How a handmade cement tile is poured, one colour at a time
No printing, no kiln. A visit to the workshop where our cement tiles are made, and why each one takes nearly a month.
Vitrified, ceramic, cement or terrazzo: a floor for each room
Four floor materials, compared room by room for a Jaipur home: how each wears, feels underfoot, costs and ages.
Most homeowners who visit our showroom have already decided on a tile by colour. We usually ask them to step back and choose the material first, room by room. Here is how the four main floors compare.
Polished vitrified tiles and slabs are dense, low in water absorption and come in large sizes with very fine joints. They suit living and dining rooms, where a calm, continuous floor matters. They are slippery when wet and show scratches from grit, so keep them out of bathrooms and entrances. Expect ₹90 to ₹220 per sq ft for the tile.
Glazed ceramic is softer and lighter. It is ideal on walls, from kitchen backsplashes to shower areas, but less suited to busy floors. Handmade cement tiles are thick, matt and grippy, and their patterns go right through the tile rather than being printed on top. They suit bathrooms, verandahs and kitchens, and need sealing every two years. They cost ₹150 to ₹260 per sq ft.
Terrazzo is the most durable of the four. It is cool underfoot, which matters in a Jaipur May, and it can be ground and polished back to new after decades. Its weakness is acid, so it needs care in kitchens. Our tiles cost from ₹240 per sq ft. A practical plan for many homes is vitrified slabs in the living areas, terrazzo in bedrooms and passages, cement tiles in bathrooms and the verandah, and glazed ceramic on the walls.
