Narrator: Cement tiles start out like cake batter.
For artisans to complete the transformation,
they must bury their art in cement.
Nearly 200 years ago, cement tiles were popular
because they were affordable.
But today, the price for their main ingredient
has skyrocketed,
aggravated by supply-chain issues and shortages.
Cement tiles can cost $30 per square foot,
over 10 times what some ceramic subway tiles cost.
But despite the premium,
their popularity across the globe has only increased,
even while many workshops
are struggling to stay in business.
So, what's made cement tiles so expensive?
And can new trends sustain this traditional craft?
Every morning at this workshop in Morocco,
artisans settle in surrounded by tiles.
The craft is still manual.
Each tile is touched by human hands.
Narrator: The beginning of that art is pigment making.
From five pigments,
Abderafie can produce hundreds of colors.
And it's his favorite part of the process.
Narrator: He says the materials for some colors,
like green and blue, are more expensive,
so they increase the final price of a tile.
Abderafie measures out each pigment
and combines it with cement, marble powder, and water,
churning together a colorful glob of liquid cement.
This mixture is what gives cement tiles
their characteristic matte surface.
A finished tile looks like one solid block,
but it's actually layered.
And artisans make each one upside down.
The liquid cement goes first,
filling in the gaps of this copper mold.
More complicated designs,
like those with lots of colors or really tight patterns,
take longer to make, increasing the price per tile.
Narrator: When the design is simpler,
artisans can produce twice as many tiles.
They work quickly, but it takes a beginner a while
to learn how to add the proper amount of cement.
And the tool they use is surprisingly simple:
just a funnel with a stick to control the flow.
If too much or too little is added
or a design is poured incorrectly, the tile is rejected.
Narrator: Depending on the design,
artisans produce 50 to 90 tiles a day,
enough to fill about two to three kitchen backsplashes.
That's a much lower volume than ceramic tiles,
where hundreds are fired together in large kilns.
Cement tiles are made one at a time.
Narrator: Once a design is poured,
tile makers bury their art in a layer of sand and cement.
While these experienced artisans
don't often make a mistake,
the manual nature of each step means that
there's always the possibility of ruining a tile.
Narrator: Once the parfait of cement is full and level,
it's time to press.
It's a crucial step that only takes a second.
Narrator: The design is absorbed into the tile,
so it won't rub off or wear like a painted pattern.
Peeling up a tile looks easy,
but right now it's soft and moist, like a cake.
Poor handling or outright dropping would ruin it.
Narrator: It will take several days of drying
before Abderafie can sell his tiles.
Some workshops cover cement tiles in water
and dry them for up to a month.
But Abderafie's method, which he says uses less water,
requires just a few spritzes
before the tiles dry in the sun for up to four days.
From this workshop, one tile costs $1.50 to $3
or about $50 to $70 per square meter.
Narrator: That's because it's not just interior designers
who want cement.
The price is heavily tied to the volume of construction
because it's used to make concrete.
In the US, the producer price index for cement
has more than tripled since 1990.
Outside of recessions,
the price of cement has typically gone up.
Now supply-chain disruptions and shortages
are pressuring it even more.
The COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's war in Ukraine
slowed cement production and distribution.
When construction demand rebounded,
many builders said there wasn't enough
for the projects they had planned.
And in 2023, some countries experienced
a double-digit percent increase in cement prices.
Despite the cost of materials
and competition from cheaper tiles,
Abderafie says the craft is growing.
After the tiles harden,
workers ship them to customers all around the world.
Abderafie says his sales
are about half domestic, half international,
catering to the growing demand for handmade tiles,
which have become an increasingly common sight
on Instagram and in interior design.
Google Trends shows a steady climb
in interest in the topic since 2011.
And the market size could nearly double by 2032,
according to DataHorizzon Research.
Kate: More and more I think people are drawn
to things that have character.
Everything went through a stage where everything
was just white and the interiors were very boring.
There's an appreciation now for less synthetic,
less mass-manufactured things.
But I don't think it's a trend,
because cement tile is actually a traditional tile method.
Architecturally, I think they're timeless.
Narrator: Kate cofounded Concrete Collaborative in 2004.
Many of its designs are created by artists it partners with,
like this one from designer Caroline Z Hurley.
Kate: I like kind of playing with different textures,
patterns, colors, to see what we can create.
And a lot of people really love
the designers or artists that we'll collaborate with.
They almost feel like they're getting
a piece of Alex Proba's art by using her tile.
Narrator: Kate says cement tiles are great
for creating a bold design statement in your home.
Thousands of miles away,
her customers appreciate cement tiles
for the same reason as Abderafie.
Kate: Every single piece is made by hand,
so it has a natural variation.
It's perfectly imperfect.
Narrator: Because cement tiles are handmade
and can develop a patina, some customers worry
that installing or maintaining them is difficult.
But Kate says it's actually similar
to any tile installation.
Antonio: I'm going to do this sample, just to have an idea.
So, the way we're going to do this is
do it like this
just to cover the whole area.
And this is how this works, so, you see?
You push it up, and you hit with a hammer.
This glue is really, really good.
You can wait, like, two hours, and it's going to be dry,
ready to add the grout.
Narrator: After deciding on the spacing,
he spreads out a glue and presses each tile into place.
Antonio: First of all, what we did,
we just measured the space we need
and prepared all tiles.
In this case, we use this kind of spacer,
which is 3/16.
We have to make sure everything goes straight.
Has to be everything at the same spacer.
Narrator: After cleaning off the grout,
he waits for everything to dry,
then seals the tiles once more.
Kate: Sometimes with synthetic finishes,
it can make a space feel really cold.
So the beauty of anything
that has a little bit of life to it,
that does patina over time, a lot of high-end clients
really have an appreciation for that
because they don't want their spaces to feel sterile.
You know, something can last a really long time
and have kind of a life over time.
Narrator: The fact that each tile isn't perfect
is part of the charm.
But it also means that the craft relies
on the artisans who make each tile by hand.
And not every workshop is as successful as Abderafie's.
Some artisans, like Saied Hussain in Egypt,
worry they won't be able to pass on this tradition.
Narrator: In the 1990s, competition from ceramic
and marble tiles hurt his business.
Now the raw materials are more expensive
and it's difficult to find workers.
He's kept his workshop open by focusing on cheaper designs,
but he's one of the few tile makers left in Egypt.
Narrator: Abderafie is hopeful that in Morocco,
the craft will continue to not only survive, but thrive.