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How To Match Original Period Tiles

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Last summer we started restoring our guest bedroom and after one of the first steps – removing our laminate flooring – we were lucky to find some original period hearth tiles. As with everything in this house, they were covered in layers of gunky paint, but after a bit of stripping, we were amazed to find these lovely tiles!

Original Edwardian Tiles

Whilst they are lovely, some of them are sadly in a bad condition. We’ve of course been scouring our local antique and reclamation centres, but with thousands of different designs, it’s pretty much impossible to find the exact missing ones.

Period Tile Replacement

Not one to give up lightly, we eventually managed to find a solution and managed to find a company that prints onto tiles. Here’s the result.

Period Tile Replacement

Obviously, as the image is only printed onto the tile there isn’t any texture to it like on the original, but other than that it’s a pretty good match!

We thought replacing the tiles would be fairly straightforward, but as usual, when we think a project will be quick and easy it turns out to be the opposite.

Period Tile Replacement

Luckily the broken tiles were easy to remove just with a hammer and chisel, but at some point, a thick stone slab had been added to the back of the insert so that the new tiles wouldn’t fit into the opening as easily as imagined.

Being too scared to cut the new tiles (they were too expensive to mess up), we decided that cutting the stone slab would be a better option.

Period Tile Replacement

After chiselling away the corners of the slab the rest was straightforward. First of all, we gave the existing tiles a good clean (by covering them in a stripping solution to remove any last bits of dirt and paint) and then just glued down the tiles and grouted between them.

And this is what it looks like now.

Period Tile Replacement

If you look closely, you can of course tell the difference between the new and old tiles – mainly because the new ones are cleaner and shinier – but from a distance, you’d almost never know.

Have you ever discovered any hidden period features in your home? Have you ever replaced any tiles?

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Christine 10 Comments

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Comments

  1. Vanessa says

    30/08/2017 at 18:58

    Another thing I have never seen done. Very interesting!

    Reply
    • Christine says

      30/08/2017 at 19:50

      It wasn’t perfect but considering it would have been impossible to ever find the same tiles we were really pleased with the result!
      Cx

      Reply
  2. emma watson says

    29/01/2014 at 17:49

    Hi,
    Wow the tiles look great, I am in the same situation, trying to find old ones to match, could you tell me the name of the company you used? And also where did you take your doors to be stripped? Mine were boxed in like yours too.

    Great work, Emma x Where abouts are you in Manchester?

    Reply
    • Christine says

      29/01/2014 at 18:20

      Thanks, Emma! The company we used is called Wisdom Fireplaces in Levenshulme. It was £15 per tile, plus a one of fee of £30 if they have to do any work to the template file (in our case the scanned image was okay).
      It’ such a shame that people boxed up the original doors, removing all of the covers was one of the first things we did in the house. We took our doors to be stripped at Kwick Strip at the Antiques Village in Levenshulme. It took a week (although it can be done quicker) and was £15 per door.
      Good luck!
      Cx

      Reply
  3. Magali@TheLittleWhiteHouse says

    29/01/2014 at 12:06

    It looks aboslutely amazing!

    Reply
    • Christine says

      29/01/2014 at 13:08

      Thanks Magali! It’s such an improvement!
      Cx

      Reply
  4. Jessica@CapeofDreams says

    29/01/2014 at 02:17

    What a great solution! I am glad that you did not get rid of the original tile as so many people would. How much did the tiles cost to have printed, if you don’t mind me asking?

    Reply
    • Christine says

      29/01/2014 at 08:52

      The tiles were £15 each. Whilst it’s not cheap for a tile, it’s actually less than buying original ones!
      Cx

      Reply
  5. Antonia Ludden says

    28/01/2014 at 16:34

    Great job, you would never know looking at the photos, and what a lovely find! We tried to match up some taupe tiles on our 1930s fireplace that were missing and broken when we moved in. We couldn’t get the same colour, so opted for some darker brown ones as a contrast and it has worked pretty well. In fact most people assume the fireplace was always like that! You can see our fireplace here

    Reply
    • Christine says

      29/01/2014 at 08:57

      Thanks Antonia! Your fireplace really looks like it was meant to be that way! I actually really like the contrast that the darker tiles add. More importantly though – I love your door handles!
      Cx

      Reply
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