Thoughts on white brickwork tiles -darker grout?

[RiaParkinson]

I am soooo DULL

sorry folks but thoughts on this for a more authentic look

Anyone used these tiles and have an opinion on shiny or matt ?

What colour grout?

White is really a very unfriendly colour. Where is it for? Explain the setting.

lol!

Well i am slightly obeseeional about these things and researching them - an on tv earlier i saw someone being interviewed and the tiles behind him looked to have a darker grout - just older looking than a white...more shabby chic??

maybe?

or......

kitchen - behind aga and sink....

Like a sort of dirty white colour, probably Jasmine?

Where are the tiles for? What surface will they be next to? Paint colour etc.

White brickwork might look a bit like a state schoool bog.

White tiles with dark grouting can look really nice .

Are the matt ones harder to clean?

Is your sink going to be white too? Aga colour or is that still unsettled?

thanks Hester

yes Prof i am thinking of a white kitchen some mucky farrow and b or the like painted units ( freestanding) - whatsit sink - belfast that's it - and pewter aga

I am aiming for a less fitted look - shabby chic....???

Ooh, it sounds lovely. I'm dreaming of your kitchen...

thankyou Hester!

not at all sure it is everyones cup of tea but it feels right to me!

ooh ooh, i know about tiles and grout

you can buy grouts in dark grey, light grey, a sandy colour and white in hardware places.

you can also buy special coloured grouts which is good if you want black. (you'll never achieve a black grout by adding acrylic to grout)

or you can colour white grout using acrylic paint to get different colours although they tend not to be as vibrant as the bought coloured grouts.

dragon thankyou - what about the 'look' of darker grout...?

i do mosaics, so know more about it in that context. i let DH to the tiling at home.

grey and black grouts are good for showing off the colour of the glass and ceramic tiles that i use.

I'm not sure about it on the wall, difficult to imagine. You could do a trial run on a piece of plywood. Just glue on a few tiles with PVA, let it dry overnight and make up a small amount of grout and grout it. Suppose this means you have to buy the grout first though, so might not be a great suggestion.

I'll think some more.

Dragon that is quite good thinking actually....

I just think i almost want the whole kitchen to look 'lived in' older...

matt/unglazed tiles probably look more lived in
i'm nervous of your idea though without seeing how the whole room would look.
so only you can make the decision really.

yes...i think you are right plus fired earth sale makes them almost cheap!

i am going for the opposite of an 'impact' kitchen

I want it understated but filled with 'bits' of lovely 'stuff'

a wee bit dare i say 'boho'

Ria I looked at Fired Earth's brochure last night and they had some brick shaped cream tiles with a dirty grout. It looked nice but not at all shabby chic. I like the sound of the dirty grout but I don't like the sound of white tiles. White is terribly stark and actually that brick pattern is very 30s and suggestive of lines and, well, the opposite of boho shabby chic really.

I don't have any tiles in my kitchen at all and I'm really glad I don't as it makes it feel a softer more sitting roomy room/less functional shiny space.

thanks Prof

Well...i had been round a very powsh friends vast and amazing kitchen on weds ..her tiles were shiny which re assured me that matt was better..

I am not looking for a feature - just something to blend...iykwim

there will be no tiles at he sitting end and its a very long room

ohhh ....i dont know how people do it....

well having said that i doas bought and sold 6 houses in 12 yrs but i normally go to a kitchen shop and this time i am not..

dont normally do tiles

Oooh I think a dark grout can look good - just make sure it is dark enough to be obviously clean and not as it is is dirty There are some lovely dark slatey colours that can co-ordinate nicely with slate floors or pewter handles etc etc

Some matt tiles can absorb a lot of the grease and so on from cooking - glazed tiles much better for kitchen areas. Definitely dark grout.

I like dark grout - we used dark slate grey coloured grout with cheap white tiles in our first kitchen and it looked great. Think I copied it from an IKEA kitchen.
I prefer matt tiles appearance wise, but they are not so easy to keep clean in a kitchen (we had them in our last kitchen, HR JOhnson range).

Panacotta thankyou so much for the vote of confidence! I will quiz fired earth about their tiles re fat absorbtion but tbh i am not too worried as dont fry much and am good at cleaning

lalalonglegs thanks for replying - have you seen dark grout anywhere with white tiles?

Prof - I thought you were too forward for a newcomer!

Pannacotta