Choosing Kitchen Tiles on a Budget

Decorating your kitchen  can be challenging as there are so many options for colours, finish, material, size, shape and style that it can be difficult to know where to start. Whether you are after floor tiles or wall tiles here’s a guide to choosing kitchen tiles on a budget.

Browse through magazines and get create by making your own ‘digital kitchen tile board

Start by getting some magazines or free brochures from your local DIY stores to find inspiration for colours, wood type and general design ideas and finishes.

Why not get creative by using PowerPoint or Pinterest to make yourself a digital kitchen tile board. It will help you make those all important choices. You can even take the board shopping with you and show it to sales associates or email it to online retailers so they have an idea of your visual.

Picking out your favourite budget tiles

When shopping for those perfect kitchen tiles you can create a "high end look for less" by mixing an inexpensive ceramic backsplash tile with either stone or glass. You can use stone or glass mosaics, cut them into strips and add them to your backsplash design. You can also use a decorative stone liner as an accent piece. Some other inexpensive options include:

• You can take a large wall or floor ceramic tile and lay it out in a horizontal or vertical brick pattern. This covers a lot of space for not a lot of money.
• Glass mosaic tile has become a budget-friendly backsplash option. 
• Ceramic mosaics are also an inexpensive option. 
• Ceramic mosaics are being made to mimic natural stone. It is difficult to tell the difference, but they cost a lot less. 
• Decorative glass liners  add a lot of punch to a backsplash. 
• Ceramic profiles like twist pencils can add texture and depth to a backsplash.

Fit them yourself

The price tag for a tile project is materials plus labour; instead of hiring a professional decorator you might want do the work yourself so you have more money to spend on the tile. Even if you don’t set the tile and grout it, you can do the preparation, hang the cement board and mortar the seams. Tiling is taught at in-store weekend stores, there are also videos for DIY decorators.