Zillij tile: The Moroccan mosaic tile

United States of America (Press Release) April 26, 2008 -- Zillij mosaic tile also known as Zellidj, Zillij, Zellij, zellige is an important element Moorish and Moroccan architecture and decorating. The word tile is derived from the French word tuile, which is, in turn, derived from the Latin word tegula, meaning a roof tile composed of baked clay. The process of production begins by mixing clay and water and kneeling them by hands and feet until they reach a high level of flexibility and homogeneity. Then, the mixture is cut into squares of 1 cm thickness each. The squares get dried up under the sun before they are put in a special oven for their first phase baking. The tiles are placed in different levels according to the degree of temperature required to attain a particular color. The white tile is often placed in the bottom followed by the blue, yellow, and the green on the top. The second phase starts when we remove the tiles from the oven and separate them by their colors; once we are done with this process, we start drawing the patterns of the intended design directly on tiles; this is done by ‘rasham’ followed by the cutting process which is performed by ‘naqqash’ who carefully separate the drawn pattern by a sharpened hammer. Last but not least, ‘khallas’ or finisher finishes the work by cutting the tiles’ edges assuring that they meet all requirements for production. With the help of our design team, the zillij master draws the design layout on the ground and places each furmah or piece of tile in its exact place in the overall pattern. Interestingly enough, the placement of tiles is done upside down, which makes it even more difficult to absorb.

Saint Tropez Boutique one of the largest manufacturer of fine zillij mosaic tiles and Moroccan tiles in Morocco, just lunched a new line of zillij tiles that is pre-assembled and front mounted zillij mosaic tiles into 12″ x 12″ sheets or 12″ x 6″ zillij borders using adhesive glue that holds the mosaic tiles well and allow anyone to intall the zillij tiles without the need to any special experience r skills. The Pre-assembled zillij tiles by Saint Tropez Boutique are DIY and are very easy to install same way if you are installting marble or glass mosaics by using ceramic tiles thin-set and grout.