Basketweave Tiles

Matte tiles are trending strongly in Australian bathrooms for their contemporary look and practical ability to hide water spots and fingerprints. Gloss tiles reflect light and can make a bathroom feel brighter and larger, but show water marks and smudges more readily. For shower recesses and wet floors, matte or satin finishes with good slip resistance are generally preferred.

Measure your total wall and floor surface area in square metres, then add a 10–15% wastage allowance for cuts, breakages, and future repairs. For complex layouts with diagonal patterns or feature inserts, increase the wastage to 15–20%. Always order all tiles from the same batch (check the shade lot/batch number) as tiles from different batches can vary slightly in colour.

Floor tiles must have an adequate slip resistance rating (P3 minimum for domestic bathrooms) and be durable enough for foot traffic. Wall tiles can be glazed ceramic, porcelain, or natural stone, they don't need to carry load but should be moisture-resistant. Many Australian renovators choose matching or coordinating floor and wall tiles from the same range for a cohesive look.

For small bathrooms, tiles between 300 x 300mm and 600 x 300mm often work well on both walls and floors. Smaller mosaic or subway tiles (75 x 150mm or 100 x 200mm) are a classic choice for shower walls. While large format tiles can also work in small spaces, they require a very level substrate and expert installation. Avoid tiles that are too small on floors (like 50 x 50mm mosaics) in large quantities, as the increased grout lines can make a space feel busier.

The most effective approach is to choose one feature zone and use your feature tile there, a full-height shower wall, the bath surround wall, or the vanity splashback area. Keep the remaining surfaces in a neutral or complementary field tile. This creates impact without visual clutter. Limit your palette to two or three complementary materials for a cohesive result.

Australian Standards (AS 4586) require bathroom floor tiles to have a minimum slip resistance rating of P3 for domestic bathrooms and P4 or P5 for wet areas like shower recesses. The Blue Space recommends checking the slip resistance rating of any tile you're considering for floor use, particularly in the shower. Matte and textured porcelain tiles generally offer better slip resistance than polished or gloss finishes.

Porcelain tiles are fired at higher temperatures and are denser, less porous, and harder than ceramic tiles. This makes porcelain more water-resistant, more durable, and suitable for both indoor and outdoor applications, including high-traffic floors. Ceramic tiles are lighter and easier to cut, making them a practical choice for bathroom walls and splashbacks. For bathroom floors and wet areas, porcelain is generally the preferred option in Australia.

Basketweave is a layout where pairs of small rectangular tiles are arranged at alternating right angles, so each pair sits perpendicular to the next, creating a woven, interlocking look similar to a wicker basket. It's typically made using small format tiles, often supplied pre-mounted on a mesh sheet so the pattern repeats consistently across a floor or wall without the installer having to set out each tile individually.

Because it's usually supplied as mesh-mounted sheets, the tiler lays whole sheets much like a mosaic, aligning the woven pattern from sheet to sheet so the joins between sheets are invisible once grouted. The main skill involved is keeping the sheets square and the pattern continuous across the room, particularly around fixtures, doorways and any cut edges where the repeat has to be matched by hand.

It's a common choice for bathroom and laundry floors, entryways, and as a feature strip or border alongside a larger field tile. Because the individual tiles are small, it's less often used to cover a very large open floor area on its own, a large basketweave floor has a lot of grout lines, which some homeowners like for texture and others prefer to limit to a feature zone. Pairing it with a porcelain field tile on the rest of the floor is a common way to balance the two.

It can be, provided the individual tile carries an adequate slip resistance rating for the location and the surface finish isn't high gloss. The dense grout lines that come with small basketweave tiles actually help underfoot grip in a shower, since grout adds texture, but always check the specific slip rating of the tile itself rather than assuming a small tile is automatically non-slip.

Yes, noticeably more, since the pattern is made up of many small tiles rather than a few large ones, and each one has its own grout joints. That's worth factoring into both cost and maintenance: more grout lines mean more surface to clean and reseal over time. A quality, stain-resistant grout is worth the extra spend on a basketweave floor for that reason.

Because it's typically sold in mesh sheets rather than loose tiles, work out your wastage on whole sheets rather than individual pieces, and round up rather than down since a partial sheet still needs to be purchased in full. Add the standard 10 to 15 percent allowance on top of your measured area for cuts around the room's edges and any obstacles like drains or cabinetry legs.