www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_DxI9CNinM

Mexican Tile is  used widely here in South Florida.  There are many styles of Mexican tile.  And while doing some research on these beautiful tile that the Colonial Floor and Stone Care has cleaned and polished, I found that they have a long and varied history.

Mexican tile, would lead you to believe that all the tile were made in Mexico, how ever Talavera Tile dates back to 15^th century Spain. When the Italians introduced the artisan work of the Arabic, Italian, and Asian designed tile during the 15^thcentury to Spain. Using all the knowledge from those styles of clay tiles, Talavera ceramic was born.  Designs and patterns are traced back to Chinese and Philippine origins while even older variations of this art form date back to 8^th century Arabic culture. Craftsmen in Italy began experimenting with glazes during the Middle Ages,  and as a result many new colors were developed.   And after the Spanish colonization of Mexico, the Spaniards introduced ceramic tile production and Mexican artisans adopted it and again adding their own flare,color and design.

Handcrafted ceramic tile is a  cultural heritage in Mexico, the  practice of making clay tile began in the late sixteen century, around 1570 and 1573. The decorative ceramic tiles have actively played a distinguished role as an important utilitarian and decorative element in Mexican architecture.  The tiles are made from clay dug out of the ground, mixed with water to form tile or pottery and fired in a Kiln  to temperatures that clay undergoes chemical changes and becomes permanently hard. Then the tile is glazed and decorated by hand, and fired once again to give it its final and lively finish.

Its physical characteristics make Mexican tiles particularly attractive and distinctive. Mexican tiles are concave (not perfectly flat). The tiles are unique, hand painted, original and a part of a functional decor.  There are many types of  Mexican tiles, Terra Cotta  which means Burnt Earth, are the most known, and once again, are made by digging for the clay earth that can be mixed with water and hand pressed into forms to make each individual tile different.  NYC  even recognizes the importance of this type of material and is preserving  historic Terra Cotta and using it in new design architecture.

Whether you have decorative, brightly hand painted Mexican tile on your back splash in your kitchen or decorating your patio, or beautiful Glazed Mexican Terra Cotta floor tiles,  the professionals at Colonial Floor and Stone Care, will bring back the shine to your Mexican tile.  Call for a free estimate or go to Colonial Floor and Stone Care to request your free estimate.

We can be reached at 305-731-2242 for Miami/Dade county, 965-566-4555 for Ft. Lauderdale/Broward county and 561-337-1408 for West Palm Beach/Palm Beach county.