Hexagon Tile Ideas – 12 Ways to Work the Geometric Trend in Your Home
Ideal for adding an unusual touch, hexagon tiles can be laid in many ways. Their unique shape makes them well suited to tiling unconventionally shaped and awkward spaces too.
As the demand for these quirky geometric tiles has grown, so has the range of materials available. Whatever your style, you’ll be able to find a hexagonal tile to suit it. Whether you’re a big fan of rustic terracotta or natural stone or prefer the sleek looks of porcelain or glass, hexagonal tiles are available in an impressive range of materials.
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Recommended Tile: Ava Blanco Plain
Hexagon tile ideas
In need of tiling inspiration for your kitchen, bathroom, hallway or utility area? Let us guide you through some of the most creative and beautiful ways to lay hexagonal tiles in your home.
Lay them pointy edge up
Like square tiles, hexagonal tiles can be laid with the straight or pointed edge facing up. There isn’t a right or wrong way to lay hex tiles, it all comes down to personal preference. If you’re leaving the tiles at the edges whole, rather than cutting them to make a straight line, the pointy edge up can make slightly more of an impact and leave a pretty zig-zag effect.
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Recommended Tile: Hopi Decor
Or straight edge up
Hexagon tiles provide plenty of opportunities for creativity. Have fun designing practical and aesthetically pleasing splashbacks in kitchens and bathrooms. As hexagonal tiles are an attractive shape, you can play around with laying them up the wall, placing some higher than others.
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Recommended Tile: Ava Azul Decor
Liven up a shower niche
Shower niches are a smart addition to bathrooms and provide convenient storage space for shower gels and shampoo. Not only practical, shower niches provide a small space to get creative with your tiles. We love the combination of classic metro tiles and miniature hexagon mosaics in this design.
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Recommended Tile: Waxmans Hexagon Matt White
Create a non-slip floor
Small tiles can make a big impact on a bathroom floor. As well as looking fantastic, the large areas of grout ensure an effective non-slip surface. For additional peace of mind, choose tiles with a matt, rather than a highly polished surface.
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Add the wow factor to a cloakroom
Hexagonal tiles are anything but dull and they’re an inspired choice if you want to revamp a tired cloakroom. You can choose from a range of jewel-bright colours or opt for a more neutral colour palette. Whatever you choose, you won’t be disappointed.
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Recommended Tile: Ava Aqua Plain
Style a simple splashback
Sometimes, the simplest designs pack the biggest style punch. White tiles are always a good choice; timeless, elegant and often budget-friendly, they’ll go with all other colours and you’ll be unlikely to go off them. Hexagonal tiles add a little extra to a white colour scheme, pair them with black grout to emphasise their shape.
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Have fun with colour
Like a patchwork quilt, you can combine different coloured hexagon tiles to create a unique splashback in your kitchen or bathroom. Choose unexpected colour combinations and lay them randomly to create a splashback with a difference.
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Recommended Tile: Carpet Vestige
Spruce up a mud room
Hexagon tiles work equally well on walls and floors and they’re a great way to add subtle interest to a practical room in the house. Porcelain tiles are exceptionally durable and won’t scratch or stain, making them the perfect choice for a busy mud room.
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Recommended Tile: Buckfastleigh
Leave an unfinished edge
One of the best things about hexagon tiles is their versatility. You can choose to leave whole tiles at the edge of a splashback or part wall of tiles and even vary the height or width of the tiles for added impact.
If you’re embarking on a DIY tiling adventure, this can be a great way to ease yourself in. Minimal cuts are a big plus point when laying tiles for the first time.
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Recommended Tile: Waxman Ritz Hexagon Carrara
Get the rustic look
Although they have been around for decades, hexagonal tiles are often seen as a modern design trend. If you have a more classic home and want to introduce hexagonal tiles, or just prefer a more rustic look think about choosing tiles in a natural material like stone or terracotta.
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Customise a floor
Penny mosaic tiles are a beautiful addition to any home. Made popular in the 1900s, these miniature mosaics are often used to make an impact on bathrooms, kitchens and hallways. Hexagon penny tiles are an excellent choice if you want more traction than larger tiles provide and they work well in areas that often come into contact with water.
If you want to introduce borders or create a custom design, hexagon mosaics are easy to personalise.
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Recommended Tile: Waxman Ritz Hexagon
Create a transition
One of the most popular tiles for use on floor transitions, hexagon tiles can be used with wood, laminate and other tiles. Their detailed shape provides interest and a more fluid transition than a straight edge.
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Recommended Tile: Chelsea Hexagonal Honeycomb
Is hexagon tile trendy or classic?
Hexagon tiles are often seen as a modern trend, but they’ve been used to enhance homes since the early 1900s. Peaking in popularity in the 1920s, these tiles have bounced in and out of design trends ever since.
Hexagon tiles are incredibly versatile and, depending on the style and size of the tiles you choose, can work brilliantly in a traditional, period setting or in a contemporary interior scheme.
If you’re looking for a classic hexagon tile design we recommend penny mosaic tiles, Victorian mosaics and tiles made from natural materials like stone and terracotta. For a more modern twist, look for tiles in glass and glossy finishes or hexagonal tiles with linear designs like the lilypad tile.
What direction should hexagon tiles be?
You can choose to lay hexagonal tiles with either the pointed edge or the straight edge at the top. There isn’t a right or wrong way to lay hexagons, go with what looks best in the area you’ve chosen to place them.
Is installing hexagon tile hard?
Because of their multi-sided shape, hexagon tiles can be a little more challenging to install than 4 sided tiles. You may want to factor this into your tiling budget.
What goes well with hexagon tiles?
Hexagon tiles are incredibly versatile and look beautiful when laid with almost all other types of tile. We particularly like hexagonal tiles with metro tiles, large-format tiles and blended with different types of flooring.
Atlas Ceramics has an impressive range of hexagonal tiles to help you achieve a similar look in your home. Browse our selection yourself or call one of our helpful experts for advice.