Travertine Tiles

How travertine forms

Travertine is a limestone that settles out of mineral spring water. Gas escaping through the water left cavities as the stone set, and those cavities give travertine its character: the layering, the direction, and the small holes across the face.

That formation also gives travertine a grain the way wood has one. Cut across the layers, a cut called vein cut, the stone shows straight bands; cut parallel to them, called cross cut or fleuri, it shows a cloudier, mottled field, and the two cuts of the same block can look like different stones. The Silver Vein Cut tile is the first kind, sliced across the bedding so the layers show as stripes along the piece.

Filled and unfilled travertine

The cavities are either left open or filled at the factory with a cement or resin matched to the stone. It is the first decision to make and the one that changes the floor most, and both versions are in this collection.

Filled gives a continuous surface that reads closer to limestone and takes a honed finish cleanly. Unfilled keeps the holes, which is the look people mean when they say travertine, and the surface has texture you can feel. The word appears in the product title where it applies.

Honed, tumbled and brushed finishes

Honed travertine has its face ground flat and matte, which suits a floor or a wall inside where a smooth surface is wanted, and it shows the color and the banding most plainly. Honed is the most common finish in this collection.

Tumbled travertine has softened, rounded edges and a slightly open face, the finish the travertine pavers are known for; indoors it gives a floor an aged look from the first day. Brushed and chiseled sit between the two: the pattern tiles in Walnut, Scabas and Silver have a wire brushed face and chiseled edges, which reads older than honed and flatter than tumbled.

Etching, sealing and filling

Travertine is made of calcite, the same mineral as marble and limestone, so acids such as citrus juice, vinegar and some bathroom cleaners etch it, leaving a dull mark on the surface. Sealing works on travertine as it does on marble: it slows staining and leaves etching unchanged.

Open holes in unfilled travertine are often packed with grout when the floor goes down, so an unfilled tile can end up with a closed surface after all.

Colors and quarry names

Travertine color names come from quarries and series, not from a chart, so a short description helps more than the name. Beige makes up about half of the collection. Tuscany Ivory and Platinum are the palest, a light cream that keeps a room bright. Tuscany Classic and Tuscany Beige are the warm mid beige most people picture as travertine, and Durango Cream, Latte and Chiaro sit in the same soft cream to sand range.

Walnut and Noce are deep, warm browns, and Mocha is the lighter coffee brown between them and the beiges. Silver is a cool gray with visible banding, and Antico Onyx is a darker, mixed gray. Scabas is the banded multicolor, with gold and rust running through a cream base, and California Sunset is a warm red.

Sizes and thickness

Square formats lead. 18x18 is the most common size, with 12x12 and 12x24 close behind and 16x16 and 24x24 for larger rooms. Interior travertine tile runs 3/8 or 1/2 inch thick, and the split follows size: most of the 12x12 and smaller pieces are 3/8 inch, while the 18x18 and larger formats are mostly 1/2 inch.

The French and Roman pattern sets are a different product. They are tumbled pieces in several sizes that lay out together in a repeating pattern, cut 1 1/4 inch thick, and they are listed for outdoor floors and walls as well as interior ones.

Travertine mosaics

The mosaics are the small formats: a 3/4 inch square, a 2x4 brick, a hexagon sheet, a slim Tuscany Classic rectangle and a tumbled pebble sheet. They suit a backsplash, a border or a shower floor, where a full tile would need too many cuts, and a 9 inch radius corner shelf in Tuscany Ivory carries the same stone into a shower corner.

Shade variation from piece to piece

Most travertine tile that carries a grade is rated medium or high for shade variation, which is normal for the material. A block changes through its depth, so pieces cut from the top and the bottom of it differ, and pieces from two blocks differ more.

That makes ordering a matter of lots: one floor is usually ordered from one lot, with some extra kept back for later.

Travertine, limestone and marble

Travertine is a type of limestone, which is why the two names keep landing in the same search. What separates them is texture: travertine carries pores and visible layering because gas escaped through it as it set, while many stones sold simply as limestone formed in calmer water and show a tighter, more even surface.

Marble is limestone that was recrystallized under heat and pressure. The mineral is still calcite, so the hardness is about the same, but marble is denser, has no spring cavities and takes a higher polish, which is where its veined, glossy look comes from.

Travertine pavers, coping, panels and sinks

For a patio, a pool edge or a feature wall, the stone has its own pages: travertine pavers, travertine pool coping and split face travertine ledger panels. Travertine sinks bring it to a vanity, and travertine mosaics gathers the small formats on their own.