Before you go spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on your new, incredibly beautiful kitchen backsplash or master bathroom tile shower surround or shimmering iridescent pool, make sure to get samples first! Take a minute (and just a few dollars) and order a full sheet or quarter sheet sample of the tile or blend you want. It's amazing how vibrant and distinctive the colors can be when you see them up close and in person. Make sure you get the look you've always dreamed of by designing your own blend with the Custom Blend Tile Designer, ordering a sample sheet of it, and holding it in your hands as you stand in the room that is to receive the installation.

A stitch in time saves nine, is a phrase from childhood that applies even double in this case.

Avoid mistakes with expensive designer glass mosaic tile by ordering a full sheet or quarter sheet sample before you place your full order. It's a lot easier to correct a color, texture or finish issue you find with a sample sheet rather than with 400 sq. ft. (or more!) that you just got delivered.

We also recommend always ordering 5% to 10% more tile than you think you need, because getting specific mosaic patterns to match exactly from month to month is often effectively impossible. As the tiles are custom kiln-fired in small batches, the same "color" of tile can look different enough from batch to batch to cause a noticeable glitch in your project.

Remember, the rules are:

1) Always order a sample first, and look at it in the room where it will be installed to make sure it's exactly what you had in mind.

2) Order 5% to 10% more than you think you need. It's always handy down the road for repairs and the like, and it's very difficult getting an exact shade match months after the initial order.

Follow these two rules, and you'll have a lot less to worry about when it comes time to actually do the project.

Please contact us by email or telephone - 1-866-939-1033 - if you have any questions about these recommendations.

The picture above shows a really good example of why ordering a sample sheet is a good idea. The design looks fabulous with the cabinets and countertop, but it would be tough to be SURE of that until you could hold a sheet in your hands and look at the scene close up.