Colour and pattern are part and parcel of the many decorative tiles that make up the Ca’ Pietra collection. All designed exclusively in-house and to only ever be found under our roof, we thought for 2025 why not extend that creative ethos and welcome fresh, creative thought to our core collection with a launch we’re excited about to say the least. 

23 pattern-rich tiles created by British fabric designer, Zoe Glencross have just landed, and we want every single one. Divided into four tile designs and three different colourways, Zoe invites you to find a tile you love and run with it or to play with combinations to create something unique to you, your home, your rules. Here, we grab coffee with the woman herself to chat travels, career milestones and most importantly, the story behind the capsule. 

In Conversation with Zoe Glencross

CP: Tell us about the inspiration behind the collection: is there a common thread between the tiles?

ZG: “The Aventuras Fabric Collection was inspired by my travels to Spain and Portugal. Translating my fabric patterns into tiles brings many of the prints full circle, in that ironically much of my original design influence comes from the ornate moorish Mudéjar patterning seen on the sides of buildings in Spain and the intricate tiles adorning the buildings in Portugal known as Azulejo patterning.

“The Palma Sol design was hugely influenced by Mallorca’s Palma Cathedral and its rose window as well as by the wall tiles in the famous Bento train station in Porto. The Porto criss-cross design more generally echos the patterning in much of the tiling seen in Lisbon and Porto. I wanted to create soft and pretty takes on the geometrics with textures that made them imperfect as if they were ancient. Palette-wise, the terracotta and ochre tones very much come from the backstreets of Palma and Seville’s old towns while the blues hail from Lisbon and Porto.”

CP: Where would you picture about using each tile?

ZG: “I would love to use the Malla with a Ziggy border in an entrance hallway and Porto with a Ziggy Border in a dining space. Patterned tiles can be so inviting and make such a statement. 

“Adding these kinds of patterned tiles is also a lovely way to add interest to small galley kitchens or utility rooms, especially as a backsplash. I think adding the largescale Palma Sol in the Olive Trio story would really add interest to a small kitchen space, taking your eye away from the space limitations. Combined with a contrasting floor tile from the same colour story but in a different scale this would create the perfect pattern balance in my eyes.”

CP: What was the process that went into making them? Talk us through it.

ZG: “Most of the original fabric designs were created using lino carved motifs that I cut out to play with the placement and scale. For the tile designs, I began with the fabric design files that I used for creating the engraved print screens. The original designs were printed onto textured linen whereas for the tiles, they’d be going onto a plain, flawless surface. I wanted there to be some design cousin between the fabric and tile collections, so it meant I needed to consider how that difference in texture would translate.

“There were various other adaptions I needed to make to ensure the patterns flowed from fabric to tile. For example, the stems of the Palma Sol fabric design were tiny petal carved pieces that I placed in a circular layout to create an oversized circle pattern. Adapting that design for tiles meant removing a trailing heart element that was making the design quite linear which had well for curtains and blinds but for tiles needed to be multi-directional. I simplified the design composition and made it more geometric; it didn’t lose its largescale circular placement identity but now would work well when laid in any direction.”

CP: Rewind a bit, how did you end up doing what you’re doing? What’s your story?

ZG: “It’s a long one, but I’ll try to keep it short. My background was in retail buying and later in design/brand development. I had however always had a passion for interiors with an obsession with paint colours and fabric. I had worked on many of my own interiors projects as we moved over the years and worked with a number of friends and some clients on their homes creating interior design schemes. In my late thirties, after we had moved to the country, I went on a print design course and fell in love with the craft, setting up hand printing at my kitchen table. I took more screen printing courses and decided to see if I could launch my own fabric collection. 

“I’m so pleased to have developed seven fabric collections over the last 10 years and feel very privileged to work with pattern and colour every day doing a job I’m really passionate about.”

CP: Where’s the most inspiring place you’ve ever been that’s informed your work?

ZG: “I think I would actually say Seville. The colours there are incredible and so inviting. Strolling through the labyrinth of ancient backstreets is an endless series of buildings painted in a different colours; the pigments of the yellows and terracottas are so rich. It feels like you’ve stepped back in time somehow to an authentic side of Spain all in one place.”

CP: If you had to sum up the collection in three words, what would you say?

ZG: “Playful, fun, inviting."

CP: If you can, pick a fave from your Ca’ Pietra collection

ZG: “I can’t choose – any from the Olive story as the colours are so pretty and feel a bit whimsical. I love it when pattern can be bold and largescale but in quieter, soft colours.”