Tiles

In the quest for interesting, durable walls, your first stop should probably be your nearest tile shop. Tiles are available in every colour imaginable and in textures ranging from high-gloss ceramics and glass through to traditional terracotta.

The good news: tiles have never been easier to lay yourself. Many smaller tiles (up to 50mm wide) come on a mesh backing, so instead of laying each tile individually, you lay the sheets directly onto an adhesive. It’s much quicker and easier to get the tiles aligned properly.

If you’re dealing with larger, loose tiles or want to create a mosaic, there are products out there to help keep it simple. Bunnings has a Mosaic Craft Kit, $14.95, which includes everything you need to break, cut and lay tiles for mosaics inside and out. Delco makes a range of coloured grouts, $8 for a 2kg bag, for tone-on-tone or contrasting effects, while Dunlop Wall And Floor Tile Adhesive, $56 for 15kg, will stick just about any tile to any surface. And for those who still doubt their tiling abilities, the Ezi-grid Tile Underlay can be stuck to your base surface before laying the tiles. It is easily cut to fit any space, has a grid pattern cast into it (so keeping things straight is child’s play) and can be drawn over, so your mosaic patterns or detail tiles are placed perfectly. Expect to pay about $13.50 per 1500mm x 600mm x 6mm sheet.

Tiles look great above fireplaces, as feature walls and as wall strips to distinguish various spaces in open-plan living areas.

Check your surface is clean and flat before you begin and that your wall has enough structural strength to support the weight of tile you want to use. Also, in compliance with the national standards for tile fixing, an installation manual should be available with all tiles should. Ask your tile retailer for one or check out www.sandlerstone.com for user-friendly instructions.

Pebbles and river stones

If you like the rounded edges of river stones, you have a couple of options. Domayne, for instance, carries a range of tiles that are shaped to look like flattened pebbles. Sold on a backing sheet, they can easily be applied to any wall surface using tile adhesive and grout — these look particularly stunning with coloured grouts.

If the look you’re after is more dramatic, you may want to consider building a pebble wall. Like stackstone, these form a beautiful transition from indoor to outdoor areas but, unlike stackstone, they do take time and effort. Using 20-to-30mm pebbles to a depth of around 45mm, you can expect one square metre of wall to use up about three 20kg bags of stones. If you’ve built something like this before, you’ll know you have to build small sections at a time, rising up from floor level letting each layer dry before you continue.

If this level of DIY is not for you, book a stonemason to install the wall for you. You can expect to pay from $320 per square metre of wall for this service, plus the cost of the stones.

And yes, rocks are a natural resource, but companies such as Eco Concepts sell stones and pebbles that have been manufactured from quarried stone waste — granite, marble and quartz. These come in a wide variety of colurs, shapes and sizes, for indoor and outdoor use.

Pebble walls look great in narrow sections around corners, around pillars, as fireplace surrounds, or in dramatic indoor/outdoor entrance areas.

Check that you are using a cement-based (masonry) pebble cladding on load-bearing walls and fixtures. If unsure, check this with a builder.

Stackstone panels and stone cladding

With all the good looks and durability of slate, but with none of the fuss of installation, stackstone panels are an easy way to bring stunning natural texture into your living space. Sold in sections (usually about 600m x 150mm), all you do is apply a layer of tile adhesive to your wall and slabs (Sydney and Melbourne-based retailer Eco Concepts recommends Mapei Cement tile Adhesive, $16 per 20kg bag, for the job), then lay them in horizontal lines working from the floor up, pausing for an hour or so once you’re midway up, so your base has enough time to dry before holding the weight of the higher layers.

Stone cladding is installed in a similar way to stackstone panels and is also suitable for indoor and outdoor use. It’s a stunning way to create a visual flow indoors from your patio, verandah or courtyard area. Available in pieces ranging from 100mm x 200mm up to 600mm x 300mm, and in lots of natural colours and textures, stone cladding can create the effect of a stone wall without the heavy lifting.

Stackstone and stone cladding look treat as feature walls, above fireplaces and on walls that flow from inside to out.

Check that your wall and piles are strong enough to hold the weight of the stackstone or stone pieces, and that your surface is even. Also, check with your retailer if any pre- or post-installation surface treatments are recommended, and if the material you’ve chosen will work in your space — some natural stones can flex or expand in direct sunlight. Finally, these products should all come with manuals that detail exactly how they should be installed. Always ask for one at the time of purchase and follow it to the letter.

Beading and mouldings

For adding instant character to a wall, beading and decorative mouldings (such as corbals) are the easiest and most effective treatments around.

Beading is available in lengths from 1.8-metres and costs anywhere from $3 to $60 per length. Beading can simply be nailed or glued to your wall, any holes filled with putty, then painted. Use beading to re-create the look of wood panelling; as skirting boards, door surrounds and picture rails; to frame built-in mirrors, artwork or photos; or to add interest to an otherwise plain wall.

Check that they can go where you want them to. If you intend to use the picture rail, it’ll need a crossbeam behind it.

Word of warning

As many of the wall treatments we mention in these pages require building up from floor level, it’s a very good idea to check that your floor is flat before you begin. Simply place a spirit level where the floor and wall join. If your floor isn’t perfectly level, talk to you wall-cladding supplier about how to compensate for this during installation.

For more great ideas and practical solutions for your home see http://www.reallivingmag.com.au/