Renovating your home is a big project that takes a lot of time, effort, and planning. This is true no matter which room you’re looking to update. When renovating a bathroom, it can take a great deal of time to choose tiles that will fit your style and budget. From choosing the right size, shape, color and pattern to combining different tiles in one room, the options are endless. The key is to take your time. Here are some essential things to consider when choosing the tiles for your bathroom remodel, which will help you narrow down the options.

What are the Options?

The options to consider include: Budget, material, color, style, size, maintenance.  Size also includes thickness for floors and walls. Your preferences and lifestyle will determine what you choose.  You may like subtle colors and patterns, wild or flowery styles.  You may want porcelain, marble, ceramic. mosaics or real stone. You can spend $5 sq ft for porcelain up to $150 sq ft for luxury waterjet marble. You may like to match everything or mix and match. Studying pictures of bathrooms on sites such as Pinterest can help non-designers know what they like when they see it. Buying tiles that are cheap can cost you later. The finish can fade and look worn.

Renovating a bathroom after moving in

In an ideal world, it would be amazing to move into a home that is completely renovated including furniture you love. Most of the time, the reality is different. You’ve probably already moved into your new home and are looking to redo your bathroom. Renovations don’t have to be difficult and tiring either. They can be a good opportunity to bring change into your life and rethink your personal style. Your new bathroom is an opportunity to design it to your taste and turn it into a space you feel happy in. By renovating after you’ve moved in, you can get a better sense of what the bathroom really lacks. If you wish to rearrange the fixtures in the bathroom, you should think about it before you change the tiles.

Consider maintenance

Make sure you choose a low-maintenance tile to keep your bathroom clean and beautiful. The one thing many people tend to overlook when renovating their bathroom is maintenance. Some materials hold up better with little maintenance. Porcelain is an excellent choice for floors and walls. Marble is quite beautiful but needs constant maintenance to stay beautiful. Multi-color tiles are easier to keep and look clean than solid colors.  Neutral color grout will be easier to maintain. If you wish to go with a darker-colored tile, you should keep in mind that water stains will be much more noticeable than on lighter tiles and need to be cleaned more often.

Choosing the right size tiles

The first thing to decide is the size tile you want to add to your bathroom. It will enable you to narrow down the large list of choices. For smaller bathrooms, you can use small or medium size tiles. The bathroom will look bigger if you decide to add floor-to-ceiling tiles. This eliminates horizontal dividing lines and gives the effect of a heightened space.  In larger bathrooms, tiles of any size will look good. Popular of late are 48” x 48” tiles and 48” x 96” tiles for more modern styles. They add an amazing look (few grout lines) to large master bathrooms.  You can mix and match a couple of different sizes and shapes to add character to the space.

You can choose one size/style/color for the floor, another for the walls and a third for a walk-in shower and shower floor. If you are not sure what goes together, you can consult with a designer and/or look at inspiration pictures on Pinterest. Or you can choose the same tile for the floor and walls. 

Stick to a style that makes you happy

What’s important to consider when choosing tiles is the style. The style goes hand in hand with the color scheme. You can get really creative and go bold with your bathroom floor tiles. A unique tile can turn your ordinary floor into a feature that will tie the whole room together.  If you love the wooden floors in your home, you can even add tiles with a wooden pattern to the bathroom to make the room feel cozier.

When choosing a color for your tiles, you’ll notice there are glossy and matte options available. Adding glossy tiles in lighter tones will make the bathroom feel brighter and bigger. But, if that’s not your style, you can go with matte, moody-colored tiles and combine them with bright décor items. At the end of the day, it all comes down to your personal taste. You can take inspiration from the current trends in interior design. But, choose a trend that will age well, and that won’t need redoing after a couple of years. Your bathroom tiles should be something timeless, something you won’t get tired of looking at.

In conclusion

In order to choose tiles for your bathroom, you should first have a clear vision of what you’d like your bathroom to look like. Bathroom tiles have a big effect on the overall look of the room, so take your time and try to find something that you’re sure will keep you happy for years to come. It’s better to spend more time thinking and designing the perfect room than to be forced to remodel quickly.

When renovating a bathroom in a home you’re living in, it can be a stressful situation. Remodeling can last longer than planned, not to mention that your house can get messy and disorganized during the renovation process. To prevent a mess as much as possible, you can rent a storage unit to get extra space for your items while renovating. Not only are you keeping your home cleaner and more organized during the remodel, but you’re also keeping your items safe, especially if you are doing a whole home renovation.