#heath tile

[doctorproxy]

Mid-sized 1960s l-shaped eat-in kitchen photo with flat-panel cabinets, medium tone wood cabinets, quartz countertops, white backsplash, ceramic backsplash, an island and white countertops

Let Go And Let God Young Adult Retreat

[tanksi]

Huge mountain style l-shaped light wood floor enclosed kitchen photo with a farmhouse sink, beaded inset cabinets, medium tone wood cabinets, granite countertops, green backsplash, ceramic backsplash, stainless steel appliances and an island

Honorable Road Agents Shooting Society

[drunkasaurus]

Bathroom - Kids Mid-sized minimalist kids' white tile and ceramic tile ceramic tile, black floor and double-sink bathroom photo with flat-panel cabinets, white cabinets, a one-piece toilet, white walls, an undermount sink, quartz countertops, white countertops, a niche and a floating vanity

[hannahwardart]

Kitchen Great Room in Los Angeles A large, transitional u-shaped open concept kitchen with shaker cabinets, white cabinets, a white backsplash, stainless steel appliances, and two islands is featured.

[loolay]

San Francisco Flat Panel Example of a mid-sized danish gender-neutral light wood floor dressing room design with flat-panel cabinets and dark wood cabinets

[johntomjoel-blog]

The Real Thing

The Real Thing

Tiles from Heath Ceramics always surprise me with their perfect balance of variation and consistency, clarity and mystery, depth and surface. They are always showing just enough hand to be handmade but free of forced "artistry." They are serious.

They are still made in their bohemian Sausalito, California, factory, the same place since 1959. 

I think they are formidable because they are not a reproduction of anything, but a truly continued craft of modernism. The real thing.

Courtesy of Wally Sears

The first time I used it, it was a big 8 x 12 "Modern Blue" stack bond for the kitchen and bath of an old modern house on Amelia Island in Florida. It was my favorite thing in the house and I couldn't stop staring at it.

A glossy "Blue Lake" at diminutive scale with big white joints for a master shower on Block Island.

A master bath in North Salem in “New KPFA Green,” featured in Architectural Digest. Again, I just couldn't stop staring at it. 

In Princeton, underway a 6 x 12 running bond of "New Opaque White" with incredibly subtle texture. 

Beach house master bath, in "Canvas." 

In Westport, a bold "Opal Blue" kitchen splash is on the boards. 

I'm not the only one who loves this tile, though I might be the most manic east coast member of Heath’s huge following. When in town, I often stop to shop at the San Francisco Ferry Terminal to pick up another muddy brown mug with a funny handle and “Modern Blue” inside. 

Ten years or so ago Architectural Digest asked what new thing was on the mind of Ike Kligerman Barkley. I offered Heath's "Pumice," which was on my desk in anticipation of my own 6x12 stack bond shower for my little modern house; it didn't make their final edit.

I'm just now ordering the tile, ten or so years later, and I've learned it's been discontinued. 

Maybe I’ll try an 8x12 stack bond "Turquoise" instead, with a broken tile or shard pattern floor. It will hurt to break such beautiful things. 

Update: January 17th

Upon receiving samples, the "Turquoise" just isn't speaking to me as much as the "New KPFA Green." 

Update: February 3rd 

But "Fog" is. 

Corresponding ashlar tile pattern.

[shastagarcia-blog]

Heath obsession

If you know me you probably know I have a small obsession with Heath Ceramics. Now the internet will know. I am obsessed with Heath ceramics. I'm very fortunate to live in the Bay Area. By now I've visited the Heath factory and store in Sausalito too many times to count. The factory store sells seconds which are just as structurally sound as firsts but may have slight differences or imperfections in the glaze and clay. If you're going to make an investment in dinnerware I highly recommend visiting the factory store. It will last you forever and buying seconds is an affordable way to build a collection. On my last visit to the store there was a couple buying a new set to replace their 50 year old dishes they'd gifted to a family member.

This year Heath has expanded into a new tile factory and show room which opened September 2012 near my San Francisco neighborhood. As you can guess I love having the factory down the street. There is something so warm about all the Heath spaces and the objects that you leave with. Admittedly, doing the dishes is not my favorite task. I enjoy it a hundred times more when I'm washing my Heath dinnerware. I've learned every subtle difference in my dishes. I'm proud to have purchased part of a creative legacy made locally and made with Northern California earth. 

They have a few good sales a year and this past mothers day weekend I was happy to take advantage of all the goings on at Heath.  The sale kicked off on a Friday and for the first time I was able to head over the bridge to get a first crack at all the seconds (and the extra discount). I walked in the store 45 minutes after they opened and it was already packed. In everyone's arms a cardboard box as shopping basket carried their treasures. You could feel the excitement as we all tried not to be bulls in a china shop. I was with my people. People equally as obsessed as I.

After I'd made my purchases I was sitting outside eating a free muffin high on the power of a purchase and commiserating with a fellow shopper. I casually said to her that I kinda wanted to go back in because I forgot to look for serving plates. She admitted she wanted to go back in too. Yes! I am not alone in my obsession. So I went back in for another hot lap and found two small h'orderve plates I couldn't live without. I don't know if she went back in but as I was checking out the same couple who'd been in my check-out line earlier were also making their second purchases of the day. While they were enjoying the free coffee outside they realized they hadn't included a coffee service in their dining set. Yes! Again, I am with my people.

The sale was all weekend long and in every location; Sausalito, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, there were special things to participate in. This sale was the first were they had tours for the public of the new factory. It's not quite up and running yet but we got to see all the equipment and walked through the process. We also got to take a look at the studio spaces on the second floor which house other local artisans as well as Heath's own studio for shape and glaze experiments.

Lastly after the tour I glazed my own tile. There wasn't really any instruction but luckily I'd been paying attention in my tour to the fact that different glazes can interact very unpredictably with each other. It's not like working with paint or other pigments. I made sure to keep my glazes separated on my tile. I'm pretty pleased for my first try. They fired the tiles in their new kilns and were ready to pick up a couple weeks later.

Some day I will feel the squish of clay in my hands and learn to make something from scratch. 

[relishdesign-blog]

Heath Tile: Oval Tiles