Tile

Tiles have been used in construction for at least 4000 years, by the Romans, Greeks, Babylonians, Phoenicians and many other cultures. However the 1990s saw its return to the catwalk, and it was soon to regain its place as a popular fashion item, particularly in America and on the Continent. Tiles were developed as a product of earthenware pottery, either as an alternative use for fragments of broken pottery (called potsherds) or as an independent invention. By the 1980s it was largely out of fashion, though continued to be regarded as a staple item. For detailed information on tilings see the tessellation page. The tightness of the garments may also be seen as sexual bondage. These shapes are said to tessellate (from the Latin tessera, 'tile'). Wearers of skin-tight spandex garments can appear naked or coated in a shiny substance like paint.

Certain shapes of tiles, most obviously rectangles, can be replicated to cover a surface with no gaps. As explained in the spandex fetishism article, another reason why spandex and other tight fabrics may be fetishised is that the garment forms a "second skin," acting as a fetishistic surrogate for the wearer's own skin. As both the influence and the extent of Islam spread during the Middle Ages this artistic tradition was carried along, finding expression from the gardens and courtyards of Málaga in Moorish Spain to the mosaics of the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. However, the poloneck in all its forms soon became a standard wardrobe item for both sexes during this period. Palaces, public buildings, and mosques were heavily decorated with dense, often massive mosaics and friezes of astonishing complexity. The poloneck was generally seen as a unisex and classless garment and wearing one remained a political statement in many circles. Perhaps because of the tenets of Moslem law (sharia) which disavow religious icons and images in favor of more abstract and universal representations of the divine, many consider decorative tilework to have reached a pinnacle of expression and detail during the Islamic period. This trend continued into the 1960s and 1970s, with the white poloneck being briefly adopted as a corresponding item for mainstream feminists.

Batchelder. In contrast, France saw the black poloneck adopted by left wing bohemians and intellectuals, and by the late 1950s their counterparts in the United States and Britain had also adopted the fashion. Prominent among art tile makers during this period was Ernest A. The look would filter through to Britain and Europe in a watered down version. In the United States, decorative tiles were in vogue, especially in southern California, in the 1920s and 1930s. This would become an important aspect of the polonecks image in America. Some places, notably Portugal, have a tradition of tilework on buildings that continues today. By the late 1950s the "tight poloneck" had been adopted as part of the preppie style amongst students, a style emphasising neatness, tidiness and grooming.

Although decorative tilework was known and extensively practiced in the ancient world (as evidenced in the magnificent mosaics of Pompeii and Herculaneum), it perhaps reached its greatest expression during the Islamic period. It was not long before Hollywood was also exploiting this image as part of the sweater girl look. Decorative tilework typically takes the form of mosaic upon the walls, floor, or ceiling of a building. Later its increasing acceptability as women's wear saw it become a fad amongst teenage girls, especially in a lightweight form that emphasised aspects of their figures. Finally, a cloth is rubbed over the wall tile to remove any haze which may remain from residual grout. Absorbed into mainstream American fashion by the mid 20th century, the poloneck came to be viewed as an anti-tie, a smart form of dress for those who rejected formal wear. The sponging provides added moisture to strengthen the grout as it cures. Again, it was the feminists who turned these into a unisex item.

The excess grout is scraped off with a hard rubber block called a float immediately after applying; further, the grout is wiped again with a moist sponge before it completely hardens. Their adoption by Noel Coward in the 1920s turned them into a brief middle class fashion trend. The spaces between the tiles are filled with a fine cement called unsanded grout. It was in this stage that a range of light polonecks in a variety of colours began to be designed. Modern wall tiles are fixed to a wall using a synthetic bonding agent tile adhesive for dry areas, or a cement-based mortar for areas prone to moisture, such as bath or shower walls. Over time polonecks would become acceptable casual wear, though still usually for men only. Pictorial tiles, consisting of many tiles that the installer assembles like a jigsaw puzzle to form a single large picture, are available. It was probably at this time that its unisex status as sportswear was exploited by early feminists, who would wear their Hockey sweaters as day wear.

Wall tiles are usually glazed, and are often patterned by painting or embossing. The latter use at sea also led to its adoption by Royal Navy. These are usually ceramic, but other materials such as mirrored glass or polished metal can be used. Polonecks crossed over from sportswear to work wear at the turn of the century, mostly amongst menial workers and seamen. While ancient Roman building bricks were broader and thinner than modern ones and are therefore usually called tiles, the term wall tile is normally applied to finishing tiles. This use as sports wear would continue into the early 20th Century. See Laying tile
. Its use by women was also extended into field sports like hockey soon after this.

The spaces between the tiles are nowadays filled with sanded or unsanded floor grout, but traditionally mortar was used. These lighter polonecks would become popular for golf amongst both sexes by 1895. Floor tiles are typically set into mortar consisting of sand, cement and oftentimes a latex additive for extra strength. Originally a thick woollen garment, lighter versions were designed for those who found coarser wool uncomfortable against their skin. Small mosaic tiles may be laid in various patterns. It was also used in some equestrian activities, though no evidence exists for its use in polo, which might otherwise have explained its name. Clay tiles may be painted and glazed. It had a varied application but was most often used for the more static players in field sports (a use preserved for the soccer goalkeeper as late as the 1950s in the UK).

These are commonly made of ceramic, clay, porcelain or stone. The poloneck sweater, like most sweaters, first emerged in the 1890s as an article of sportswear. They include ridge, hip and valley tiles. . There are also roof tiles for special positions, particularly where the planes of the several pitches meet.
. The tiles are usually hung in parallel rows, with each row overlapping the row below it to exclude rainwater and to cover the nails that hold the row below. It can also refer to the style of collar itself, or be used as an adjective ("polo-necked").

Roof tiles are 'hung' from the framework of a roof by fixing them with nails. A polo neck (UK) (or turtle neck in the US) is a garment—usually a sweater—with a close-fitting, round, and high collar that folds over and covers the neck. These include:. Tennis shirt. Because of their long history, a large number of shapes (or "profiles") of roof tiles have evolved. Preppy. Some clay tiles have a waterproof glaze. Polo Ralph Lauren.

Modern materials such as concrete and plastic are also used. Lacoste. Roof tiles are designed mainly to keep out rain, and are traditionally made from locally available materials such as clay, slate, or wood (wooden tiles are called shingles). Spandex fetishism. .
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Tiles are most often made from ceramic, with a hard glaze finish, but other materials are also commonly used, such as glass, slate, and reformed ceramic slurry, which is cast in a mould and fired. Tiles are often used to form wall and floor coverings, and can range from simple square tiles to complex mosaics. Less precisely, the modern term can refer to any sort of construction tile or similar object, such as rectangular counters used in playing games (see tile-based game). The word is derived from the French word tuile, which is, in turn, from the Latin word tegula, meaning a roof tile composed of baked clay.

Tiles are generally used for covering roofs, floors, and walls, or other objects such as tabletops. A tile is a manufactured piece of hard-wearing material such as ceramic, clay, stone, porcelain or even glass. Mission or barrel tiles are semi-cylindrical tiles made by forming clay around a log and laid in alternating columns of convex and concave tiles. These result in a ridged pattern resembling a ploughed field.

Pantiles - with an S-shaped profile, allowing adjacent tiles to interlock. Roman tiles - flat in the middle, with a concave curve at one end at a convex curve at the other, to allow interlocking. This profile is suitable for stone and wooden tiles, and most recently, solar cells. Flat tiles - the simplest type, which are laid in regular overlapping rows.