Everyone who has some major redesigning ideas for their kitchen or bath has a secret desire to know what OTHER people are doing. Even if they do not have any intention of imitating or copying others' ideas, they still want to believe their ideas are not too far out. This year, 2005, has been an exciting year for hand-painted tile. The overwhelming trend for kitchen and bathroom tile murals has been tropical fish. In multi-tile scenes with their natural environment of corals and rocks, and in single accent tiles to scatter around the room for effect, more people chose fish as their design theme than any other subject. One reason for the popularity of tropical fish as a design theme, I believe, is because there is such a huge variety of colors that any preconceived color scheme can be accommodated with some or other species, no matter what. Even if blue/green is the main color, the fish can float in their natural color background with no distracting rocks or brightly colored corals. Another reason could be because the idea for hand-painted tiles to beautifully accent a room's decor often comes, in typical human fashion, AFTER the basic colors have already been chosen. What theme has so many colors to match with as tropical fish? They are also great as an abstract theme as well. They are as wonderful in a whimsical, cartoonish style as they are in a realistic style. Kids love the fun ones in their tub and shower walls. Adults seem to like the more somber, darker colored abstracts, such as the copper-colored weather-vane look, with a greenish patina, an awesome mural in the kitchen! Silhouettes are popular too. Many fish species have a distinct profile that is easily recognizable in silhouette. Use varying colors and the effect is marvelous! Interspersed with silhouettes of other sea items like coral, shells, and other nautical items, and you have a one-of-a-kind art theme in your own special space. Believe it or not, even dead fish, done in a realistic style, can be painted to look excellent, rather like the way they look laid out in a market bin. It has a "French poster" look to it that goes very well in some country-style decors. Of course, this style works best with food fish, as opposed to tropical fish species. There really is no end to the marvelous themes and schemes that can be created using fish as a basic motif, whether food, game or tropical fish are used. Work with a tile artist who is open to all your ideas and she will create a magical space that will be tireless and timeless. I believe that with so many people catching on to the fish theme, this will be the hottest trend for years to come. Especially within all-white tile walls, the bright colors set off anything and everything you wish to accessorize, and these things can be changed every year and your tile will always have a color within that matches. |
