, a quiet form of art that is both tactile and timeless.
Glaze, screen printed onto a hand formed tile, pools into place during a firing in the kiln (top). Countless combinations of color and shape combinations make for a fun design challenge in the pool bath at #POOLSIDECOOL (bottom).
Tile has a way of completely reshaping a room. Durable enough to stand up to daily life yet endlessly expressive. Laying it out is like a game of Tetris: one flip, one shift in placement, and the whole design takes on new rhythm. Whether we’re wrapping a shower in Kit-Kat like tiles or patterning a backsplash with a handmade glaze, the choices in scale, color, and layout create architecture within architecture, transforming surfaces into something layered and alive.
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A Detailing Deep Dive
Laying out tile on a flat surface is one thing, but when multiple planes converge, it becomes something else entirely. Knowing which edges will show (and must be glazed), how each piece should face as they meet, is part geometry, part craft. This pre-grout in-process photo captures that study: a curved shower wall folding neatly into the door and header of a sauna, every line considered.
