About our product
‘StoryTiles’ – what is it?
StoryTiles are hand baked, ceramic tiles with beautiful designs. Each tile tells its own miniature story with the image that’s on it. StoryTiles are available in different sizes and are being created and baked in the Netherlands.
You can hang the tiles on your wall or place them in one of our wooden or shiny golden holders. It’s a small art work in your home! Or gift a tile to someone to celebrate a special moment, milestone or to remember a loved-one.
Go for a tiling project! Tile StoryTiles together with plain tiles on your bathroom wall or kitchen backsplash, to make your wall a true eye-catcher!
The sizes
The complete StoryTiles collection is available in Small (10 x10 cm) and Medium (13 x 13 cm).
The Medium tile has the same measurements as the typical Dutch ‘witjes’, the authentic tiles that were used centuries ago in Dutch houses, farms and canal houses.
Hang it, Frame it, Hold it
All tiles have a hanging hook at the back, especially made for the weight of the tiles. With a small nail you can hang the tile on a lovely spot on your wall right away!
A StoryTile looks also great on a wall shelf, on a cabinet, side table or in a book case by using one of our accessories. We have a full range of different sizes natural wooden and golden frames, shelves and holders.
StoryTiles as a gift!
StoryTiles are in a sturdy cardboard package which is open at the front, so you can still see the design of the tile. The title of each tile can be seen on the backside. StoryTiles’ packaging is super handy, because tiles are easy to send to someone as a gift. Most of the parcels fit through the letterbox and we ship worldwide!
Would you like to surprise someone with a StoryTile as a gift? Let us gift wrap your present for you! You can choose for a festive gift bag, the gift box or the colored tin box. With a beautiful ribbon around it & a card with your personal message, you’ll have the best gift! Or do you want someone to choose a tile themselves? Go for a gift card by post or e-mail.
The title
What’s in a name? A lot! We put much effort in giving every design its own title, its unique name.
We know that our customers not only choose a certain tile, because they fall for the design. They also pay attention to the name. A tile has its own meaning to each tile lover.
It’s all about the special moment, the person, the mile stone or life event the tile is reminding you of.
The baking of
What’s the process before the tiles are being baked in the tile bakery? We’ll give you a short insight.
A smooth clay ‘butter’ is poured into frames. The tiles are then placed into the ovens like cookies on a baking tray for their first baking session.
Our tile baker’s tile ovens actually look a bit like brick ovens for pizzas, only his ovens close completely and they are a bit larger! Up to 800 tiles fit in each oven and they’re placed in ‘cassettes’, a kind of bunk beds for tiles!
The tiles are baked in three different baking rounds at a temperature between 850 and 1250 degrees Celsius.
Beautiful baking work!
During the first baking phase, the tiles are provided with a shiny layer of glaze that is baked on top of the tiles to give them their authentic and unique appearance.
The tiles are ready to go into the ovens for the second time. The temperature is slightly lower at this point and now the background, contours and different colors of the designs are baked into the tile and the glaze.
When the tiles leave the oven after this second round, they are resistant to heat, water and cold. Just like regular tiles!
Every step during the baking process needs to be done very carefully.
If the tiles are being placed too close to each other in the oven they will melt together…
If the tiles dry too quickly, the colors will change…
A complex but beautiful piece of work!
How it all started…
The StoryTiles story starts with little Marga. When she was young she was crafting and creating all the time with her head full of fantasies and ideas.
A bit older, she went to the ‘School of Arts’ in Amsterdam. In that time she made hundreds of ‘collages’, small artworks on ceramic.
One day, her grandmother gave Marga a box with really beautiful old Dutch tiles from the year 1600. She revived those tiles by putting her own designs on them. The authentic character gained an artful twist; a wink to the past.
From the studio in Amsterdam StoryTiles brings out a new collection in spring and fall every year. StoryTiles bakes her tiles in Holland in the artisanal way in a traditional Dutch oven. Marga is still head of design, and cooperating regularly with known designers and museums. StoryTiles sells in more than 20 countries and over 300 shops.
The dream of the little girl with the many stories in her head came true! Marga van Oers’ designs have become a universal visual language and tile lovers all over the world collect them to create their own story on their walls.