Ever fancied decorating your kitchen or bathroom so that it looks like it is is part of an old London Underground tube station?
Of course you have.
And now you can – well, soon you can, at least in part.
As part of the Underground’s 150th anniversary, the tile manufacturer, Fired Earth was asked by TfL to survey the London Underground archive and to choose the most significant and beautiful tiles originally used within stations and on the platforms. Then — using the original moulds — Fired Earth were asked to create an updated range of tiles
Most tube-significant of the collection is the range inspired by Leslie Green’s designs for tube stations opened in the early 1900s for the Piccadilly line, Bakerloo line and Northern lines.
Anyone using the older stations will recognise the pomegranate and acanthus leaf designs — and these have now been recreated for sale. Another part of the range includes tiles inspired by those used at Kennington Station as well as some suitably tube-like tiled signs.
Users of the Bethnal Green station may like the recreations of the small landmark tiles that are embedded in the platform walls. The originals were commissioned by 1939 from designer Harold Stabler. Fired Earth has reproduced four of them.
I can’t say just how many people would recognise the tiles if you used them, but I am sure a good number of visitors would look at them and think they look strangely familiar.
The tiles aren’t on their website yet so I had to contact them to get the details.
Update – the tiles are now on sale on their website.
This is very cool, I’ve just moved into a turn of the century house at the end of the Met line and these have come in to consideration for some of the DIY I need to do in the next few months..,