Custom Tile Design Process

Join us for an initial meeting at our studio in downtown Tucson or at the installation site.

We will determine the foundational elements of the design such as size, color palette, and imagery, as well as details like time frame and installation considerations.

Once a theme and size is determined, we will send a number of sketches for review. Sketches are rendered in pencil by hand and do not include color.

We send out a variety of sketches and revisions until the design is finalized and accepted. At this point if a color scheme was not previously discussed, you can pick colors from our palette in our shop.

The outline of the approved sketch is then hand drawn onto a blank pre-fired red tile base using the “Cuerda Seca” technique.

With this technique, the outline is drawn on with wax and allowed to cure onto the tile base. This outline will serve as a barrier to keep glazes separate when the mural is ready to be painted.

Once the wax outline has cured, the glazes are pooled in between the lines of wax onto the surface of the blank tile.

While the wax acts as a resist to separate the colors, a certain degree of blending and shadowing can be implemented if the design and color palette permit.

Once the glazes have been allowed to dry for at least 24 hours, the mural is put into our kilns. We fire at over 1850 degrees, during this process the silica in the glazes fuse to the tile creating an impermeable glass surface. Once colors reach their maturity level, the kiln is brought back down to room temperature for unloading.

The firing process takes anywhere from 15-24 and often produces somewhat unpredictable and unique results.

When the tiles are pulled from our kilns, they are numbered and labeled with an accompanying layout chart for easy installation.

Use your own installer or let us handle the installation for you.