PRODUCT IN FOCUS: Encaustic Concrete Tiles

The team at KWD love working with stunning products, ones where colour, texture and innovation are abundant. Thus, encaustic concrete tiles are an absolute favourite. The beauty about these tiles, is that no matter how many projects we specify them in, there are so many combinations and permutations that no two projects are ever the same. Clients get so excited at the possibilities when presented with this material. We all become like children in a candy store! Encaustic tiles are ceramic tiles in which the pattern or figure on the surface is not a product of the glaze but of different colours of clay. They are usually of two colours but a tile may be composed of as many as six. The variety is incredible and the colours stunning. The pattern appears inlaid into the body of the tile, so that the design remains as the tile is worn down. Encaustic tiles may be glazed or unglazed and the inlay may be as shallow as an eighth of an inch, as is often the case with “printed” encaustic tile from the later medieval period, or as deep as a quarter inch. Modern encaustic tiles use a two-shot moulding process. The ‘inlay’ colour is moulded first. For multiple colours, a mould with cavities for each colour is used and the individual colours are filled carefully. This coloured clay is then placed face-down in a mould that is backfilled with the body colour. The tiles are then fired. The beauty of these tiles is their versatility. They look equally as good in a heritage home as they do in a modern commercial building. And patterns can be randomly placed without needing to match and look exact. Encaustic tiles make a beautiful feature.