Elizabeth wants 1960s style mosaic floor tile for her bathroom remodel, and when she asked us for help choosing between her two selections, several readers suggest other mosaics. I’ve written about all those mosaics before, so I decided to put all the options we know of into one story. Above: Nicole and Graham used Daltile’s Mosaic Tile Designer to create their own mosaic tile floor for their laundry room and yes — dog shower!
1. Merola Tile University, Academy, and Crystalline Tiles:
Merola Tile University Tile was the first tile we discovered. It is a classic “random mosaic” pattern of 1 x 1, 1 x 2, and 2 x 2 tiles.
Tiles have been around for decades!
When we first wrote about this tile in 2012, Merola Tile told us it had been in production in the same Indonesian factory since the 1970s. There are six colors in all. Kate used the pink in her pink bathroom. You can find these tiles at a variety of retailers, including Home Depot, Classic Tile, and I’ve even seen them on Overstock and Wayfair. Google the name of the tile to shop around.
Merolo also offers its “Academy” tile design in similar colorways. The main difference seems to be that Academy have a wavy, rather than straight, edge.
And, they have the 1×1 (ish) Crystallines. Kate used the Pistachio on the floor of her green bathroom.
Finally, note that Merola has other tiles from this same Indonesian supplier in other designs but also with the splatter finish. I don’t show them in this story, because this story is focusing on rectilinear mosaic designs, rather than other shapes. So: If you’re looking for other 60s or 70s design, dig into Merola Tile on Home Depot or other sites to
Update March 2021: I recalled hearing from a reader recently that they couldn’t find one of these tiles. So, I checked in with Merola Tile to get the story — and not to worry, these tiles STILL ARE being imported. If you happen to NOT see what you’re looking for, it’s likely a temporary supply chain issue. The company told me that lead times for the tiles, which come from Indonesia, can vary depending on a variety of factors. If a particular design or color disappears online, it may just be because the links have come down while stocks are replenished. See my stories on Merola Tile here. As I write this, I’m seeing these tiles all over the place online.
2. Studio Tile
Studio Tile imports the “Cinca” line from the same factory in Portugal that’s been producing it since 1964. Available in 24 colors — talk to owner Lisa about how you’d order a random mix.
4. Mosaic Tile Supplies
…Is another place you can get glazed, matte and unglazed porcelain tiles in a variety of colors. To get a mosaic, you would, for the most part, have to mix and match your own design ala the Daltile Pattern Designer. Mosaic Tile Supplies also has a lot of basic small squares that you can pop into their octagon and dot patterns for different looks.
5. Nemo Tile’s Appiani mixes:
These mosaic mixes available at Nemo Tile are gorgeous. I’d consider certain colors for a sophisticated 1960s look and use Nemo’s matching field tile. Reader Rebecca used these tiles in her bathroom gut remodel — she even had them mud-set!
6. Daltile’s Mosaic Tile Generator:
We’ve had a few readers — like Lauren, and Natalie and Graham –use Daltile’s Mosaic Pattern Designer to create their own mosaic mix floor. If you are going to use this option, plan plenty of lead time, as it’s made to your specific order. Also take the url with you to the store, because stores may not even know about this. Or, like Nicole, you can do “some therapy” and not wait 10 weeks and get the its and bits and piece the thing together yourself.
7. Buy vintage
Do you need a few places of replacement tile? This will likely take some time, as there were so many brands, so many colors, but start hunting hunting hunting for vintage. For places to look, see this story and focus on the vintage sellers.
Want more ideas on bathroom tile?
- See our Bathroom Help / Tile ideas category here. Also remember, when working on floor tiles, consult with a pro to ensure they are specified correctly for the usage you have in mind.
Is it possible that the Daltile Mosaic Tile Designer doesn’t exist anymore? 🙁 I Can Not find it!
Yes, it seems to have been deactivated. 🙁
Hello,
I just had some plumbing repair work done on my vintage 1953 pink bathroom. The shade is a pink/beige and I CANNOT find a match for it. I so badly want to keep the exact same color scheme but…
Do you have any advice on where to find the wall tiles?
Thank You,
Stephanie
Use the navigation at the top – it will take you quickly to this info
Lauren’s bathroom makeover story and “3 ideas for Angela’s aqua bathroom design” were how I learned about Daltile’s pattern designer and I pretty much copied those almost exactly in 2 of my bathrooms. And yes, the store where I ordered from was like “huh, I didn’t know we could even do this!”, but they were awesome and my floors came out perfect (even if they did try to talk me out of blue tiles because “no one wants blue anymore, think of the resale value!”).
One of the original residents of my home recently stopped by when she was in town for her 50th high school reunion and it took her a minute to realize that the floors were brand new, not the original floors she remembered from her childhood. And now she’s been texting me pictures of the house from when she was a kid so I can see what it all looked like in the 50s and 60s.
Awwww. My puppies have aged a lot in 5 years! It’s probably because we added two little boys to the family. And these days, the dog shower is used a lot for hosing down children’s shoes and other muddy items.
It was fun to reread your post on us! Oh and we also used the daltile custom tile creator for our master bath. 🙂 I do a lot more lurking on your blog these days than commenting.
Mosaic Tile Supplies is also a great resource. http://mosaictilesupplies.com
I like their Lyric line in 1 inch hex. I ordered some samples a couple of years back and they would have looked great in my 1962 mid modest house…if I’d ever gotten around to redoing the floor in my green and yellow bathroom.
I was done reading a post a little while ago and clicked on one of the ads Pam has on here for tiles – they should come with flashing warnings! You get started just being nosey but then you just start clicking away and an hour has passed with your head spinning with “POSSIBILITIES!” Have your need firmly in your mind because your wants will take over.
Once again, Pam, you show what a national (OK, world) treasure you are. Nemo XWEL 712 is almost exactly what my family had in the downstairs bathroom of our 1969 tri-level when I was a kid. We’re still going with Merola University Beige to replace the sheet vinyl in the master bath of the 1962 time capsule ranch we just bought, but you’ve opened up a new world of choices for the hall bath! Thank you so very much.
Aww, the dogs are such cutie patooties. They don’t look like they need tile therapy at all.