Tiling Blues

Now, as an Architect, I specify a lot of finishes for other people's buildings. And generally, I'm a fan of this simple rule: The harder the finish is to install/replace and the more it costs, the more neutral it should be. Neutral finishes just don't go out of style and are easier to patch and you can always enliven the color of the room with paint and other girly stuff like curtains or handtowels or whatever.
So that's why I'm really surprised at how much I dig this floor tile from Lowe's. I've seen it installed in two houses now with great effect both times. The color variation makes it very versatile with a lot of other colors and its frickin cheap at $4.66 for a 12x12 mesh piece of 3x3 tiles. Portobello Tiles, the manufacturer, doesn't seem to have this particular tile listed on their website, but it looks to be part of their Bahamas collection of Pool Tile. Maybe its a special product marketed at Lowe's or something. I wish they'd make this finish in other colors like white/gray.

Until they do, I'll still always be loyal to White Subway Tile in a Running Bond Pattern with a nice medium gray mortar.

(Warning: Building Material Geek Alert: Especially, if you go really CRAZY, and install the running bond VERTICALLY ORIENTED!!!)

But if you're into blue, this is a great product.

(Footnote: I always spec Medium gray mortar. If your tile doesn't look good with Medium Gray, you need a new tile. It sets off the pattern of the tile and hides stains and mildew well, which is important, if like me, you'd prefer to clean your bathroom thoroughly, but once a year.)