This New Collection Puts a Graphic Spin on Tile
Nikki Chu’s exclusive line with The Tile Shop pushes neutrals into overdrive.
Nikki Chu had never designed tile before she created her new collection for The Tile Shop. But in her more than two decades as an interior designer, she had certainly done many rooms with tile. And she knew how tricky it could be to find the look she favors—a combination of organic, impactful patterns in versatile, earthy colors that fit with her signature “global modernism” style—for this translation of her aesthetic for use in wet spaces.
“It’s actually really easy to find color—I can find blue anywhere,” Chu says. “What’s not easy is great neutral tones in great patterns. I like these really tribal, hand-drawn patterns, and I take those elements and simplify them so they’re palatable for any decor. A lot of these patterns and prints go bright, but my brand is known for more of a neutral texture: clean and very soft, contemporary without too much color.”
For the line of three tile designs exclusively at The Tile Shop this summer, Chu drew inspiration from travel, a source she has long turned to for her collections of decorative pillows, bedding, and rugs. “Africa, Indonesia, Bali—this is the part of the world that offers me the most inspiration,” she says. “I go to all of the bazaars and the markets—it could have been a corner of a textile I saw and then interpreted in my own way.” Here’s a detailed look at how that translated to her tile line.
