The One Classic White Tile Look That Has Fallen Out Of Style

In interior design, calling something "timeless" is usually a safe bet. Until, of course, it isn't. White porcelain tiles have been labelled as such for a long time, and they've been used as a flooring option in countless kitchen remodels and renovations. Even though its simplicity might imply classy timelessness, it's somehow fallen out of style. Nowadays, you're less and less likely to spot these white tiles in modern homes.

White porcelain tiles are pretty straightforward. They're, as you'd imagine, white and made of porcelain. Porcelain is a type of ceramic that's made from white clay, called kaolin clay. These have long been popular because they're incredibly durable, especially in high-traffic areas. They're resistant to water and heat, and don't stain easily, so you can use them in kitchens, bathrooms, wet rooms, and even outdoors. Despite all of these benefits, porcelain tile is slowly falling out of style.

Porcelain tiles are often installed with white grout to look seamless, or with darker grout for more dimension. They're typically glossy and have, for a long time, been a top choice for modern kitchen makeovers. However, the white-on-white shiny look is becoming more and more outdated. Instead of making a home feel more welcoming and homey, these large, shiny white tiles can look clinical and cold. Instead, the tile trends you'll be seeing more of in the future use warm undertones, earthy materials, and intricate designs to bring warmth and personality to an otherwise relatively cold material.

While white porcelain is a classic kitchen tile, it now feels outdated, partially because it's been overused. Its popularity wasn't without reason: It's resistant and long-lasting. But as soon as design elements start showing up in rentals and house flips, they start to look less and less personal. As with many materials, overuse can be the killer of a trend and make it look cheap rather than elevated. 

Another issue with porcelain tiles is that they look a bit clinical. If you don't want your home to feel like a hospital, it's best to steer clear of white-on-white tiling and paint. While porcelain isn't necessarily the exact material that hospitals use, they look an awful lot like it. Hospitals and doctors' offices typically use a lot of white, large, and shiny tiles that reflect light. Pretty similar to white porcelain tiles, right? 

Part of the issue also lies in how uniform and identical porcelain tiles look. From one tile to the next, you're unlikely to find any flaws or mistakes. This type of over-perfection is reminiscent of an industrial, large-scale production, rather than the cute and unique look of something like zellige tile. Over time, trendy homeowners started to gravitate toward imperfection and lost interest in design elements that looked "too" perfect. For example, people have ditched neutral and cold millennial gray walls for limewash wall colors. They're also more likely to use mineral or textured tiles instead of basic and shiny white ones.