My Outdoor Shower, My Garage, My Mugs—They’re All Checkerboard

Cool takes on a classic pattern from Concrete Collaborative's founder.

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We’ve taken every opportunity to pick the brain of forever-stylish Concrete Collaborative founder Kate Balsis (see: her California home, for one), so it was a no-brainer for her to be our next Home Front guest editor. Unsurprisingly, she has a tile trend on her mind. Lindsey Mather, digital director

Current Mood

Today's Guest Editor Kate Balsis
Photography by Aaron Bengochea

What Im loving right now: I’m really vibing with checkerboard lately—I’m always drawn to it if I see it integrated into a design. There is something playful but also timeless about the pattern.

Closeup of checkerboard floor tile
Photography by Aaron Bengochea The flooring features Concrete Collaborative’s Venice floor tiles in Alabaster and Laguna tiles in Universal Green.

How I’d bring it home:

  1. A tiled bench or booth (above left)—it’s unexpected and creates a fun moment.
  2. Checkerboard doesn’t have to be square! You can create checkers with different shapes and patterns. Try a basket weave or use subway tile.
  3. Mix materials, like a solid-colored tile with a terrazzo as I did in our garage makeover (above right), to play with texture not just color.
Checkerboard shopping guide
  1. I own these modern mugs; they look so cute on my shelf. 
  2. I gravitate to the orange pop of color and the Danish modern style of this ottoman.
  3. This lamp’s shape is fun, and I love the blues. 
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