Tips & Articles

The world of natural stone tiles is versatile and amazing and offers a spectacular combination of colours, finishes and sizes. The options that you have for decorating your home include not only different types of stones, such as marble, limestone, travertine, granite or slate but also a variety of patterns and ideas how to lay them.  

The goal of the design ideas is to give each homeowner the best aesthetic look, performance and longevity that best match the overall décor. The beauty of each natural stone tile can be enhanced through the right pattern that you choose for your floor or walls. Therefore, we have tried to compile this list of different tile patterns that can help you select the best option for you. 

 

One Tile Patterns   

One tile patterns are perhaps the most common type that you can see as a floor or wall solution. Here are some of the styles that you can come upon: 

• Herringbone  
• Subway 
• Brickwork – it may come in various options such as staggered, square, vertical 
• Diamond 
• Checkerboard  
• Hexagon 
• Mini-grid 

There are quite a few more one tile patterns, however the ones above are among the most popular. You can see one pattern used for both floors and walls or different combinations of them. 

 

Two Tile Patterns  

The second popular type of patterns includes two tiles. Some of the one tile options such as the herringbone and checkerboard patterns are quite beautiful when executed with two tiles. Some of the other popular two tile patterns include: 

• Windmill 
• Cobblestone 
• Alternating a bigger and smaller tile 
• Tic tac 

 

Multiple Tile Patterns 

Three tile and multiple tile patterns are naturally more complicated for installation and you may need professional assistance if you are not sure how to lay natural stone tiles. Basically, these tile patterns are suitable for floors of larger premises. Some of the most popular names that you can come across are: 

• Opus Romano 
• Paredon 
• Kolidascope  
• Standard or palatial Versailles 
• Cyprus  
• Interlocking modular 
• Trellis 
• Tip toe 
• Corridor layered or corridor modular (this one obviously is most suitable for corridors and entryways but can also be utilized for unconventional kitchen or bathroom floors) 

 

Backsplash Patterns  

The backsplash is a special area that can be the focus of your kitchen. If you want to create a fabulous backsplash using natural stone tiles, here are a few patterns to consider: 

• Herringbone 
• Brick pattern – simple, vertical or with a diamond border 
• Mosaics 
• Lacework 
• Windmill 
• Hexagon  

No doubt, of all the available backsplash styles, the mosaics can give you the greatest variety of options. No matter if you would choose only one stone such as Multicolour slate riven, Golden travertine tumbled, Emperador mixed polished marble or go for depicting a certain motif or picture, the effect will be amazing.  

 

5 of the Best Natural Stone Tile Patterns  

When it comes to determining which are the best tile patterns for natural stone, we can say that it depends a lot on the personal preferences, the size and shape of the rooms and the overall atmosphere in the house. In order to give you some reference though, we would like to team up with the ideas, shared by interior designer Mark Hermogeno on Houzz about Setting Creative Patterns. His top five choices when it comes to tiles are: 

• Simple geometry – a simple grid pattern featuring rectangular tiles for both the floor and the walls; 

• Subway style – this style used to be popular for public transport stations before becoming an attractive fashionable solution for home décor. You can mix two, three or several colours or shades to add a twist to the overall pattern; 

 

• Classic floors such as the classic French design that combines light limestone with black marble diamond-shaped tiles; 

 

• Diagonals – with a simple 45-degree rotation the standard grid pattern can visually expand the size of any floor or wall; 

 

• Mosaic tiles, especially custom designed ones. Allow your personal style and imagination to combine in order to turn an ordinary room into an inspiring place to live.  

Remember that all natural stone tiles vary in shades and nuances. Marble, for example, through its veins, can add value even to the simplest pattern. The different texture and finishes of one and the same stone will also change the overall look of the floor or wall. Therefore, we encourage you  

It is visible that there is a great range of patterns that you can choose from. Some are quite popular, such as herringbone, Opus Romano or subway, while others are more specific and can be applied only in certain premises depending on their size and purpose. It is a good idea to visit a natural stone shop and ask the assistants to lay a few tiles following the pattern you have selected, so that you can get a clearer vision of how it will look like before the tiles are actually laid. 

You can also play a bit at home using this downloadable PDF file with tile patterns and sizes, compiled by Durango Stone. 

Have fun while browsing our great variety of natural stone tiles and selecting the best pattern for each stone and make sure to contact us should you need any further information or assistance.