THE LATEST IN GLASS TILE TRENDS

Natural stone and ceramic tiles are a lovely choice for backsplashes, but why not explore the wonderful world of glass tiles? Deviate away from traditional tile looks and consider the beauty a glass backsplash or feature wall could add to your space.  In addition to being incredibly eye-catching, glass tiles are a low maintenance choice; they are durable, do not stain, and are easy to keep clean.  The selection of glass tiles at Olympia Tile is available in many colors, shapes, patterns and finishes, allowing you to create a look that’s truly unique. Find some of our favorite glass tile collections below.

Cristallo Series

Adding a pop of excitement to a space is a breeze with our Cristallo Series. It’s comprehensive collection of glass subway tiles and mosaics, available in matte, glossy and blended finishes, with an assortment of colours ranging from super white to bottle green. You will find a variety of sizes stocked, including 2”x12” to 3”x6” and 4”x16”, providing you with endless design options. Having a pop of colour from our Cristallo Series will help you create a look you love. Where can you add the Cristallo Series? Its colourful subway glass tiles can be used in a backsplash, as a border mixed into a porcelain tile pattern, or to highlight an area of a wall.

A unique variation of our Cristallo Series is our Cristallo Blends series, with this series it’s easy to attain a trendy yet unique look. One great option is a contemporary yet classic look achieved by creating a colourful herringbone mosaic pattern, featuring a mix of glass and stone. Or try a more edgy look with our 3D Cristallo mosaic, a rare collection of 3D glass and stone mosaics with foils, creating a metallic appearance. These pops of colour will break up a neutral wall color, brightening up an otherwise dull room giving your guests something to talk about.

Jewel Series

This collection features glass mosaic with metallic elements, it’s great for any room and has that coveted modern feel to it. Our Jewel Series is perfect for highlighting a special spot in a room, this mosaic tile is combined with aluminum mosaic chips and it comes in 3 great colours; black, grey and white. Offering a very contemporary vibe, these fantastic metallic finishes give a truly fashionable look to any space in the house, providing a long lasting alternative to other wall materials, and giving any room a charming look.

Marble and Glass Mix

Looking for an eye-catching glass mosaic? Our Marble and Glass Mix series offers a simple design twist that blends different shades, materials and finishes. Featuring linear patterns and pencil mosaics that use the combination of glass and natural stone for a truly elegant look. These captivating mosaics provide a lovely colour combination that transform a room from lifeless to unforgettable. Our Interlock Glass Marble Decors and our Irregular Brick Patterns Blends mosaics are the perfect blend of beautiful traditional stone and contemporary glass. The natural stone adds a classy element to the design, while a mix of soft and bold colours create an unforgettable overall pattern.

Diamond Hexagon Series

The Diamond Hexagon series is a new glass series featuring a unique glass mosaic that combines 3 different finishes: matte, glossy and metallic to create a contemporary pattern. This series allows you to create unique designs that express your imagination. Glass tiles have caught on in the interior design world, as new technology allows us to work with unique textures, pretty colours and the natural durability of glass. Check out the Diamond Hex series to create stunning displays that will leave a lasting impression.

Looking for additional inspiration around glass tiles? See our Glass Tile Pinterest board. 

 

PANTONE'S COLOUR OF THE YEAR 2017: GREENERY

Each year, the Pantone Colour Institute releases the ‘it’ colour of the year, for 2017 the inspiration comes from nature’s very own neutral: green. The Pantone colour of the year for 2017 is Greenery, a shade that captures the fresh beauty of nature, synonymous with new beginnings and the freshness of the first days of spring.

When we think of green, it’s not typically considered to be the most wearable or versatile colour, but the Pantone Colour Institute provides 10 palettes offering a range of colour combinations with the Greenery shade. It’s trans-seasonal shade that can be paired with neutrals, pastels, metallics, bright and deep tones. We cannot wait to see how it is incorporated in tomorrow’s commercial and residential spaces.

We sat down with Olympia Tile’s Director of Research and Product Development expert Anila Bregasi to discuss the effect Pantone’s colour selection will have on the interior design of residential and commercial spaces, as well as the product selection at Olympia Tile for 2017.

What do you think about Pantone’s 2017 colour selection?

Greenery - The most beautiful color on earth. It’s a message that winter is coming to an end and the refreshing season of spring is approaching. It gives one the desire to reconnect with nature and disconnect from technology, catering to our craving to escape modern society and to head outdoors instead. This color makes us stop and breathe. The Greenery colour is synonymous with all that’s refreshing, renewing, reviving, rejuvenating, restoring, and energetic.

How is Olympia Tile embracing Greenery?

Every year we keep an eye on the Pantone’s selections. This year’s colour is rather bold, but we do have products that reflect this beautiful shade.

How do you envision interior designers will integrate Greenery into their projects?

This color will be spotted everywhere this year, especially in the beauty and fashion industries. I also see this color being used as an accent color in interior decor.

It’s a color that will do well in accent elements such as, natural or artificial pot plants, tabletop decors, wall paint, curtains, etc. I can also see it integrated into more permanent elements such as: wall tiles for bathrooms and/or kitchen backsplashes.

Where do you think we will be seeing more of Greenery in residential designs or commercial designs?

This color will be seen in both residential and commercial designs. Especially as an accent colour appearing in plants, wall paint, accent tiles, and much more.

Can you suggest some products that Olympia currently carries that align with Greenery?

Colour and dimension series, Regal series, and Cristallo.

Pictured above: Our Cristallo series tile in the colour 'Taupe'. 

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Looking for additional inspiration around the Greenery colour? Check out our Pinterest board.

KERLITE PLUS COLLECTION: VERSATILE, DURABLE, & ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY

Our Kerlite Plus collection of tile ushers in a new era of tiling in architecture and interior design. Kerlite Plus is a collection of tile created from the latest innovations in technology. The result is a tile produced in an environmentally friendly fashion, that is thin yet incredibly strong and durable.

The Kerlite Plus tile has revolutionised the world of contemporary architecture.  It's extremely thin, and the large sizes and perfect flatness that are obtained make it an excellent selection for both residential and commercial applications, inside or out. Moreover, it is easy to install and maintain, offering a water resistant surface that can tolerate cold temperatures and frost.

Kerlite Plus is a coloured-base porcelain tile with fiberglass backing, the fibreglass backing provides cracking resistance, and allows for application in any situation, all this in a thickness of only 3.5 mm and 5.5 mm.

This collection of porcelain is available in 5 gorgeous styles:

The BLACK & WHITE style plays off the polar opposites of light and darkness, yin and yang. It’s available in chic Black and the immaculate Ultra White colour in 3.5 mm thickness.

Combine the classic beauty of limestone with a contemporary palette of colours using the ELEGANCE style of the Kerlite Plus series. Named after elegant streets in Italy, the ELEGANCE style is available in 3 colours, including: Farini, Tronabuoni, and Condotti available in 3.5mm thickness.

Marble-inspired designs are always crowd pleasers, so it’s no surprise that EXEDRA is a truly mesmerizing style. Inspired by the timeless beauty of marble, the designs for these marble replicas were researched in the world’s most well-known caves - creating a truly authentic style. EXEDRA offers a selection of five marbles replicas, including Calacatta (white), Marfil (cream), Travertino (beige), Pulpis (brown), and Amadeus (charcoal) available in 3.5mm thickness and a natural finish.

Oaks is a perfect replica of wood, opening up a world of new design and ideas. The natural feel of Oaks is available in five different colours: Polar (bone), Timber (sand), Land (beige), Rain (grey), and Fossil (charcoal). Recapture the natural appeal of wood in floors and walls just like you have always imagined, available in 3.5mm thicnkness.

Incorporate the industrial look into your space with the METAL style of the Kerlite Plus series. METAL offers a unique metallic effect, ideal for external facades and contemporary settings. Available in three colours: Platinum, Corten and Iron and 5.5mm thickness.

Installation

Kerlite Plus is lightweight, easy to cut, drill, and install, making its application possibilities virtually endless; An added bonus of Kerlite Plus is that it can be installed over existing flooring, saving time, money and the mess of tearing off and disposing of old material.

Maintenance

Kerlite Plus is suitable for any climatic condition, including the very cold as it’s frost-resistant. Kerlite Plus also has Microban technology that is antimicrobial, making for a hygienic and long lasting tile. It does not absorb odours and liquids, so it's easy to keep clean with minimal effort.  It can endure high temperature and flames, not giving off smoke in the event of fires, nor toxic substances.

Applications

This collection is incredibly versatile, it has been used everywhere from traffic tunnels to interiors and facades. Its properties make it an excellent choice for architectural projects, it’s light, available in large sizes, easy to install, offers acoustic comfort, salt and frost resistant, easy to remove dirt and graffiti, fire-proof and eco-friendly.  What’s truly incredible is that Kerlite Plus retains its properties even after heavy traffic and frequent cleaning. You can see an application of Kerlite Plus in an architectural structure below, pictured is the Variante di Valico in Italy.

In addition to floors, walls and facades, we also recommend the Kerlite Plus collection for kitchen and bathroom countertops tops, since it’s a very easy slab to cut, drill and shape into whichever shape and size you need.

We are continually expanding our stocking selection of Kerlite Plus thin porcelain slabs.  Stay tuned for new additions of 5.5mm thick slabs to this program later this fall!

Learn more about the Kerlite Plus program by watching the video playlist below.