Those Elusive Subway Tiles

M and I have been coveting those beautiful subway tiles we keep seeing in magazines and design blogs, but sadly, they're nowhere to be found in the Metro.  Numerous trips to all possible home depots from Makati to Munoz yielded 0-zilch-nothing.  Last week, we visited our beloved Quiapo, hoping to find treasures in the small shops.  We discovered Ban Shieng along Soler St. in Sta. Cruz.  Ban Shieng is a narrow store filled to the brim with lovely tiles that you'd no longer see in your run-of-the-mill tile/home depots.  When the Chinese proprietress noticed M and I seriously deliberating on a particular tile, she proudly told us that the tile was manufactured here in the Philippines by Mariwasa in the Marcos era and was of very high quality.  Hmmm, so had she hoarded all those tiles from decades ago, knowing that one day, crazy people like us would come a-scavenging?  In the end, not even a broken subway tile showed up.  But I did buy 2 beautiful decorative 10 x 10cm tiles from Ban Shieng.  I think they're vintage Mariwasa tiles.

the vintage Mariwasa tiles

So since we couldn't find the tiles we wanted, we decided to make them ourselves.  We bought plain white 20 x 20cm tiles which Francis and Dondon cut into 6.35 x 15.25cm pieces.  Though the whole process was a lot of work, the results were worth it.  M and I are happy that we stuck to our guns.  Now Dondon says he gets a bit cross-eyed while installing the tiles ;-).

Francis, cutting the subway tiles

Dondon, installing the homemade subway tiles

almost there!