Hi Everyone! I hope you’re having a great fall! I can’t believe it’s the end of October already! It seems like we were just in Italy last week. I’m excited to share with you the Cersaie tile trends we saw in Bologna, Italy this year! There were a number of different looks which was really refreshing and a nice change from past shows. So here is what we saw at Cersaie 2019:
LARGE SCALE TERRAZZO + TERRAZZO IN COOL COLOR PALETTES – We saw a play on scale with the size of the aggregate and some new color palettes featuring pink, blues and greens.
AN OLD MARBLE IS NEW AGAIN – In the past, traditional green marbles were pushed to the wayside due to the popularity of white marbles. But not this year! Green marbles have made a comeback and I couldn’t think of better timing with the color palettes we’re seeing in design right now.
SOFT CURVES + ELLIPSES – As the color palette of tiles have softened to more muted and saturated colors, so has the geometry. We’re seeing more oblong forms, ellipses, and other curving forms on tile.
DUAL FINISHES – Saw more tile formats available in dual finishes in the same color palette, as well as dual finishes on the same tile – a look I love! It’s subtle and a very cool way to add some visual interest to your design.
EVOLUTION OF TILE AS WALLCOVERING – Greenery has been a huge look for gauged porcelain tiles and one that is definitely not going away. This year we saw some cool interpretations of greenery – some photorealistic, and others more artistic in nature.
ANIMALS – This wasn’t a huge trend, but it was fun to see some more playful designs – one can only look at marble so many times in a day! My new challenge is to get the flamingo tile spec’d somewhere – I’m looking at you, Karina at R2L . I was down in DC in the spring visiting some firms with our Architectural Sales Consultant (ASC), Jesse Haberstich, and Karina, an Interior Designer at R2L said she was looking for a tile for a dog washing station in a multi-family res building. I told her I had the perfect tile for her, tattooed Frenchies!! Her client loved it and it will be installed on the project next year! So, who is going to spec the flamingo tile on their next project?! It’s definitely a conversation piece wherever it’s used, email me if you’d like to get a sample!
I can’t go to Italy and not show you some awesome food and architecture pictures, so here they are! I had the chance to do some more sightseeing in Bologna this year and went on an awesome food tour in the city. I have to confess, I actually grew tired of all the meats and cheeses this year, I think I’ve figured out my limit. *sigh* One can only have the meat sweats so many days in a row. Haha!
Here are some pictures of the team with some of our awesome manufacturer representatives and agents! (I’ll try to get the rest of the group at Coverings.) Thank you for all of your help throughout the years! You are the best!
Just a heads up, Tile Talk Ken and I are alternating our blogs every other month, so you’ll be hearing from him next month and me in December. I don’t want anyone to worry when you don’t hear from me. And one more thing before I sign off, I wanted to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone who reads my blog. I’ve had the opportunity to meet a number of you and I am humbled by all the kind words you’ve said. It’s very appreciated!!
I hope you all have a great October and Happy Halloween! I’ll see you in December!
Until next time…
E