Summary:
Terrazzo is a composite material made by combining chips of marble, quartz, granite, or glass with a binder, typically cement, to create durable and visually distinctive surfaces. Its combination of strength, longevity, and design versatility has contributed to its ongoing popularity in both residential and commercial projects.
A key reason for terrazzo's resurgence is its remarkable design flexibility. Homeowners and designers can choose from subtle, traditional terrazzo patterns featuring fine stone chips or embrace contemporary designs with bold colours, oversized fragments, and graphic patterns. Modern collections showcase creative colour combinations and reinterpret terrazzo for today's interiors.
Manufacturing technology have expanded terrazzo's possibilities. New materials, colours, and production techniques allow designers to create increasingly innovative looks while maintaining the material's timeless character. Additionally, terrazzo can be balanced with plain or textured tiles to create a harmonious design that suits a variety of aesthetic styles.
What is terrazzo?
Terrazzo is a composite material used to form a range of finishes from kitchen benchtops to bathroom walls and floors. Terrazzo tiles combine chips of marble, quartz, granite or glass with a binder (usually cement) to create stunning, timeless surfaces.
History
Terrazzo has been used for centuries in the countries surrounding the Mediterranean. While the technique first used to make terrazzo is thought to have started with the Ancient Greeks and Egyptians, terrazzo as we know it today originates in the 15th Century Venetian Empire.
The style was born when Venetian stone workers brought home scraps of quarts, marble chips and other stones from the state-commissioned projects they were working on and combined them with clay mortar to create smooth surfaces like terrazzo floors in their own homes.
Although the style has evolved over the centuries, and now boasts a large collection of approaches and styles including precast terrazzo, monolithic terrazzo, sand cushion terrazzo, and rustic terrazzo, the essentials have remained the same - fragments of stone, crystal and other materials bound together to form beautiful surfaces.
Why now?
Terrazzo works to provide either a subtle or bold statement. You can choose either the traditional terrazzo-look tiles with the natural small chips or contemporary graphic terrazzo-look tiles, which are gaining popularity, to really stand out.
Our Medley collection is a prime example, with non-traditional colour combinations like pink and green used together and modern stone chunks scattered throughout.
Whether that’s in high-end kitchen renovations, bathrooms, or even as feature walls, terrazzo’s versatility makes it an ideal alternative to other more conventional tile styles.
Innovations in terrazzo
With advances in modern technology and design possibilities, terrazzo is more formidable than ever. Due to world-wide interest, manufacturers are pushing the boundaries of colour and design combinations; as well as combining epoxy resins and other suitable materials making it even more dynamic to work with. The likes of Medley rock pink or terrazzo clay tiles are just the beginning; if you would like more inspiration and design tips, browse our extensive collection of terrazzo tiles.
Take the leap
If you are hesitant and feel terrazzo is too strong a design statement to make in your home rest assured, you can tone it down. By including contrast plain tiles to lay on adjacent walls you can soften the look and allow the terrazzo to shine. Another popular option is to include a third tile in the design, a smaller feature tile to add texture and shape is always beautiful. This addition works well on the vanity wall behind the mirror, with interesting feature lights bringing the space to life.
Contact our friendly team today and organise a visit to our showroom or a design consultation.
