TileTramp

It’s true that in the past I’ve used the terms “herringbone” and “chevron” interchangably quite a bit throughout my posts. I would like to clear up a misconception: herringbone and chevron patterns, while strikingly similar, are not the same.

Don’t feel bad if you didn’t know this, because I didn’t really notice the difference until a year ago when all this chevron stuff started makin’ it in the big leagues.

Here is the basic difference (with original TileTramp drawings!):

Please forgive my sketching…I cannot draw a straight herringbone pattern to save my life for reasons I’ll never understand. But you get the basic picture.

To create a chevron pattern with tile, you have to use tile that is already cut to fit together in a chevron pattern. To create a herringbone tile, you can use any rectangular tile you find.

Here’s what they look like when you go for the stripey look:

I’m such an artist I impress myself.

But that gives you a basic idea of the differences. Chevron works better in a contemporary, modern setting when it’s a high contrast like black and white. Herringbone works in any application, but tends to give off a little bit more of a traditional vibe.