Did they make glass mosaic tile in the 1950s and 1960s? Reader Christa wrote me to ask… I hazard an answer… and I provide some resources — for ceramic mosaics.
Christa wrote:
Hi Pam,
I hope you don’t mind my reaching out to you for a little tile advice. I need to do some tiling, and I was looking for tiles that will look as though they could have been original to the house – 1958. But I don’t need to match existing (the ones in place are from the 80s and best forgotten).
I found some Ann Sacks mosaics that I like. They are opaque glass 7/8″ squares with a bit of a brushy surface texture, similar to Bisazza but much less $$. I’m looking at the China White color way — you can see it here: http://annsacks.com/
onlinecatalog/program.jsp?cat= 268004&coll=268304&prg=2356504 My question for you is, do you know where I can find out more about the real mosaics used in the 50s and 60s? Would they have used the opaque glass (sort of like milk glass) or did they only use ceramic? I want the small 1″ (give or take) size with little or no pattern. Do you have any suggestions on where to look? I know about Chippy, but the website isn’t very good and I’m on the west coast so I can’t visit her.
Thanks in advance!
Q. Did they make mosaic tile out glass — or just ceramic — in mid century America?
A: I don’t know. Not for sure. Requires real research. But I *know* they made ceramic mosaic tile — I’ve seen lots of that… and on the other hand, I have never *yet* seen any glass mosaics. That said, it may be that an opaque glass small mosaic tile may not look all that different from a glossy glazed ceramic small mosaic.
In addition, many readers today like the look of the glass mosaics available today — they are so colorful, so pretty. So, they are incorporating them into their remodels to create a retro-modern mix.
Bottom line: Look around — and make the choice that’s right for you.
Christa mentions World of Tile. I do not think that any of the mosaics in Chippy’s mosaic room are glass. If you want to see fairly larged sized photos of the mosaic room and the designs available, see this story and go straight down to the slide show.
Where to get ceramic 1/2″ and 1″ mosaic tile “new”:
- My first go-to source would be the Daltile Keystones collection, with their 1″ mosaic size (there are other sizes, too). Daltile is widely available — I think you can get it from big box stores or from a tile store of any significance. I am guessing these are not too expensive. Several readers have used Daltile Keystones in their remodels — put Daltile Keystone into the blog SEARCH box and, voila! you will get to those stories.
- I also like the look of the 1/2″ Athena mosaics — when these first came out, I counted 41 colors.
- In addition, Daltile has an online tool that allows you to mix your own mosaic patterns. But, if you intend to use this — take the url with you to the store, because the stores don’t know about it, readers repeatedly report. Note, Lauren used the tool — her bathroom floor, which was designed to coordinate with the original wall tile — turned out great!
BungalowBILL says
Another difference between older and new glass mosaics is the size of the grout line. The 60’s tesserae were butted against each other leaving very thin grout lines.
Jay says
The feedback is interesting. I have often thought of having the sink backsplash tiled and nixed the idea of glass tile because it seems to be all the rage now (esp. on TV) and the patterns look busy. I do think it would look out of place with my old cabinets as the glass tile looks trendy (think granite & stainless).
Brian T says
I like Rinke’s point about plastic tile. I bought my 1954 Cape Cod from the estate of the original owner, and the main bathroom had plastic tile that must have been there for at least 40 years. (The black bullnose trim had been painted burgundy.) The moral might be: Accuracy to the period isn’t necessarily enough to make something desirable.
As for glass tile, I think there are a lot of current specimens that overlap with what was available and popular in the ’60s. Just avoid anything transparent or translucent. I think I remember, as a kid in the 60s, seeing fountains that incorporated tiles that looked like lapis lazuli but must have been glass. The guiding aesthetic might have been “We like relatively inexpensive glass tile that offers the look of expensive mosaic stone.”
Alisha Tomlinson says
I went to a local estate sale at a gorgeous MCM home that was built by a local tile store owner. Most of the tile was beautiful Italian glass in large abstract mosaics and big chunks. The surround for the fireplace was jaw dropping! The grandson inherited the property and as planning a renovation but planned to keep as much of the tile he could intact.
Kate says
That sounds amazing! I’m glad that the grandson is going to preserve as much of the tile as possible.
Chutti says
Did anyone else notice the “Ceramaflex” in the Romany Spartan ad? Holy cow- that sounds like a great idea. Rubber backed tile- ready to install- for quiet comfort.
Wonder if anyone has those in their home and can tell us about the experience.
And thanks for the info on why older glass mosaic looks different. I do like the more rough hewn look, but didn’t know why.
Grace Jeffers says
Glass mosaic is ancient! But from my research the difference is that glass tessera (individual pieces of a mosaic) where either hand made or semi-hand made where as ceramic tile was a pretty much, if not close to fully automated process by the mid-century. The difference would be smoothness. But ceramic glaze is basically glass so in my book, for a homeowner, glass tile is wholly appropriate.
Rinke says
Why not use the tile you’ve seen and liked? It’s 2013, darling! You honor and respect your house, but give yourself a treat, too. Nobody will punish you for having a glass mosaic instead of a ceramic, especially if it looks amazing, right?
Sidenote: they made plastic tiles too, would never want them in my 1954 home though! Sometimes it’s just a little give and take, even in renovation. I’d say go for it!
Elaine Schuster says
I agree with using today tile in a way that respects the era of the house. I believe the plain small mosaic tiles would be dotted with a different color tile in a regular pattern. You could easily achieve this by taking one or two tiles out of each sheet and putting an accent color in to replace them.
midmichigan says
Yup, they sure did and I set plenty of them too, making trivets, in bathrooms and in showers. There wasn’t the broad spectrum of colors and effects like iridescent today but they made them.
We didn’t have the global distribution for most items like we do today. Heck, when you made a long distance call you had to use the operator and if you ever received one, you ran to the phone to get it because it was special, expensive and probably very important.
Elaine Schuster says
Oh, long distance calling! I remember, it used to have a short ring, then the regular ring. You would definitely run to get that one.
BungalowBILL says
They sure did make glass mosaics in the 50’s-60’s. The look was different than what I tend to see today. Today’s glass appears to be molded, smooth and consistent. The older glass was flatter, sharper edges as if they were split from rods like diamonds, and had varying surfaces. Much of the glass came from Italy and emulated the ancient mosaics of the region.
You can see many smaller examples of tables, plaques and accessories still in existence, but back in the day entire accent walls were made of these mosaics. You can search Alvaro Genaro, Evelyn Ackerman, and Salvador Teran to see examples of mid century glass mosaic art. These were big names on the West Coast. This is an example of Genaro’s work: http://search.bungalowbill.goantiques.com/search/images.jsp?id=2532527#
Kate says
Thanks for the expertise Bungalow Bill!
Kate H says
I remember going to Hillwood and seeing MMP’s blue fountain, which is lined with Italian blue glass mosaic tile. It was done in the 50s. The folks at Hillwood are very accurate with all the Russian and French pieces they have, so I would expect them to also be correct about tile.
http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org/about-hillwood/gardens/french-parterre
She also had a great pink bathroom!
Louisa says
Hillwood’s bathroom and kitchen are my favorites, and the gardens too.
I think Pam has shown them.
Did you see Hillwood’s exhibit of Isabell di Borchgrave paper dresses?
Kate H says
No, but I love the kitchen, too! Wouldn’t it be fun to make a cake in it?
Jay says
There’s the catch “Italian” which means special import and it was for a fountain built for a person of considerable wealth. Unlikely such tiles would appear in the typical post-war house where American building materials would be used.