Hello,

I would keep it horizontal for a clean look. Beautiful fireplace!

--Jen

It's funny - your username is very similar to mine and I was agreeing with everything you said exactly as if I'd written it but I was afraid I was having a blonde moment because I couldn't remember posting here! Whew!

@countbla, like this? Sorry for my terrible drawing skills, haha. I just want to make sure I'm picturing it correctly so I can show the tile guy tomorrow. I think it's a great idea!

Don't worry about the tile guy figuring out they do this much of the time.

magsmayers countbla got it right to do it that way, and your drawing is correct. Make sure you do show the tile guy because often without direction, they will do it in the way that is easiest for them, which isn’t always the best looking . Also, tell him to make the grout joints 1/8th or smaller, and use grout matched to midtone in tile.

gorgeous home btw!

@Adalisa, thank you so much. I will pass along that info.

Beautiful tile and fireplace Mags.
I didn't read down until after I started to "draw" my idea. I see it's already been mentioned. I decided to finish so you'd have a better idea how it might look with the corners mitered.
The last is to show the grout lines better for showing your contractor.

It may look like the bottom tile is longer, but it's close to equal if you look at the outsides of the top mitered tiles.

@justgotabeme, thank you so much for the drawing! That helps so much. I will show that to the tile guy. I really appreciate you taking the time for that!

You're very welcome MagsMayers. I'm glad I could help.

Yep, what Countbla said.

Here it is! They haven't grouted yet. I think that bottom left tile needs to be switched out with something lighter at the top... Am I right? I'm sure the tile guy will love me when I tell him that. I'm obviously not looking for a perfect match, but I think that transition there needs to flow better, rather than that abrupt dark to light. What do you all think???

I'm kicking myself for not telling them to lay it out for me beforehand...

Looking good !

Yes, that transition on the left is a bit more obvious but the other ones are somewhat visible as well. Up to you - if it really bothers you and you have spare tile now's the time to change before grouting. Only you (and your close ones) can tell if you can get over it or if it will drive you insane every time you see it ;).

Keep in mind changing that one piece will probably delay grouting all of it while the mortar sets.

I think the only one that might need to be changed is the lower left. Some variation is nice and I think it looks great!

I just went snooping around and there are 2 pieces of tile left. I propped a piece up and I think this one works way better (see pic). I don't think the other transitions are as jarring... But if you see another that may need to be changed, please let me know. Thank you for your input!

I think just that one tile needs to be changed. The others look great-love some variation. It should be fairly easy for the tile person to change it now rather than wait until later. You will be happy that you made that one, minor change. Can't wait to see the finished picture!

I agree it needs to be to changed. Especially since you have another tile on hand that works so much better. Makes me wonder if he did't just switch the bottom ones on each side when he cut the notch.
Other than that it looks beautiful!

What everyone else said - it is really beautiful and those subtle variations in the other tiles make it look special. What's the name of that tile? Really pretty...

Columbia, the tile is Kauri grey bark... It's supposed to look like petrified wood. Thank you everyone very much for all the help! I will post pics once it's fixed and grouted.

Horizontal. Vertical wont look right.

Vertical. Same direction as the fire :)

Which way does the flooring run? I would say horizontal.

It will be beautiful. You shouldn't have to tell the tile contractor to lay it out in advance. Shading and lay out should have been standard (and approved by you if there was any question). I thought about this recent fireplace we designed and installed when I read your original post. We had the unique challenge of limited stone and very large variance from the dark to the light. We decided to highlight the variances as part of the design. And we cut all the stone from 12x24. You chose a good design for yours. Enjoy it!

Ok... Finished fireplace tile! Thanks again so much for all the advice everyone!

Turned out beautifully!

Yep, that's all it took. Stunning!