Anyone who follows the ceramic tile game—I mean seriously follow it—knows the Europeans have been killing the texture trend for years. American companies are just now starting to catch up, but the Europeans have us beat by a mile. I mean seriously, it’s not even a close race. Still, there are some domestic companies making a good effort such as Ann Sacks, Artistic Tile, Heath Ceramics, Walker Zanger, Portland Cement Co., and Voguebay (Some of these companies import from Italy and Spain anyway, but that’s for another post).

Recently I came across Clayhaus Ceramics, a Portland, Ore.-based company founded in 2010 by Jason and Megan Coleman. We like the fact that they started their company in the recession, but we love the fact that their products are handmade entirely from scratch in the company’s studio in Portland, Ore.

The company’s latest effort is the Topo Collection, a series of decorative relief tiles by local designer Stephanie Dyer. Part of a line of decorative relief tiles, Topo explores three-dimensional organic forms with surface depth reminiscent of bas-relief. Patterns include Aperture, Sunrise Set, Wax Wane, Iris Bulbous, Pinwheel, and Bow Akimbo.

Though you might be tempted to put these tiles on your floor, don’t! They’re textured, which means you can put them only on vertical surfaces such as backsplashes, shower walls, fireplace surrounds, wainscoting, or an accent wall. Available in various colors, tiles measure 6 inches by 6 inches, and are available at dealer showrooms or online at www.clayhausceramics.com.