Have you ever heard the sound of cat's claws prancing on your roof? No? Well, back to Victorian England, when most roofs were made of this iconic fired red clay, and the play of roof cats every night gave rise to the word tile. It seems that the commotion evokes the French word "tuile", which itself originally comes from the Latin "tegula", which means roof tiles.

Leaving aside the cat's antics, the origin of tiles can be traced back to pre-recorded history. Evidence of some form of ceramic tiles can be traced back to 25,000 years ago. There are good examples of Egyptian tiles from 4,700 BC. In modern archeological excavations around the world, painted tiles from ancient Greece and Rome have been unearthed continuously.

From the 12th to the 16th century, ceramic tile making was an elegant art-laborious and laborious. Potters traveled around, often using local clay, cutting, shaping, carving, molding, drying and glazing with materials such as lead ores. Then they opened fire. Expensive and luxurious tiles were used in religious and royal buildings, and finally decorated the mansions and palaces of gentlemen and wealthy merchants, which were beyond the reach of ordinary people. 

Ceramic tile production declined in the 1600s, but hand-painted glazed tiles were once again all the rage in the next century (the Dutch Golden Age), when the legendary Dutch merchants discovered ancient artifacts during the global conquest. Soon, the legendary Dutch craftsmen easily copied these techniques and restored the splendor of this art. 

In the aforementioned Victorian era of cats prancing on the roof, the porcelain manufacturer Herbert Minton revived the production of painted tiles and developed dust suppression, which is a common modern manufacturing method. This mass production process ultimately creates a product that the masses can afford. 

Let's fast forward to a closer time-the home restoration of Howard and Stephanie Fink, residents of southwest Minneapolis. 

In 2004, in order to accommodate the visits of their growing family and grandparents, the couple was looking for “an old house with three to four bedrooms, the space feels like home, there is good flow between public areas, and easy access Main floor," Howard Fink said. 

They moved from a smaller Armatage house to their now spacious Kenwood residence. 

“When we walked into the house, the first things we saw were high ceilings, many windows, an attractive entrance to the colorful oak restaurant, and a buffet with stained glass mosaic windows,” Fink recalled. 

They were fascinated. The location—close to the city center, residential areas, restaurants, lakes and trails—consolidated their decision.

Fink, a self-proclaimed perfectionist, performed precise and loving renovations, including the living room and its extraordinary craftsman-style fireplace. 

The fireplace woodwork has been completely painted, and like many renovation projects, there are secrets hidden under the surface. 

"Below the beige paint were layers of gray, red, and yellow," he recalled. "The fireplace was covered with very ugly four-inch square brown tiles." 

Once the entire room has been meticulously restored-restore the woodwork to its original splendor, replace the small French bookcase door they found in the attic, and adjust the mantle candlestick to imitate the other two in the house-"The fireplace is very eye-catching. " 

Fink initially considered removing the unsightly brown tiles on the fireplace and sandblasting the bricks below. After further thinking and consideration, he decided to replace the old tiles-this effort made him embark on a journey worth pursuing the Holy Grail. 

From the beginning, he knew that he wanted a craftsman-style appearance to commemorate the original style. 

"I looked through about six pictures of old craftsman fireplaces to get ideas about patterns," he explained, "measure all aspects of our fireplaces, draw ideas on graph paper, and map the location of each tile."

Discussing each step of the process with his wife Stephanie, the two “finally agreed to use a horizontal rectangular tile design of the same size as the bricks below, with a very specific row of tiles in the vertical direction (called a soldier row) in the bottom row.” 

Then they envisioned tile mosaic inserts, which were designed to mimic the stained glass mosaics on a restaurant buffet. Fink hopes that these tile mosaics have mullions (a slender vertical decorative element that forms the separation between window units) and as a background "looks like you are looking through the window."

While searching for tile ideas online, Fink stumbled upon the website of the Handmade Tile Association and noticed an exhibition held by the organization at the Edina Art Center. There he met Josh Blanc, the owner of Clay Squared. 

Fink's idea of ​​connecting the living room and the dining room is a big hit. He sketched out his precise ideas and brought them to Blanc's shop. "Josh seems to appreciate my detailed positioning. He is a craftsman/artist. He not only understands the creative process, but can also provide guidance for thinking projects in the style and context of our house." 

Fink found a spirit of collaboration and like-mindedness.

The key to any refurbishment project is active communication between the customer and the craftsman. The business model operated by Clay Squared not only encourages cooperation, but also provides practical customer education tools to ensure success. 

Blank explained that his company “has created a series of learning tools and visual aids to help homeowners understand the process of designing tile projects for their homes. We provide planning guides for kitchens, bathrooms, and fireplaces. Project... We also provide a sample program so that homeowners can take out sample tiles and design boards to see what they look like at home." 

In fact, Finks provides a lot of background knowledge and knowledge, which Blanc believes will contribute to an excellent final project. They brought two photos of glass mosaics in the dining room and scaled them to the size of the fireplace mosaic they wanted. 

"Josh helped Stephanie and I choose the colors of grapes, branches, leaves, mullions, and window glass from the samples in the store," Fink said. "Then he created a representative and abstract version of the mosaic."

Fink said that for Blank, no explanation would be too troublesome, and he believed that every customer deserves full attention and understanding. 

The resulting tiled fireplace (installed by Hohn & Hohn Inc.) is the heart of Fink's home. 

  "Every time I look at the fireplace," Fink said, "I am as happy with it as the day I installed the tiles. We think it's beautiful."

Once the scope of the project has been determined and the tiles selected and made, the next critical step is installation. 

Ian Cunningham, a tile contractor on the East Island, understands the importance of tile setting better than most people. This humble craftsman is a veritable tile Jedi-Obi-Wan Kenobi wears work boots, flannel shirts and blue jeans, brandishes his saber, and a special tile saw.

The tiles are cute, tricky and ruthless. Whether customized or commercial, tiles are a combination of clay, minerals and solvents. They are shaped and sized, and then heated to very high temperatures. Then most of them are glazed, adding a non-porous element that is usually impermeable, so it is suitable for all areas, including kitchens and bathrooms, foyer and countertops. But before they are grouted, they are fragile and fragile.

This is where Cunningham's artistic background and "good vision" set him apart from the general contractor. 

Cunningham, who received a degree in fine arts from the University of Minnesota in 1978, still proudly recalls his high-level exhibition at the Wisman Museum of Art. The reason is good: he inherited the downstairs of the mansion from his father, and shared his artistic appreciation with his wife Michelle, sons Jared and Ethan, the lively Portuguese water dog Rio, and the cute cats Rocky and Monty. Strength and ability. 

"My first job was when I was 14 years old," he recalled, "laying tiles in a duplex apartment in South Minneapolis, the entrance was very complicated. The general contractor couldn't believe I could find out so easily Patterns, the uneven surface is processed into the final, smooth perfection." And he was still a teenager.

Tile installation is a arduous task. Most of the time is spent on cold, hard floors or squeezed in narrow bathroom spaces, working around immovable objects such as porcelain thrones. Using irreplaceable custom tiles requires dexterity and skill to get it right the first time. 

It has been operating full-time for nearly 50 years mainly through word of mouth, which shows the quality and popularity of Cunningham's work. A recent project caused a surprising reaction from a fellow craftsman due to the accuracy and speed of Cunningham's installation of a tricky bathroom backsplash with intricate patterns in just three hours. 

"The carpenter looked at me," Cunningham said with a smile, "and exclaimed that it would take him three days instead of three hours to nail it!" 

Such talents are still in high demand. Cunningham said that most of his projects in the past few years have come from a single contractor, Johamel, headquartered in Sao Paulo. There is no website, only a flip phone. It can be said with certainty that Ian Cunningham does have this power. He is happy to answer the call 612-822-0304.

In 2018, more than 3 billion square feet of tiles were installed in the United States. 

In addition to aesthetics, ceramic tiles are an ideal surface: strong, non-fading, hygienic and flame-retardant. It does not conduct heat or conduct electricity, does not absorb odors or release harmful chemicals, does not expand or contract under extreme temperatures, and is easy to clean. In terms of flooring, ceramic tiles are popular because of their wide variety, cost-effectiveness, and ease of maintenance. 

Just be careful of the prancing cat!