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Making & Installing Handmade Tiles by Angelica Pozo "Tile is hot," declares author Angelica Pozo in the Introduction to Making & Installing Handmade Tiles, and her observation is undoubtedly correct. Ceramic tile continues to be a popular, relatively inexpensive and extremely durable material for both functional and decorative art. Increasingly, ceramists have made the move into tile making, and painters have found that tile is an excellent transition to ceramic decoration. For many of the same reasons, creating handmade tiles is a great way for students to practice clay handling and surface decoration techniques. The book starts with a very thorough description of the tools and materials used in tile making. This section is written for the true beginner and includes a good discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of particular types of clay for different tile applications. After covering the basics of clay, Pozo moves on to decorating techniques, describing in detail the varieties of glaze application. The photos that accompany the descriptions make it easy to replicate each technique. These sections of the book are full of helpful recipes for clays and glazes, but the reader is by no means discouraged from using commercially available materials for convenience. Sections on slab rolling, tile sizing, stacking, drying and firing guide the reader step-by-step through essential tile making techniques. All the styles of tile, from bead and bullnose to cove and field, are illustrated in exacting detail. By the end of the first part of the book, the beginner is well acquainted with the many ways to shape, fire and decorate ceramic tiles, and the more experienced ceramist has probably learned a technique or two. Part Two of the book-with its complete, in-depth information on tile installation-is what sets this book apart from many other books on tile making. This section is very thorough and includes a progression of projects from a simple trivet to large exterior installations. Readers will learn about surface preparation, adhesives, grouting and much more. Pozo writes, "It's fair to say that after working your way through all the projects in this book you can consider yourself a tile maker who knows how to set your own tile (rather than a tile setter who knows how to make tile)." Anyone interested in making and installing their own ceramic tile or teaching others to do so, should have this excellent book on their short list of those to read and own.
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