Tile selections

This is a long overdue post, and I am still intending on writing a post outlining our internal colour selections, that will come soon!

So as I mentioned in a previous post tile selection here in Sydney is done at Di Lorenzo, which happens to have a showroom a few doors down from the Metricon head office. Tile selection for us was done right around the same time we had a start on site, but apparently that varies from state to state.

As with all volume builders, Metricon has an allowance for the tiling and a standard builders range to choose from - so if you were to choose everything within that range you shouldn't incur too many any extra tiling costs (although large tiles do incur an extra fee to be laid). I chose quite a number of tiles within that range however also chose some feature tiles and larger tiles that incur extra costs to be laid.

The standard range Metricon allows you to choose from is quite good and the variety and choice was better than I expected.

Having said that the choices I made did add a nice cost to our budget - however tiles can have such an impact it wasn't something I wanted to compromise too much on.

In the kitchen we have a window splashback but around that window there is a small border area that will be tiled. As it is a small area I chose something that I thought would tie in really nicely with our overall colour scheme but also add a bit of a feature to the kitchen.

I ended up going with a glass mosaic tile (some of which are included in the allowance for a very small feature strip in each room) but of course the area was much larger than the allowance! And it costs extra to lay mosaics, supply coloured grout and LAY coloured grout. Ouch.

These will form a border around the kitchen splashback window and will go up one return of our kitchen counter. Note how different they look in each photo due to variations in light and angle.

Not everyones taste but I really like them.


Now onto the laundry - I chose subway style white gloss tiles as we are having dark brown cabinetry in there and wanted to brighten the room with the tiles. The actual tiles were from the builders range but to LAY the gloss tiles incurs an extra cost (cant remember why exactly, but they are 100x400mm (only $77 for the laundry)). Pics of white tiles don't come out well so I don't have one!

The floor tile I chose to be constant throughout the laundry, powder room, bathroom and ensuite for continuity. The floor tile I chose is above the builders allowance (due to the size from memory) but as my wall tiles are 100x400 I wanted the floor tiles to line up properly with the wall tiles so they had to be 400 in length also. Again extra to lay those!

Its really hard to capture the colour correctly in photos, the lighting isn't great in showrooms and I had natural light on one side too so they look more grey in these than I remember them being. They are more brown than grey.


Now to the powder room - same floor tiles as above,  I chose to have the same white subway style gloss wall tiles also for continuity (tile within allowance, extra cost to lay), and in there I chose a really striking feature tile that I absolutely love!
The feature tile is a glass mosaic but because I chose to have it on such a large area only a small amount is included in the builders allowance. Plus extra to lay and extra for coloured grout.

This photo does not do the tiles justice, they look much better in person. As we have dark cabinets and a light benchtop I hope these are a nice contrast to the benchtop and the white wall tiles and create a beautiful striking space. After all the powder room is the bathroom that guests will use so I wanted it to pop!


Now upstairs to the bathroom - same style wall tile as downstairs but I think up stairs they are matte, same floor tile also. In the bathroom we have a white vanity and Osprey Caesarstone benchtop (same benchtop throughout the entire house, including the laundry) so I thought we could get away with having a darker feature tile running up the side of the bath surround and around the top of the bath. I chose a stacked stone tile so I really hope it looks ok!!
The feature tiles added cost above the allowance, and labour costs to lay, same with supply and lay coloured grout..

Again the colours here vary greatly from the actual colour of the tile. This is the only selection I have questioned in my head since so I really hope they look good!!


In the ensuite I chose the same wall tiles and floor tiles as the bathroom and for a feature tile I have chosen a large white tile with a pattern through it, also in white so it is quite subtle. This tile will be laid on the wall above the vanity, including the returns. The tile was within the builders range but we had to pay a tiny bit extra as I chose to have it laid on such a big area. Metricon allows for a small feature strip in each room, which I thought was really good.

Ensuite feature tile. We have dark cabinetry in there and the vanity is huge so lots of white on the walls should brighten it up.


In the toilets we are having the same floor tile as the bathrooms with just a skirting tile (same tile).

For the front balcony and balcony off the master suite I chose a similar toned tile to the other floor tiles, these were within the builders range so no extra charges there.

The consultant I had a Di Lorenzo was fantastic, very patient and helpful, and seemed honest too. Not pushy at all and didn't rush me in the slightest. I was there for almost 4 hours from memory and it took me an hour just to decide on the bathroom (the first room we did) - once I chose the basics like wall and floor tile the rest fell into place easily.

So there is the tile selection process and my choices! Hope that all made sense..