I'm sure you realize fashion or trends have to change for manufacturers to sell product. Trend/fashion has moved from carpet to wood(actually wood to carpet to wood), carpet to linoleum/solid vinyl, sheet flooring to hard tile, hard tile to plank laminate flooring, which has become wildly popular because of it's 'simple' installation. Any DIYer can install it(need a rolling eye emoticon here).

Home owners today have been conditioned to change their decor about every decade or so. That has kinda backfired, because many more folks are 'designing' themselves or need/want something 'different'.

Plank flooring is all the rage now---so tile has had to follow to stay 'current'.

I had a remodeling business for about ten years(part time to full time and then too old to do it) and had many repeat customers. Was getting fairly common towards the end to get a call to get a bid on changing work I had done. Simply because what I had done was now out of style. And this was not fancy houses or work, just folks wanting different trim/colors/decking material/etc.

I do understand, and perhaps I'm far too practical. But, I hate the thought of someone jumping on a design "trend" and later wishing that they hadn't!

After reading stories here about how people 'did' their homework and still disliked the results, it seems to me many folks have no idea what they really want.

Wife and I have renovated a 100 year old house, built a new one and are currently living in our 1965 built Retire/Expire home---which has been extremely modified on the interior. It has taken us 8 years to make the decisions, having learned on previous houses quick decisions often are not long lasting ones.

Great to read finally the views from pros on the rectangular trend. My designer is trying to talk me out of square tiles so I started to look for some pro arguments to justify my taste..