Why 12x24 in marble
A 12x24 marble tile is a rectangle of natural stone one foot by two feet. Compared with a one foot square it leaves fewer cross joints and about a quarter less grout line per square foot, so the veining runs on longer and the floor reads as one surface. Compared with a two foot square it is lighter to carry and easier to set flat.
The long side also points the eye. Run down a hallway, it makes the hall feel longer; laid across a narrow bathroom, it makes the room feel wider. On a shower wall laid horizontally, the courses can be planned to line up with a niche shelf or the top of a vanity.
Each marble tile is a slice of a quarry block, so the veining shifts from one tile to the next and a floor shows the stone moving across the room. For a more even surface, marble look porcelain tile is the other route, and 12x24 tiles gathers this size in porcelain and stone together.
The stones in 12x24
- White with little veining: Thassos White Extra, Thassos, Siberian White and Bella White.
- White with a soft gray vein: Carrara T, White Carrara, Bianco Carrara, Bianco Dolomiti, Alpina White and Venere.
- White with bold veining: Calacatta Gold, Calacatta T, Statuarietto and Arabescato Carrara.
- Gray: Bardiglio Light, Athens Grey Light, Silver Horizon, Silver Sky, Venus, Forest Gray, Calacatta Bluette and Wooden Grey.
- Beige and brown: Royal Beige, Crema Marfil, Supremo, Macchiato, Mocha, Crystal Sand and Fantasy Brown.
- Black: Black, Nero Marquina Premium, Eastern Black and Noir Elegance.
The choice most buyers weigh is Carrara against Calacatta. Carrara is a gray-white ground with a fine, even gray vein that repeats calmly across a floor; Calacatta is a brighter white with thicker, broken veins, so each tile looks different from its neighbor. Among the other stones, a few are easy to tell apart at a glance. Bardiglio Light is a soft blue gray, Royal Beige a warm cream, Crema Marfil a paler cream, and Nero Marquina Premium a deep black crossed with white veins. Calacatta Violet, Diamond Blue and Lilac add color for a feature wall or a powder room.
Honed or polished in the same stone
Marble is a carbonate stone, softer than granite or porcelain, and it etches when acids such as lemon juice or vinegar touch it, whatever the finish. Honed 12x24 marble is matte, so etch marks and light scratches blend into the face, and it is generally less slick underfoot when wet than a polished face. That makes honed the usual choice for bathroom and kitchen floors. Polished 12x24 marble reflects light and deepens the color, which suits walls, entry halls and formal rooms where the floor stays dry.
Carrara T, Calacatta Gold, Bella White, Bianco Dolomiti, Bardiglio Light, Silver Horizon, Silver Sky, Royal Beige, Black and Nero Marquina Premium all come in both finishes in 12x24, so a bathroom can have a honed floor and a polished wall in the same stone. The honed marble tile page has the honed stones in every size.
Thickness and fluted panels
The 12x24 field tiles are 3/8 inch or 1/2 inch thick, depending on the stone. Where two marbles meet in one floor, or a floor tile turns up a wall, matching thickness keeps the edges level, so it is worth reading the thickness on each listing before mixing stones.
Valentino Fluto and Milano Ribbo are fluted marble panels in the 12x24 size, in Carrara White, Arabescato Venato and Capri Blue, about 5/8 inch thick. They are rated for interior walls and are used for a ribbed feature wall or a vanity backsplash.
One lot, one floor
Two kinds of variation meet on a marble floor. Within one lot, every tile shows its own veining, and that is expected. Between lots the difference is larger, since the next block can sit a shade warmer or cooler, so a floor is best ordered in one go. For a full pallet of one stone, see wholesale marble tile. This page sits under marble tile, our full range in every size, and marble tile for showers has the mosaics that pair with it on a shower floor.
