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I am trying to find a way to make this tile layout look the best it could

Do you see any way to make that 6.76" tile cut disappear?

I know I am supposed to keep the cuts above 1/2 of the size of the tile (these are 24x24 tiles, nominal size 23.6") and I am working with 1/16" grout line (might be too ambitious for my skills) Tiles are described here (Prima True white, rectified)

enter image description here

MiniMe
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  • Could cut the all full tiles on that wall shorter to make them even, but how much do you like cutting. If blue walls not as transparent as shown, then short tiles will not be seen as well. Cutting tiles not for the faint of heart. – crip659 Sep 01 '21 at 17:46
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    Why are you placing that 6.75" section in the middle? Wouldn't it be better to cut the leftmost and rightmost tiles the way it's normally done? – jwh20 Sep 01 '21 at 18:01
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    That "rule" is an overly ambitious goal. Avoid very skinny strips for longer stretches. That's all you can really do. – isherwood Sep 01 '21 at 18:12
  • I had to put the ~7" tile there in order to be able to center the line on the middle of the mirror/sink which are 47 and 1/4" wide ! so that plays well there provided that the walls to the left are plumb and square (I might need to cut the tile there in the corner to the left of the sink. All you see in the picture is an ideal arrangement provided that the walls are plumb and square (which we know they are not) – MiniMe Sep 01 '21 at 18:45
  • Use a slimmer patterned tile on a location that makes it visully pleasant and stands out. – r13 Sep 01 '21 at 19:32
  • I'd use an accent tile that's as close to the right size as possible and eliminate all cutting. Unfortunately, that's my opinion, and since this is based on a "rule" that's really a guideline, not something hard and fast like code, that makes the whole question opinion based. – FreeMan Sep 01 '21 at 19:47
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    The first thing you will discover in real life is that none your walls are rectangular and none of the angles are right angles. That is the main reason to avoid large differences in tile size (e.g. 24 to 7 inches) whenever possible. A 7 inch strip of tiles looks fine. A strip 7 inches wide at the top and 6 inches at the bottom (or vice versa) looks terrible. – alephzero Sep 02 '21 at 02:56
  • they should align fine at the 7" vertical. The size difference between the top and bottom will happen only at corners because the walls are not plumb and square. I am seeing that already as I am trying to fix the framing. I will have a better idea tomorrow when I install the cement board. All I hope is that it will be nothing that I can't fix by adding more or less thinset – MiniMe Sep 02 '21 at 06:06
  • Don't take this wrong, @MiniMe, I've been down this road before too. This is the kind of thing that makes it worth hiring pros to do the job. They have the experience to think of these things before the project starts and bring them up & resolve them before products are purchased and hearts are set. You've had such a run of questions and struggles on this that it may have been worth hiring someone to help with the design, at least. Again- not criticizing you, I think we've all been down that DIY road to "why am I hitting all these roadblocks??" before. – FreeMan Sep 02 '21 at 14:02
  • There is a couple of things at play here: -I have two bathrooms to do :-) so the learning experience will pay off anyway (also see next) -when I retire I plan to hire a company to build exterior walls, the roof, main plumbing and main electrical and then do everything else (just for fan) -I am also planning to build a van or truck camper The above should guarantee that the time investment is worth. Not to mention the savings for the current projects. Does it make more sense now? PS: everybody is renovating these days and to get contractors is difficult and they charge a lot. I tried – MiniMe Sep 02 '21 at 14:26
  • the retirement will be in another sunnier country in Europe and the EURO >> CAD – MiniMe Sep 02 '21 at 14:27
  • The main design issue I see, is using overly large tiles for such a small space. Many would consider the proportions to be wrong, but then, design is subjective. – Glen Yates Sep 02 '21 at 15:29
  • it is said that large tiles make a small space larger...any comments on that :-) ? – MiniMe Sep 02 '21 at 17:38
  • maybe that is light tiles make a small space larger. – jsotola Sep 03 '21 at 01:44
  • @MiniMe What jwh20 is saying is, going left to right, you have A wide, B wide, C narrow, D wide. But you could have A wide, B wide, C wide, D narrow -- putting the narrow in the corner. A+B would remain the same. That way you could have the cut edge in the corner (no worry about beveling), and it looks more natural to have the odd/narrow strip in the corner. You will probably need some shelf for holding toiletries or something anyway and you can put that in the corner, too, and by that point the narrow strip will be completely unnoticeable. – user3067860 Sep 03 '21 at 14:57
  • The rule says avoid having cuts shorter than half of a tail or one third of a tail.... – MiniMe Sep 03 '21 at 15:07

4 Answers4

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One issue that you don't seem to account for is that the cut edge of a tile is going to look slightly different than a factory edge. For some tiles, it's very obvious that you have a cut piece in the middle of the wall, so cuts are normally reserved for the corners where the edges will be hidden.

Natural tiles like marble or travertine are a solid material the whole way through. For these materials, mid-field cuts can be made to look very close to a perfect factory edge. However, ceramic and porcelain tiles are typically a different color in the middle than the layer of glazing on top so cuts can stand out quite a bit.

The usual solution is to only have cut tiles on the edges of the room and to shift the pattern to the left or right to make sure the cuts are not too small. From the measurements, it looks like your room is 78" wide, so you would end up having a 15" tile on either side of the room and two full 24" tiles between them.

JPhi1618
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  • I could slightly bevel that cut edge and then add grout there , would that work ? I would probably end up having a wider grout line but I could make it 1/16 and then widen it by beveling the cut tile side to 3/16 to match the other grout lines – MiniMe Sep 01 '21 at 18:52
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    It depends on the tile. If the inside color is the same as the glaze, or if its an unglazed tile, you can get pretty close, like with a natural tile. I've seen tiles that are white on the outside and dark brown on the inside, and the cuts are very obvious and there's nothing you can do. – JPhi1618 Sep 01 '21 at 18:55
  • I am now completing the floating of the shower panel wall. When I am done with that and with the insulation I will go back to the drawing board to see what it looks like with 15" tiles in the corners and post a rendering here. I am inclined to select your answer as the correct answer as it points out toward the right way to do it to eliminate the 7" tiles I have there – MiniMe Sep 01 '21 at 19:02
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    @MiniMe - If you do the 15"-24"-24"-15" widths that Jphi1618 suggested, then you only have the cut edges of the tile in the corners. This is much easier to finish off than cut edges in the middle of a run. This would my approach, and would give up having the tiles symmetric above the sink. – SteveSh Sep 01 '21 at 20:16
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    @MiniMe 15"-24"-24"-15" would also allow the first vertical grout line from the right to be aligned with the shower column, which IMHO is aesthetically more pleasing. You won't really see the grout line behind the mirror anyway. – zakinster Sep 02 '21 at 08:13
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Well, design is always subjective and your question is probably unanswerable because of this fact.

Would you be willing to incorporate a 7" section of smaller backsplash tiles to that transition from shower to sink?

What if you did it in the corner of the shower?

What about up the middle where the showerhead is like this:

enter image description here

Have you considered how hard it is to actually make 24" tiles look good? Any wall imperfections will be magnified in your finished work.

I would look online for as much inspiration as possible. Creating a welcoming bathroom is an art. I would definitely recommend adding some "interest" in your design because a room full of 24" tiles will feel cold and sterile.

MonkeyZeus
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    Additionally, 1/16" grout lines as stated in the question are not recommended on this size tile. 24x24 calls for 3/16" https://www.tilelines.com/design/groutsize – Fredric Shope Sep 01 '21 at 18:10
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    @FredricShope I feel like you can make an entire answer out of that information. – MonkeyZeus Sep 01 '21 at 18:32
  • yes probably 3/16 is more doable for someone like me – MiniMe Sep 01 '21 at 18:47
  • I wish I could put the 7" behind he shower panel but that won't save me from cutting the tile to the right of it in the corner (which I might have to anyway but probably for a 1/4" of the inch to compensate the imperfections of the walls)

    I am looking for the optimal tile layout not for an outstanding design ...this is a basement bathroom - mainly used by my wife when she is done with her workout in the gym room that is adjacent to it. In this respect I will put more efforts into the upstairs bathroom

     – MiniMe Sep 01 '21 at 18:50
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    @MiniMe Define "optimal". The cut edge simply should not be in the middle of the wall since tiles are usually beveled at the ends. If you're not concerned with design then your main option would be to put the cut tiles in the corner of the shower. The other option is to not have a 4 foot sink and mirror. I would bet that a 2-foot wide storage closet on the left side is going to provide more utility than a sink and mirror could ever hope to achieve. – MonkeyZeus Sep 01 '21 at 19:16
  • @MiniMe Could you call the company and check if they make custom tile sizes? It could be worth it to you if they are willing to manufacture a tile size tailored to your specific needs; albeit for a premium price. – MonkeyZeus Sep 01 '21 at 19:17
  • All the tiles in that variety are included in the pdf with the tole specs linked above. I already have the mirror and the vanity it is a set – MiniMe Sep 01 '21 at 20:31
  • What kind of room or space is that exactly, next to the shower in your picture? – JDługosz Sep 03 '21 at 16:55
  • @JDługosz It just looks like some sort of natural garden shower. Not something you see in the average household. – MonkeyZeus Sep 03 '21 at 17:21
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Simply cut the 2 tiles on the shower wall to equal widths (about 15.18"). With the joint in the middle of the wall, cut edges in the corners. Leave all other tiles as you have them. The symmetry always looks better.

tommy-the-tiler
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I've seen a bathroom where they masked the problem by using the shower wall to hide what in your photo would be the grout line on the left of the narrow strip. You're pretty close to doing that now actually, I didn't even see that grout line in your drawing at first glance. When the glass wall lines up with the grout line it's almost impossible to see what's behind it. Enough light will reflect off the inside surface of the edge of the glass to completely mask whatever's behind it, similar to how the surface of a swimming pool can look like a mirror when viewed from underwater.

In your case, your wall would look like it has three tiles. The middle one would look slightly bigger than the others, but not so much so that it's obvious once the shower walls and mirror are there to break it up. The wall would appear symmetrical since the apparently-larger tile is in the middle, so it doesn't stand out as much as a narrow strip on one end would. If your glass is tinted or frosted at all, then you won't be able to clearly see both sides at once and the illusion should be even more convincing.

This assumes, of course, that the glass extends all the way to the top of the tile as it does in your image. If the tile extends higher than the glass, then the hidden seam will be rather obvious.

bta
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  • Yes this is exactly why I put it there. There is a good point made in the previous answers or comments: by doing that I get a cut in the middle of the wall. I will have to experiment and to see if the material of the tile is the same as it surface and if the contrast or not because you cant completely hide the cut in grout unless you bevel that edge somehow but it will stil show the inner material...and then you end up with a slightly wider grout line.I hope you get the point – MiniMe Sep 03 '21 at 11:22
  • It all depends on how thick your glass is, I suppose. Some shower glass is thick enough to cover a wide grout line and a rough tile edge, but some might not be. – bta Sep 03 '21 at 16:16