Natalie Blake 7/12/13 Natalie Blake 7/12/13

Using Handmade Ceramic Tile with Field Tile

We see a "canvas" for Natalie Blake Studios tiles wherever a tiled surface, as in a kitchen, a bathroom, or a pool area, needs a pop of color or a handmade touch. Adding a mosaic tile mural to a tiled backsplash or wall is an artful way to get both the eye-catching appeal of handmade ceramic tile art and the functionality of traditional tile. When using handmade ceramic tile with field tile, choose tiles and colors that complement each other yet are different enough to make a statement. Glossy, solid- colored field tiles spotlight the richly detailed and colorful forms of Natalie Blake Studios' mosaic tiles, which in turn become an elegant centerpiece of the room.

Mosaic Tile as Shower Art Our handmade ceramic bath tiles are versatile and can be used in wet and outdoor environments, like showers and saunas, and are actually well suited for it (they’re ceramic tile, after all). This piece, Nautilus, is installed in a townhouse apartment bathroom in Washington, DC, where it adds depth and color to the clean, modern design of the bathroom.

For showers, kitchens, and anywhere that splashes are likely, it is essential to properly seal and install the tiles to protect them from dirt and damage.

Handmade Ceramic Tile in Kitchen Backsplashes Using our art tile as the highlight in a kitchen backsplash is one of our favorite ways to see our tiles installed. In the installation below, the playful shapes and colors of the Flowerscape, set off by the surrounding smooth field tile, break up the white of the kitchen.

Flowerscape, Handmade Ceramic Tile Backsplash

Our square tiles can also be incorporated into a tiled kitchen backsplash. Large murals or shorter horizontal groups add a vibrant splash of color to fit almost any size wall space (and many are in stock and ready to buy).

Tree Branch, Backsplash, Handmade Ceramic Tiles

Handmade Tile in an Outdoor Landscape

Here's an example of handmade ceramic tile as decorative accents in a poolside, stone wall. The colorful tiles break up the monotone color of the stone wall and play off the beautiful, blue pool.

The possibilities are limitless. For more ideas on using handmade ceramic tiles in the kitchen, bathroom and even outdoors, get inspired by Natalie Blake Studios on Pinterest and Houzz. Keep an eye out forour new line of backsplash tiles, designed to fit as a mosaic or accent piece within a field tile backsplash (coming in the fall). Here's a sneak peek of our backsplash design tests:

Natalie Blake Studios Backsplash Tiles, coming soon

Natalie Blake 7/3/13 Natalie Blake 7/3/13

Q&A: Colors in Ceramic Sgraffito Art

Curious tile-lovers have a lot of questions about how we make our ceramic sgraffito art. So, we've collected some recent questions about color and glazes to answer here in our blog. This Q&A session focuses on color. Color – bright, vibrant, inviting color – is as much a part of Natalie Blake Studios’ distinctive ceramic art as sgraffito carving. While this isn't quite an article on how to glaze ceramics, we hope it will ease (or rather, pique) your curiosity about our most colorful ceramic sgraffito work. Here goes!

Q:How do you achieve the contrasting color where you have carved? I am sure you don't have that many different colors of clay.George H., via email

A: Great question, George, especially because it lets us start at the very beginning. To achieve that high contrast, we apply a coating of slip to unfired porcelain clay before beginning sgraffito carving. Our handmade tile designs are created by carving through the top slip covered layer. After the ceramic is bisque-fired, we apply colored glazes and fire again. The colors only show in the carved areas, and the dark slip that remains blends with the layer of glaze and shows through as black or some range of grey depending on what glaze it is blending with and how thickly the glaze is applied.

Q: How did you get that Melon color, it’s spectacular! Martha A., via Facebook

A: We have done a lot of testing to find glazes that are compatible with our claybody and which the slip blends well with. All this testing has resulted in a huge stock of more than 30 different colored glazes that we choose from to color our sgraffito ceramics. This bowl looks melon-y thanks to an exterior glazed in jade and a watermelon interior glaze.

Q: How do you manage to get the shades of a single colour so evenly spread over a tile?Lata D., via Facebook

A: To apply our colored glazes, we use an industrial paint sprayer like the ones used to paint cars. It is essentially an airbrush, spraying a “mist” of glaze that our staff can control to change the intensity of the color. We spray one glaze at a time across the tiles, applying each glaze where we want that color on the mural, similar to painting. Spreading the color evenly and achieving smooth blending is an art that we are continually perfecting!

Got more questions about colors and glazes? Ask away in the comments or on Facebook, and tell us what you'd like to see on the next Q&A blog about our handmade ceramic art.