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  • A rustic vintage-style bathtub in a bathroom setting with patterned ceramic tiles, a cream shag rug, and a dark green towel draped over the side.
  • A styled bathroom interior featuring patterned terracotta and brown mosaic tiles, a dark wood vanity with a white countertop, a terracotta vessel sink, and a gold-framed mirror.
  • A terracotta-colored round side table with a sculptural, tiered pedestal base, styled in a cozy living room setting with a matching red vase on top.
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Reclaimed Tiles

Reclaimed Tiles

Design by Bert&May

Bespoke Enquire to order

Antique tiles rescued from old homes and buildings across Spain and Italy, many of them over a hundred years old. Each one is cleaned and restored by hand in Cádiz, keeping the worn edges, softened colour and patina that only decades underfoot can give. Most are solid encaustic cement, so the pattern runs right through the tile, alongside a smaller selection of reclaimed terracotta and marble. No two lots are the same, and once a design is gone, it is gone. Perfect for kitchen, bathroom, hallway, living room and also outdoor. 

Reclaimed Hand Restored One of a Kind
Price on application
Lead time: typically About 1 week for in stock designs
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Details

Antique encaustic, terracotta and marble tiles salvaged from Spanish and Italian buildings, hand cleaned in Cádiz and ready for another century.

Dimensions

Typically 20 x 20cm, 2cm thick. Sizes vary by design.

Product Care

Seal before use and reseal periodically. Clean with a pH neutral tile cleaner and avoid acidic or abrasive products.

Colours

Multi, black and grey, pink and red, yellow and orange, white, brown and beige. Varies by lot.

Finishes

Natural reclaimed patina, sealed on installation

Sizes & Formats

Mostly 20 x 20cm squares, with some rectangular and hexagonal designs. Sold in limited lots per design.

Installation & Application

Suitable for walls and floors, indoors and out, including kitchens, bathrooms, fireplaces and underfloor heating. Seal the tiles properly before grouting. A 2 to 4mm grout joint suits most designs.

Reclaimed tiles vary in tone, thickness and wear, which is part of their character. Order around 10% extra for cutting and selection, and buy everything from the same lot, as quantities are limited.

Sustainability

  • Salvaged from existing buildings, so no new clay, cement or firing is needed
  • Gives tiles that have already lasted a century a second life
  • Cleaned and restored by hand in Spain
  • Stocked in the UK to reduce shipments
  • Plastic avoided in packaging wherever possible

Delivery & Returns

coming soon

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A century of footsteps, hand cleaning and a patina no new tile can copy define a floor with its second life ahead of it.

From the Studio

Bert & May began in 2004, when Lee Thornley left London for Andalucía to rescue old tiles from Spanish homes and buildings. What started as a reclaimed tile business grew in 2010, when he met Juanma, whose family had made encaustic tiles by hand for generations, and together they reopened the family workshop. Today they still salvage and hand clean antique tiles in Cádiz, alongside handmade tiles from makers in Spain and Morocco.

Why Elken Chose It

The most sustainable tile is the one that already exists. Bert & May's reclaimed tiles have usually spent a century or more on a floor, and they arrive cleaned and ready for another hundred years, with no new clay, cement or firing. Their handmade zellige comes from Moroccan makers, shaped from natural clay and dried in the sun. They also stock in the UK to cut down on shipments, and avoid plastic in their packaging wherever they can.

Every Material is a Decision

  • Responsibly made

  • Traced to source

  • Verified maker

  • Made to last

  • Delivered by the maker

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