What tiles for the kitchen wall?

If you're wondering what tiles to choose for the kitchen wall, pay attention primarily to the durability, functionality, and easy maintenance of the material. The kitchen is one of the most used rooms in the house. Here you cook, talk to family and friends, and also share meals. Devote time to pleasures, not constant cleaning or frequent renovations. Use key tips on how to select tiles for the kitchen to achieve a durable and beautiful result.

What will you learn from this article?

When choosing kitchen tiles, you need to pay attention to the specific conditions in the room. Aesthetics are important, but the functionality of the solution is also crucial. From this article, you will learn:

• What to pay attention to when buying kitchen wall tiles.

• Which tiles will provide an optical enlargement of the space.

• Whether the best kitchen tiles are large format.

What kitchen wall tiles to choose so you won't regret

From the outset, we want to emphasize: there are no perfect wall tiles for the kitchen, that work in every home and apartment. However, after analyzing the technical and stylistic parameters, you can opt for modern tiles, resistant to mechanical damage and easy to clean.

By learning about the principles of kitchen design, you will quickly conclude that aesthetics of the interior and the technical parameters of the applied solutions are two different things. Focus on both aspects to make the selection of suitable tiles closer to ideal.

Kitchen wall tiles are very popular among people planning kitchen renovations and have a significant advantage over other finishing materials:

• They are easy to clean — their surface is resistant to dirt.

• The higher the class of ceramic tiles, the more resistant they are to mechanical damage.

• Modern kitchen tiles use minimal grout width. If you don't already have such a solution, check how to remove and replace the old grout.

• Kitchen tiles are characterized by moisture resistance. When choosing a specific model, pay attention to their absorbency rate.

The most important technical parameters of tiles for every interior

Tiles for the kitchen, like for other rooms, differ from each other in technical parameters. It's worth choosing durable, easy-to-clean, and functional tiles. The right finishing material ensures convenient use of the room and makes the interior design aesthetic.

If you're wondering which kitchen tiles will be appropriate, pay attention primarily to the following technical parameters:

• Grade — especially pay attention to tiles of grade 1, which have no surface defects. They meet 100% of the manufacturer's requirements. These tiles are less prone to damage and adverse conditions prevailing in the kitchen.

• Abrasion class — determines the hardness of the glaze during intensive use. For wall tiles, PEI class 1 or PEI 2 is sufficient. In their case, abrasion resistance is not as important as for floor tiles. However, for your kitchen, choose tiles resistant to abrasion and scrubbing.

• Absorbency — this parameter describes the ability of the tiles to absorb water. The kitchen walls should have tiles with very low absorbency, below 0.5%. This is met by glazed gres available from Mexen. The material is resistant to moisture, grease, and other dirt. It is also durable and easy to clean.

• Durability — large-format wall tiles should have adequate resistance to bending. The best models have about 15 MPa durability.

• Rectification — this parameter indicates whether the wall tiles have been precisely cut after firing. This way, tiles of precise dimensions are created, where minimal amounts of grout can be used. Rectified kitchen tiles are mainly worth choosing for modern, minimalist interiors.

How to match tiles to the kitchen's area?

Many customers wonder, whether large-format tiles will work in a small kitchen. Yes. Designers currently recommend laying large tiles, e.g. 120 x 60 cm, in small spaces to optically enlarge the area.

Naturally, a large kitchen provides much more design freedom, and tiles measuring 120 × 60 cm will look good in it. They will allow you to achieve the effect of a smooth, homogeneous wall. Opt for this purchase mainly for a modern, minimalist interior. Importantly, you can also use smaller format tiles in a large kitchen.

Kitchen style and tile colors

There are many ways to finish walls in a kitchen. Choose materials according to your preferences and the expected final effect. Depending on the kitchen's design, you can highlight the space's character with tiles, optically enlarge it, or designate specific zones. Here are a few of the most popular ways to use wall tiles in the kitchen.

Modern kitchen

In modern kitchens, tiles imitating natural materials are often used. Marble, stone, or concrete patterns are popular. The most popular tile colors are definitely white and grey. Find out how to arrange a modern white-grey kitchen. With this color scheme, the interior is minimalist, simple, and easy to clean. The best effect is provided by large-format tiles made of glazed gres, with a high gloss or matte finish.

Scandinavian style kitchen

If you love the Scandinavian style, choose kitchen tiles in beige, white, cream, or light grey. They will visually enlarge the space and brighten the interior. Scandinavian interiors love simplicity, so don't go overboard with patterns and complex shapes of kitchen tiles. Large-format tiles are a good choice, which will create a uniform, simple wall surface.

Loft-style kitchen

Tiles imitating concrete or available in a deep black color are the best to emphasize the loft kitchen style. You can break the raw interior with accessories in green or blue. It will introduce some warmth into your kitchen.

Glamour style kitchen

Glossy wall tiles are a domain of glamour interiors. Mainly, it's worth opting for dark grey, brown, dark green, or black shades. They stand out for their class and timeless elegance. During shopping, pay attention to accessories in gold and silver colors. If you choose the glamour style in the kitchen, there's a high chance you'll need to spend a bit more time cleaning. Glossy surfaces on walls and furniture are challenging, they easily get dirty, but if you consciously make this choice at the design stage, it shouldn't be a problem.

Tile colors and kitchen equipment

Ensure that your kitchen is stylistically consistent. If you're purchasing dark kitchen furniture, break it with a light color of tiles on the walls and floor. Ceramic tiles are available in many beautiful patterns, colors, and textures, so you'll easily match their shape and aesthetics to the furniture fronts.

If you want the kitchen space to be color-coherent, you can diversify dark furniture and kitchen tiles with lighter decors. This addition will give the room dynamics and make a very good impression.

Tile texture and patterns versus kitchen equipment

Ceramic tiles have different textures and patterns, with the most popular being imitations of concrete, stone, or marble. If you want to place tiles with a geometric pattern over the kitchen counter, choose uniform-colored kitchen fronts. This will avoid chaos in the room's design. Using too many textures in the kitchen will be overwhelming.

The concrete-imitating structure on ceramic tiles perfectly works with wooden kitchen furniture. Such a solution can be used in a modern kitchen arrangement.

Large gres tiles are the best choice for kitchen walls

Gres kitchen tiles are an excellent choice for the kitchen. You can lay them on both walls and floors. This type of ceramic tile is subjected to an additional evaporation process, which increases the durability and resilience of the surface to damage. Additionally, large gres tiles are frost-resistant, so they can also be used outdoors. Mexen's offer primarily includes glazed gres in 120 × 60 cm dimensions.

Large-format kitchen tiles, especially in uniform shades, should be laid on walls. They allow achieving a beautiful effect of filling the space above the kitchen counter.

Which kitchen tiles to choose to achieve a perfect interior?

Tiles for the kitchen must be durable because the kitchen is a heavily used room every day. The purchase should be made after a thorough analysis of the area and the arrangement needs. Following the guidelines in this article, you should primarily opt for glazed gres. You can easily keep the material clean to achieve a beautiful effect of a well-maintained interior.

You have to take into account that in the kitchen, the temperature and humidity are higher than in other rooms in the house, which encourages the development of microorganisms. High-quality tiles provide effective wall protection. It's much harder to remove spilled liquids or splattering grease from paint. You can easily do this with ceramic tiles.

In summary, we remind you of the most important aspects you need to pay attention to when choosing wall tiles for the kitchen:

1. Glazed gres is an excellent finishing material for the kitchen due to its low absorbency, easy maintenance, and availability in many colors and patterns.

2. Don't be afraid to use large-format tiles in a small kitchen. You will visually enlarge the space.

3. Large tile formats are a natural choice for spacious kitchens, open to the living room.

4. The choice of tiles depends on abrasion class, quality, durability, and absorbency.

5. The kitchen style determines the color of the tiles. At the design stage, choose bright or dark, patterned or smooth wall tiles.