The first step to saving a lot of money on any floor tile is deciding on what you want. Would you prefer a uniform look throughout the room you are redoing or would you prefer a mosaic of different tiles? Both systems have their advantages and disadvantages but the choice is mostly swayed by personal preference. If you need to redo a floor in as little time as possible then a mosaic will be quicker. If you have the time to spare, then uniformity is easy enough to achieve without too many hassles. Again – all things being equal it will be left to your personal taste to choose between the two.
The next step is making an actual design. This step can be done at any point in the tile gathering process, it depending on your personal preference. You can do it beforehand, and then find tiles matching your design or you can do it after matching the design to the tiles that you have. You can even do it during the tile gathering and have a “design in process” so to speak which would be a more creative route to follow. Whatever your choice, it will depend on how you generally do things day to day and the time you have at your disposal. Once you have decided on what you want, the next step is gathering up the tiles you would like to use in the room you are refurbishing.
Gathering is not only looking for what you want, but also knowing the right people. The most obvious place to find find cheap, or even at times free, floor tiles are construction sites. Commercial buildings all need bathrooms and even public buildings need to renovate from time to time so there is generally a plentiful supply to be found. These bathrooms naturally need a lot of floor tile and there will generally be a lot of leftovers. Chipped floor tile, broken (for a nice mosaic) and the like can easily be found. There are also leftovers that the contractors do not need and will generally be willing to give away if you ask nicely and haul them yourself.
The point to remember with tile gathering is that you must always ask the tilers themselves for permission when you are looking to take something. Never just take something you think is trash, no matter how broken it looks. Never ask a plumber or an electrician for permission to take anything. They are not the people who are working with the tiles you want and will not be able to give you a proper answer. If you play your cards right, you can even make a few friends and always have spares available.
