If you love bold colours, lots of detail and mixing up patterns, textures and styles in your home decor, you may be a maximalist! Here we look at the differences between minimalism and maximalism (note: you may spot that I have a slight bias towards one of these styles in particular!) and suggest some maximalist tile ideas for your room decoration.
Minimalism vs Maximalism
What is Minimalist Design?
Minimalism has it’s origins in Japan and began to become popular in the West from the 1960’s – to the point where it was everywhere in the 1990’s. The idea of minimalism is to strip away as much as possible, leaving the barest essentials; “Less is More”. Minimalist home decor includes basic shapes, neutral colours and little clutter or detail – it almost looks like the absence of design, but in reality can be highly styled and planned.
The drawbacks of minimalism are that rooms can seem cold, unwelcoming and devoid of interest or personality. Stark, sterile, neutral surfaces and colours can be uninviting and the whole effect can be difficult to maintain, as clutter and daily life take over.
What is Maximalist Design?
Maximalism works on the basis of “More is More”. It involves mixing colours, patterns and textures to create a busy and unique room with lots of points of interest. Maximalist rooms can be cosy, feel warmer and can be visually stimulating. Maximalist design can include elements of vintage, rustic, retro, shabby chic and kitsch (or all of these!) and more. When combining different patterns, styles and textures, the possibilities are endless and maximalist rooms and homes can be creative, bold and almost certainly unique.
The downsides are that if things become too cluttered and full of clashing styles, the effect can be a bit overwhelming and not relaxing or restful spaces. Also dusting becomes a challenge!
How to get the Maximalist Look in Your Home
You can have an overall colour, theme or style in mind, but a bit of mismatching and “clutter” adds to the charm of maximalist design. There’s no need to keep your belongings and souvenirs hidden away. If you have an interesting item you brought back from your distant travels, put it out on display. If your Grandmother left you her favourite ornament, there’s sure to be the perfect place for it. Photo canvases can be displayed right next to original pieces of art or a pretty print you found in your local charity shop.
Maximalist rooms can evolve over time as you add bits and pieces you find or collect. If you change your mind about an aspect of the decor, it is fairly simple to swap it for something else without having to change the whole room. Maximalist design suggests a long-term home and makes a room feel homely, lived-in and loved.
The main thing to remember when going for the maximalist look in your home: “More is More”.
Maximalist Tile Ideas
Tiled walls are a great addition to maximalist room decor – they add another texture and a geometric pattern into the mix. However, a large area of plain tiles might not contribute much to the maximalist theme, so it’s worth considering more decorative tiles to add interest to this part of your room.
Among these maximalist tile ideas, we have several different colour themes, plus some eclectic patchwork patterns. Some of the tiles are based on antique illustrations, some started out as watercolour paintings. There are pastel shades, rustic greens and browns, warm pinks and yellows.
The number of possible tile patterns is pretty much infinite. We have included just a few maximalist tile ideas here to inspire you to design your own perfect walls.
Usually we start with the more ‘subtle’ tile patterns ideas and then build up to more eclectic designs, but since you’re still reading I’m guessing you’d prefer to skip the subtle and go straight for the downright maximalist tile ideas!
Maximalist Tile Patterns by Colour
If you already have an overall colour scheme in mind, you can still “maximalise” your tiled walls by choosing a variety of tile designs along that theme. Here are a few examples:
Maximalist Patchwork Tile Patterns by Style
Of course, there is no need to have an overall colour scheme in maximalist design, so here are a few multi-coloured patchwork tile patterns:
Inspired to try Maximalist Design?
I hope you’ve been persuaded to try out maximalist design in your home – it’s far more fun than bare and neutral! There are many more tile designs available in our online shop and more ideas and inspiration in our tile ideas blog.
If you create a maximalist masterpiece, we would love to see it, please let us know about it at info@floraltiles.co.uk, or on one of our social media pages. Enjoy creating.
