The Latest Looks in Tile, Stone and Flooring

“Geometrics are thriving right now,” says Amber Leigh Martinson, director of marketing at Daltile. Though geometrics have been hot in recent years, mixing those patterns with neutral colors is now trending in a big way, she says. The company’s Bee Hive tile, shown here, comes in a variety of large-format hexagonal shapes in both solid tones and geometric patterns.

What’s Popular for Kitchen Counters, Backsplashes and Walls

Photo from Bedrosians Tile and Stone

Encaustic cement tiles have been around for centuries, and over the past few years they have become popular for floors and walls. Today, the bold, graphic encaustic look is showing up in porcelain tiles as well, which tend to be more cost-efficient and easier to maintain than cement. The porcelain tile shown here is Enchante from Bedrosians Tile and Stone.

2. Faux Wood Is Not Going Away

Wood-look tile has been trending for the past few years — treasured for its easy maintenance and (usually) lower cost compared with real hardwood. The wood look showed up everywhere at the Surfaces show, in materials including porcelain, laminate and vinyl. Pictured here is a selection of faux-wood porcelain tiles from Bedrosians Tile and Stone.

Emser Tile’s Hollywood tile. Photo from Emser Tile

Faux-wood tile is looking more and more like the real thing, thanks to improvements in the digital printing technology used to produce the tiles. Wood-look tile is the biggest seller among Bedrosians Tile and Stone’s porcelain tile lines, says the company’s Kyle Torosian.

Shop for wood-look tile

Luxury vinyl tile seems like an oxymoron — those words just don’t seem to fit together — but today’s wood-look versions could fool you. These tiles are from Eagle Creek Floors.

3. Colors From Nature Prevail

Gray still tends to dominate much of today’s tile and faux-wood flooring, but the tones are getting warmer and blue is big. “Rich blues, grays and dark color palettes offset with lighter accessories to make a bold statement,” says Crista Tekstra of Emser Tile. The company’s Nova glazed porcelain tile line, paired here with glass mosaic tile, is designed to look like natural stone with soft veining and tonal variation.

In hardwood flooring, you can still find plenty of driftwood-gray colors, but there’s been a move toward darker tones. “People are getting inspiration from nature. We’re seeing a lot more browns and natural colors,” says Angela Duke of Mohawk. “Consumers are liking those natural earth tones.” Shown here is RevWood Plus, Mohawk’s waterproof wood flooring.

4. Mixed Materials Add Interest

Tiles made of porcelain, wood, stone and metal provide visual interest for entire walls, accent areas and backsplashes, and the variety is growing. Those on display at the show were particularly eye-catching. This luxe-looking example from Pera Tile, dubbed Fifth Street from its Atelier Pera line, features marble-like porcelain inlaid with brass and other metals.

Photo from Bedrosians Tile and Stone

Bedrosians’ Montane tile, pictured, shows how metal, stone and glass can combine to form a striking surface.

Photo from Daltile

5. Large-Format Everything

Whether it’s tile size or wood-plank width and length, bigger is becoming better, especially for flooring. “Twenty-four by 24 [inches] is now almost too small” for tiles, says Kyle Torosian of Bedrosians Tile and Stone. For wood flooring, plank width is growing, with 7½ inches being the sweet spot, according to an Eagle Creek Floors representative.

Browse rooms with large-format tile for inspiration

At 8½ inches wide, the planks of Provenza Floors’ Lighthouse Cove painted and distressed European oak are on trend and also have rustic appeal.

6. Quartzite Is on the Rise

Among natural stone surfaces, quartzite is gaining in popularity. It’s good for countertops, says Amy Oakley of the National Stone Institute. “The great thing about quartzite is it comes in so many colors, so a lot of it looks like marble, but it’s much stronger.” Silverwater quartzite was used for the island countertop in this room designed by The Kitchen Studio of Glen Ellyn.

Kitchen Counters: Quartzite Offers Strength and Beauty

7. Other Interesting Products

In addition to traditional tile and wood, exhibits showcased other products related to surfaces at the Las Vegas event, including colorful vinyl sheet flooring, such as these products from IVC.

There were several peel-and-press wood-like vinyl tile exhibits, but Mywoodwall uses real wood planks. The company says it can be used on accent walls and backsplashes, in entryways and laundry rooms and even as a headboard.

Here’s Pergo’s take on vinyl flooring. The gold “grout” in the sample on the left was getting a lot of attention at the show, says Jordan Biasetti of Mohawk.