Cuban Tiles for the Fifth Wall: The Ceiling

Cuban tiles use bold, bright colors like salmon or indigo. Also prominent in Cuban Tiles is the use of double borders. Cuban Tile is de rigueur flooring for Miami homes built in the Spanish Mediterranean Revival period. This bright bathroom uses a classic Cuban Heritage Pattern in the bold, contemporary colors of Turquoise, Brown, and Caribbean Blue. The tile used on the floor, wall, and ceiling of this particular installation exudes a modern and cool feel. Here, a border is also used between the wall and floor joints to provide a boundary and transition.

Ideas for Using Cuban Tiles

Cement tiles became known as Cuban Tiles because of their ubiquitous use in both residential and commercial applications on the island of Cuba. Cuban tiles, as seen in our Cuban Heritage Handmade Cement Tile collection, use bold, bright colors like salmon or indigo. Also prominent in Cuban tile is the use of double borders. Here's a wonderful example of contemporary cement tile design.

Some design tips to keep in mind:

• Limit your choices to a few colors.
• Choose simple patterns that use just a few colors in a contemporary palette.
• Install patterns so they run to the edge of the room.
• Use a border at the edge of a room if you're installing the same pattern on vertical and horizontal surfaces to provide a transition.
• On simple geometric patterns, try "mismatching" dark and light colors on neighboring tile. This works well for high-contrast tiles.

For more cement tile design inspiration, check out all the ideas we've posted on houzz.com, our Pinterest boards, and browse through dozens of our Cement Tile Design Ideaspages.