The history of mosaic goes back some 4,000 years or more, with the use of terracotta cones pushed point-first into a background to give decoration. By the eighth century BC, there were pebble pavements, using different coloured stones to create patterns, although these tended to be unstructured decoration. It was the Greeks, in the four centuries BC, who raised the pebble technique to an art form, with precise geometric patterns and detailed scenes of people and animals.

By 200 BC, specially manufactured pieces ("tesserae") were being used to give extra detail and range of colour to the work. Using small tesserae, sometimes only a few millimetres in size, meant that mosaics could imitate paintings. Many of the mosaics preserved at, for example, Pompeii were the work of Greek artists.

Mosaic tiles are colourful, practical, hardwearing, waterproof, frostproof and colourfast. They have been used for thousands of years to bring style, glamour and practicality to kitchens, bathrooms, showers and swimming pools. Ideal for large expanses of wall, flowing curved surfaces and smaller areas. Mosaics can be used indoors or outdoors, for commercial and domestic projects, and are also used to make wonderful pieces of art. 

Oceanside Glasstile is a world leader in the design and production of hand crafted glass tile, providing unique and innovative products to the tile, architectural and design industries as well as consumer markets. Oceanside Glasstile pioneered the development of glass tile products, which it markets globally to distributors and showrooms. For more information about Oceanside Glasstile, please visit www.glasstile.com

All Oceanside Glasstile is made primarily from silica sand, an abundant natural resource, with many colors also containing recycled content that may include pre-consumer*, post-industrial**, and/or post-consumer*** recycled bottle glass from curbside recycling programs.

*Pre-consumer materials are generated during our manufacturing process and may consist of scrap and trimmings that were never used in the consumer market.

**Post-Industrial: Material from manufacturing processes where virgin resources would otherwise go to waste. This material is collected and used in a product other than that for which it was originally used.

***Post-consumer material is an end product that has completed its life cycle as a consumer item and would otherwise have been disposed of as a solid waste. Oceanside Glasstile's post-consumer material is recycled bottle glass (cullet) from curbisde recycling programs.

Another very smart ecological solution is Brazilian company Ekobe.

EKOBE products are made of 100% natural materials. No chemicals are used.
It is the perfect environmental solution, because it uses vegetable matter that has already fulfilled its function in nature. EKOBE is an environmental sustainable product. The trees from which their products originate remainThis product allows designers and architects new creative experiences. Explore the tactile, irregular edges and surfaces encountered in nature. The colors and textures are agreeable and establish an intimate relationship between people and the environment.