Best Tile Looks Around Your Freestanding Tub

Image: Terrazzo Black 24 x 24 Porcelain Bathroom Floor Tile, Bianco Carrara Polished 24 x 48 Marble Wall Tile, and Negro Marquina (Niche) Polished Marble Shower Shelf from Arizona Tile

If you’re looking for bathroom design ideas to help highlight your freestanding tub, you’ve come to the right place. Placing a tub as the focal point is a bold choice, and the tile you choose to accent it can set the tone for the entire room design. Whether your design intent is to create a more tranquil, neutral feel or to add some character to the room, we have great tile choices for you to consider.

Freestanding Tub Design Statement

Recently, freestanding tubs have come to replace older-style jetted and built-in tubs which were often set to the side of the room or intentionally hidden by a shower curtain. These newer bathroom centerpieces are intended as a design statement to give that “wow” factor when this built-to-impress design was previously achieved by a large-scale shower or large picture window, for example.

To really impress, try contrasting light and dark with our Terrazzo Black 24 x 24 porcelain floor tile beneath your white tub.  This neutral combination is simple and creates a blank canvas for any other color accents you want to incorporate into the design. Another option we recommend is our Lagos porcelain tile. Available in large-format, muted tones like Concrete, Mud, Ivory, and Sand, it’s a great starting point for your design.

Image: Aequa Tur 8 x 32 Wood-Look Porcelain Tile Bathroom Floor,  Chevron Silver Polished Mesh Marble Accent Wall, and Mustang Quartzite countertops from Arizona Tile

Wood-Look Bathroom Floor Tile

For a bathroom flooring option that integrates more seamlessly with other rooms in your home, try our Aequa series. This low-maintenance and slip-resistant wood-look tile is ideal for bathrooms. And because it’s porcelain, you don’t have to stress about it getting wet like you would with traditional wood flooring. Available in five shades, including a neutral gray (Cirrus) and cream color (Nix), it lends itself well to various design styles.

Image: Grigio Polished Basketweave Mosaic Bathroom Wall Tile and Manhattan Polished 12 x 12 Marble Bathroom Tile Floor

Basketweave & Mosaic Bathroom Tile

To add more energy to the space, try framing your freestanding tub with the playful and unique design of our Basketweave mosaic tile. Available in natural stone combinations, this marble series incorporates beautiful tones into each one of its color options – Bianco, Grigio, and Manhattan. Each would make a stunning addition to any bathroom.

Try incorporating Basketweave into the wall design around the freestanding tub as a way to frame it as the centerpiece. Tiling halfway up the wall and finishing the upper half with a more neutral, complimentary tile draws the eye down to the tub. To further create a focal point, frame the  Basketweave portion with a natural stone liner.

Image: Calacatta Gold Polished 4 x16 Bathroom Tile Wall and Basketweave Bianco Polished Mesh Marble Floor Tile from Arizona Tile

Slippage & Safety

A bathroom is not only a space to relax and reflect, it also should be designed to be as safe as possible. Getting in and out of a freestanding tub can create a bit of a challenge as there is often not much to grab onto. A slip and fall will always be a risk.  This is why Arizona Tile considers the Dynamic Coefficient of Friction (DCOF) rating for all of our products, and that all of our standard finish porcelain tile series meets the standard rating of ≥0.42.

The DCOF measurement is not a true measurement of the flooring, but rather a measurement of the interaction between the flooring and what is being placed on it. It can be a useful comparison of tile surfaces, but it cannot predict the likelihood a person will or will not slip on a tile surface. Because many variables affect the risk of a slip occurring, the DCOF test results should not be the only factor in determining the appropriateness of a tile for a particular application. DCOF testing isn’t a code requirement for household projects, only for commercial use. Unless you’re doing bathroom design projects, such as for a hotel or spa, it’s likely just something that’s good to know about your tile.

Image: Manhattan Tumbled 4 x 8 Marble Bathroom Tile Wall from Arizona Tile

Arizona Tile Is Here To Help

We’ve presented a good list of ideas to help you design the space around your freestanding tub, but that isn’t where our support ends. Please contact us for more information about our entire line of tile and natural stone or feel free to stop into one of our many locations for a consultation. Can’t make it out to see us? We also offer a way for you to see and interact with our products virtually. Our Online Slab Yard lets you find the piece you need at the location near you, while our Just Imagine Visualizer enables you to see how a product will look in your space before committing.