Hear my thoughts on the Letterfolk tile mat, a trendy new tile mat that you can create endless designs with. Perfect for holidays, seasonal decor, or everyday living, this tile mat has a vintage tile flair with modern designs.
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Disclaimer: I was gifted this tile mat by my husband, therefore this is not a sponsored post by Letterfolk. All opinions are my own.
Last Christmas, I was lucky enough to be gifted a Letterfolk tile mat from my husband. I had this item on my wishlist for quite some time, but could never get myself to purchase it because of the price. I also didn’t know if it would fit the traditional style of my home. You see, the mat itself is meant for making very modern designs.
However, as soon as I opened this gift I was thrilled to have finally received it.
I am an artistic person and couldn’t wait to get my hands on it for creating some festive designs. So far, I have made at least six different designs. Over the last six months or so, this large mat sits just in front of our kitchen sink, which acts as a perfect rug for those random splashes of water that inevitably occur during hand washing or dish duty.
See, it has a practical use too!
Nevertheless, this tile mat is mainly for aesthetic purposes. Still, it’s a product I can get behind. Let me break down some of the pros and cons of the Letterfolk tile mat for you today with this very honest review.
What is the Letterfolk tile mat?
The Letterfolk tile mat is a customizable, vintage style hexagon tile mat with a range of colored, removable tile caps for making a unique mat design. Patterns, graphics, and words/phrases are the most popular designs for the tile mat.
Are there different sizes and designs available?
According to the Letterfolk website, they sell a few different options for tile mats. The most popular mat is the white rectangular tile mat with the black border. This is sold in a standard size and large size. There are three other colors of tile mats (black, green, and tan) and a slightly smaller mat that is a half circle (“half moon”) instead of the traditional rectangle, too.
How does it compare to other tile mats on the market?
To my knowledge, there aren’t other tile mats like this on the market. If there are, I sure haven’t seen any yet. This makes it a very unique product for your home.
Letterfolk Tile Mat Review
Benefits of Letterfolk Tile Mat
- Looks great indoors inside entryways, kitchens, and even bathrooms
- Even once it gets some use and light fading/stains, it’s really not noticeable unless someone is crouching down really close looking for the imperfections
- Letterfolk website shows lots of idea templates for designs, season to season and holiday to holiday
- Great gift idea for creatives or home decorators–or the perfect splurge for yourself
- There are so many bright, dark, and pastel colored tiles to choose from; the wide variety makes designs more fun and beautiful
- Some designs can also be less specific, which make it easy to limit the amount of time and frequency spent on changing tiles out
Drawbacks to Letterfolk Tile Mat
- Not practical for outdoor use
- Needs to be cleaned often; tough to clean/keep clean
- Expensive
- Need to purchase additional color tiles to create fun and unique designs
- Time consuming to change out tile designs
What I personally love about these tile mats:
This tile mat stands out (in a good way) in my kitchen. It’s perfect in front of the kitchen sink, drawing the eye toward the center of the room. It’s practical in this location and lends itself well to the rest of the kitchen style. I have an old-fashioned, traditional style in my home which is what drew me to this vintage hexagon tile mat in the first place. But the bright colors and designs add some modern flair and personality, too. You kind of get the best of both worlds with this product. A win in my book!
Another benefit to the Letterfolk tile mat is that there is an online tool that helps users create new designs for their mat and try it out before taking all the time and effort to replace tile cap after tile cap. Additionally, they have lots of design inspiration to view for seasonal designs, holiday designs, and more. There is always something new to try, and you can always put your own spin on a classic. Simply use the colors you do have and make it your own.
There are also lots of tile colors and tile bundles that can be purchased online. I love the variety, with all the different shades of colors. Once you accrue several colors, you can make just about anything. Though I’m a bit of a color fanatic and would love to get just about all of them eventually.
Furthermore, if I ever get really lazy or need a break from designing this mat, I can stick to a generic message like “Hello” or “It’s a Good Day” that can stay on any time of year, for as long as I want. This is definitely a pro for those who are short on time (or patience) or don’t want to spend extra money on colored tiles or special designs.
What I personally wish was different:
These are hard to keep clean. I will say that we don’t wear shoes in the house, we don’t own pets, and we do not have children (yet). Theoretically this would mean it wouldn’t get as dirty or need to be cleaned that often. However, this mat catches every single crumb in the cracks between the tiles. Even after picking up the mat and shaking it out, some crumbs are still there. I can use my hand vacuum to go over it and there will still be crumbs. You just have to accept the fact that once used, this tile mat will never be perfect again. There is no getting every single crumb out of every crevice in this thing.
I also notice that it can stain easily from things like marinara sauce, and even has a slight haze of dirt on the white tiles from the last few months. I clean it thoroughly, weekly, but this still happens. Just be prepared to have to clean this often and be able to live with small imperfections you may not be able to remove.
The Letterfolk website recommends an abrasive brush and dish soap to clean it, but they also say some things will stain it regardless. So I don’t think it has to do with how I’m cleaning it. I suppose I can live with a few minor specks of faded stains, though, at least for now.
The company also recommends not putting the tile mat in direct sunlight because it can fade the colored tiles over time. This is not something that personally bothers me. But it may bother you if you had plans to use it on a patio or deck. Some of their photos even show it outdoors, but if you read the fine details, they also say no direct sunlight. It probably could work on a shaded deck, but again you’re gonna have to clean this thing A LOT if it’s outdoors.
It also usually takes me about an hour to build a design on the mat, even when using their online design tool. Time consuming but worth it when you want something new and fresh.
Would I recommend the Letterfolk tile mat to other homeowners?
I would recommend this tile mat. Personally, I feel that the benefits outweigh the drawbacks of owning and maintaining a Letterfolk tile mat.
I do have to admit: I love decorating. If you love decorating and love the idea of having something new to decorate each month/holiday/season you’ll love this tile mat. I enjoy using it in the kitchen too since it catches little splashes of water. It feels like it truly has a practical purpose because of this.
Also, since it was gifted to me I can get over the price. I’ve accrued a number of colored tiles and have a pretty solid foundation for creating most designs with the tile mat design tool.
Even though it will never be perfectly clean, it is still in very good condition and I love the personality and pop of color it adds to our cottage kitchen. It definitely adds a modern flair to the traditional style I’m used to.
I plan on keeping this mat for a long time. I think when our child (that we’re expecting in early November) is older, they will have fun helping mom make new designs each month. It’s a great creative activity to get the whole family involved in.
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