Give it time.
Turnaround is affected by many factors: the size of the project, the intricateness of any hand painting, the amount of time it takes to finalize plans and the artist’s workload. Once the design is approved, production generally lasts six to eight weeks, depending on the complexity of the project.

Expect some fees up front.
It’s common to charge for the design plans. And you’ll be billed for a glaze sample for any custom color requests. If you’re working with a mosaic medallion or border, expect to pay a template charge. Samples are always an additional fee.

Work with a reputable tile studio.
While many “artists” are willing to do custom projects, a studio that has established a good business relationship with an artisan will be able to provide you with references and examples of past work.

Express Yourself .
Meet with the tile designer to brainstorm ideas and discuss your hopes and goals for your home. A trained professional will be able to translate your vision into tile and give you a briefing on what is possible with today’s techniques.

Approve The Final Design .
When your one-of-a-kind piece is complete, it’s yours to keep—in other words, no returns. To ensure you get what you want, it’s essential to sign off on the final design.

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Replace stone with porcelain
Go for large, rustic porcelain tiles with distressed edges in sizes ranging from 18″ x 18″ to 20″ x 20″ squares or rectangular 16″ x 24″ in an offset pattern. Porcelain is half the cost of stone, at $5 to $7 per square foot. A big advantage of porcelain is that it is maintenance free.

Pattern counts (go large)
Creating a pattern with rustic porcelain by using different sizes (16″ x 24″, 16″ x 16″, 8″ x 16″, 8″ x 8″) achieves that Old World ambiance. For extra drama, add some tumbled sheet mosaics around the island as an accent. Stone sheets with mesh backing at $20 to $40 per foot can be sliced apart and used as a detail. It’s inexpensive, because you get several linear feet from one sheet. Your border costs run $5 to $8 a linear foot depending on the number of rows you choose.

Mix different sizes of the same material
Create a custom design for your backsplash, using different sizes of the same material by cutting off the mesh mounted material. Texture and movement make for a unique, dramatic backsplash. I recommend combining 4″ x 4″ tiles with 1/2″ x 1/2″ mini mosaics, octagons or 1″ x 3″ tiles.

Go for tumbled stone with accents
Combine tumbled marble with architectural metal 2″ x 2″ inserts to coordinate with satin nickel faucets and sinks or kitchen hardware. Why not try mixing tumbled stone with hand-cast, custom-glazed tile inserts or rustic glass? The look is made very exciting by adding pattern and color, while saving precious dollars.

Try mosaic borders
Pre-designed mosaic borders make a perfect accent over the range.

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