Erin’s Picks • Cersaie 2024 Trends

Hello design friends! It has been just a couple of weeks since I returned from Italy, and what a great trip it was! It was jam-packed with tile and food, of course! 😉 This year, I got the opportunity to make tortellini with our friends at BND Team! Such a fun time and such a challenging pasta shape to make! I’m looking forward to making some tortellini en brodo very soon since sweater weather seems to be in full effect in upstate NY.

Another funny thing is that fun neon signs are becoming a thing at the manufacturer’s booth. I saw one that said tiles are sexy, which I agree with; it almost made the blog, but the one that got me thinking was Design Victim. I looked at it, said hmm, thought about it, and then told our rep Antonio, yup, that’s accurate. He laughed.

I sometimes think about the ‘what if’ I didn’t go to school for Interior Design and had stuck with veterinary medicine. I wouldn’t have experienced all of these beautifully designed materials I get to see every year – I might have gotten a little more sleep at night instead of working until 2 a.m. Still, I think there would have been a design void in my heart if I wasn’t doing what I’m doing.

This blog topic – Cersaie trends – is one of my favorite topics to write about because this show sets the tile trends for the upcoming year. This season, in particular, I felt like the trends really needed to be categorized into 3 segments – color, look & technology – because there was a definite emphasis on at least one of these segments in each manufacturer’s booth or showroom

Let’s take a look at this new season of trends (and buckle up! This will be sort of a long blog)…

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TRENDS | Color Palettes

Color is always a topic of discussion every year—whether it’s the inclusion of blue and green into color palettes or the shift of color palettes focusing on warm tones—there seems to be something happening with color each season.

This year, in particular, I came across a blog from Tile of Spain, “Color Trends in Ceramic Tiles”, that really captures what is going on with the color story evolution in ceramic tiles, as well as interior design as a whole. Tile of Spain states four color schemes are taking over ceramic trends 2024: Natural Selection, Serene Shades, Enchanting Hues, and Ethereal Elegance. I will focus on Natural Selection and Serene Shades because the colors in these palettes have been very present throughout the collections we’ve been launching over the last few years. I’ve noticed that some people like the colors and others do not. I like the explanation Tile of Spain provides for the reason why, and who knows, those that did not like the colors may change their minds after reading the why.

Natural Selection (bottom left): “As the desire to connect with nature only grows, Spanish tile makers continue to look to outdoor colors for inspiration. Enhanced by pigments reminiscent of water, fire, and earth, this palette infuses the essence of nature into every space. Ceramics in deep blues and emeralds dominate, complemented by terracotta oranges and sandy neutrals.” (We also see these same trends from Italian manufacturers as well.)

Serene Shades (bottom right): Promoting peace and clarity within our homes, this arrangement focuses on soft, soothing hues. This spectrum welcomes airy pink shades to curate the ideal ambiance for relaxation and unwinding. Pairing these tones with metallic accents such as copper, brass, or champagne will achieve a sophisticated aesthetic.

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TRENDS | Color Pops

Color pops are the individual colors that stood out at Cersaie, and to me, it was Petrol Blue and Peachy Pinks. I think Petrol Blue will be the color most US designers will lean towards because this teal-like color sits nicely between blue and green on the color wheel. But who knows, maybe as terracotta and rose tones increase in popularity, the peachy pinks will have their day in the spotlight?

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TRENDS | Looks

Let’s take a look at those looks that wowed us at Cersaie 2024…

• Stone | French Limestone – This was this season’s ‘it’ stone look. Manufacturers focus on the subtle nuances of this stone, its textures, and the traditional patterns in which the natural stone was typically found but put their twist on their version. We saw Versailles patterns, but instead of being individual pieces, the patterns were printed on 48″x48″ tiles, and from a distance, you could not tell that it was a printed tile. Another manufacturer put their own twist on a chiseled edge; instead of putting the actual chisel edge on the tile, they printed it, and it’s really gooooood! You had to touch it to confirm that it wasn’t chiseled.

• Wood | Slats, parquets and reliefs, oh my! – Wood porcelain looks are the comeback kid this year, they are definitely seeing a resurgence now that manufacturers are incorporating dimensional decor in the form of slatted and patterned reliefs. I noticed wood slats in 2023, and I’m glad they’ve held on and are gaining popularity because I think wood is a great material to incorporate in unusual spaces like showers or kitchen backsplashes where you wouldn’t want to use real wood. I really want to gut my bathroom and install a slatted or patterned wood like Woodlot in my shower, but shhhh! don’t tell my boyfriend that! We’re done with projects for the year.

• Color Melding & Marbleizing – I saw a collection in 2021 exploring this method that I really liked, but I didn’t envision this technique being incorporated into multiple collections and having more dramatic color combinations in 2024 – definitely a happy surprise! I love the technique involved with this look because you build your color story, whether it’s focused on bold, bright colors or soft, muted colors, and then mix and marbleize them together. I have never tried marbleizing paper, but after seeing these collections, I want to give it a try. This look is definitely specific and won’t work for every project, but for the right one, it will truly stand out and will be eye-catching!

• Playing in the 3rd Dimension – With this look, I’m referring to 3D reliefs and not the new 3D digital printing because that will be covered in Technology Advancements. 3D reliefs have varied from year to year; sometimes, they are more geometric, and other years, more focused on organic. This year we’ve gone back to geometric with a focus on linear and architectural millwork profiles, which is something I really love. Some of this look overlaps with what we saw in wood reliefs, but it is expanding beyond wood visuals to chromatic, stone, and terrazzo visuals. With some of these reliefs, manufacturers are also incorporating trims to finish the look and offer the complete package of materials.

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TRENDS | Technology Advancements

We started seeing 3D digital printing being used at Cersaie in 2022. I wrote my first blog on this technology, and we’ve continued to see its use and advancements. It’s wild to see how much it has advanced in just two years! These were some of my favorite advancements that I saw this year:

• Optical illusions: We saw tiles resembling Legos, but once you touched them, they were completely flat. On the flip side, we saw tiles like the aggregate one below that, from a distance, looked flat, but once you shined a light on the material or touched it, you could see and feel the raised texture created by 3D digital printing. It was very cool.
• Backlit & faux backlit tiles: These were WILD!! And I can’t say which one was crazier to see because it’s mind blowing to think they created a glaze that makes the tile glow as if it were backlit, but then to think they found raw materials that when illuminated make the tile actual glow is crazy as well !!
• Mica sparkle: Some manufacturers have started incorporating real mica into their tiles to create that realistic mica sparkle that you see in some natural stones. The sparkle was gorgeous, but it was a little challenging to photograph, so I only caught a little bit of it in the photo below.
• Printing on the edge: I saw this for the first time at Coverings 2024, and it was cool to see as well. With the introduction of 12mm slabs, manufacturers are creating their own lines of furniture, from sink vanities to tabletops. Some manufacturers are working to get the veining through the body of the slab, but this manufacturer has decided to print the veining on the edge of the tabletop.

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Which trend is your favorite? Please share your thoughts!

If you would like to learn more about these trends, please contact your local A&D Consultant and we can schedule an appointment to discuss these trends.

Follow me on IG @creativecurations_erin

Until next time…
E