Award-Winning Vogue Series: Where Vintage Checkerboard Tiles Meet Modern Design
The international design community has spoken, and the verdict is unmistakable: vintage square tiles are back, and they are more sophisticated than ever. At the prestigious Archiproducts Design Awards 2025, the Vogue Series, now exclusively available at COCO Tiles & Mosaics, was named a winner in the highly contested “Finishes” category — a recognition that confirms what designers and stylists have been quietly noticing for months. The classic checkerboard floor is having a major comeback, and this collection sits right at the centre of the trend.
In this article we explore why the Vogue Series captured the jury’s attention, how its 20×20 cm format unlocks the checkerboard floor trend that is dominating 2025–2026 interiors, and how a single collection can deliver virtually endless laying compositions for residential and commercial projects alike.
A New Benchmark for Award-Winning Tile Design
Now in its tenth edition and aligned with the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Archiproducts platform, the Archiproducts Design Awards (ADA) are widely regarded as one of the most credible international design accolades. Each year a multidisciplinary jury of architects, interior designers, creatives and design journalists evaluates hundreds of products across fourteen categories, scoring each entry against a demanding set of criteria.
The Vogue Series was honoured because it convincingly delivered against every one of those criteria, as summarised in the table below.
| ADA 2025 Judging Criterion | How the Vogue Series Delivers |
|---|---|
| Technological innovation | Glazed porcelain stoneware with a speckled terrazzo effect and marine limestone inclusions |
| Aesthetic quality and contextual coherence | A cohesive 15-shade palette that bridges earthy and marine atmospheres |
| Research and development | A modern reinterpretation of vintage cementine and basaltina traditions |
| Functionality and ease of use | 9 mm thickness, suitable for floors and walls, residential and commercial |
| Expressive and communicative ability | A storytelling collection built around the concept of “Earth and Salt” |
For the team at COCO Tiles & Mosaics, this award validates a long-standing belief: that beautifully crafted vintage-inspired tiles deserve a leading place in contemporary Australian interiors.
Inside the Vogue Series: A Modern Take on Vintage Tiles
The Vogue Series is built around a 20×20 cm (8″×8″) square format in glazed porcelain stoneware, a deliberate nod to the small-format cementine and basaltina tiles that defined Italian flooring for more than a century. Where traditional cement tiles were fragile and high-maintenance, however, the Vogue Series translates that nostalgic look into a 9 mm porcelain body that is hard-wearing, water-resistant and ready for the demands of modern living.
A finely speckled terrazzo effect, accented with marine limestone inclusions, gives every tile a tactile, lived-in character. Two complementary finish families make the collection unusually versatile.
The matt family delivers ten earthy, naturally-toned shades — Basalto, Sughero, Cotto, Cenere, Gemma, Sabbia, Bosco, Laguna, Bamboo and Sorgente — that read beautifully across large floor areas. The glossy Lacca family introduces five handcrafted-look glazed colours — Nero Lacca, Bruno Lacca, Rosso Lacca, Verde Lacca and Blu Lacca — whose reflective surfaces add depth, character and a hint of artisanal imperfection to feature walls, splashbacks and joinery surrounds.
Designer tip: pair a single Lacca glossy shade with two or three matt tones from the same palette to create a balanced, light-catching scheme that still feels grounded and contemporary.
The Checkerboard Floor Trend, Reimagined for 2026
If a single pattern defines the current moment in interior design, it is the checkerboard floor. From boutique hotels in Sydney to renovated terraces in Melbourne, the two-tone grid is everywhere — but the new generation of checkerboards has very little in common with its 1950s diner ancestor.
Today’s checkerboard floors are warmer, softer and far more personal. Designers are moving away from stark black-and-white in favour of tonal pairings such as terracotta and sand, sage and cream, or deep blue and pale grey. The Vogue Series was practically designed for this new aesthetic, and its 20×20 cm format is exactly the right scale to keep a checkerboard layout feeling refined rather than retro-kitsch.
Three of the most-searched checkerboard combinations this season can be created directly from the Vogue palette:
| Mood | Recommended Checkerboard Pairing | Best Suited For |
|---|---|---|
| Warm Mediterranean | Vogue Cotto + Vogue Sabbia | Living rooms, kitchens, hospitality |
| Calm Coastal | Vogue Laguna + Vogue Sabbia | Bathrooms, laundries, coastal homes |
| Bold Botanical | Vogue Verde Lacca + Vogue Gemma | Entryways, retail, statement floors |
The result is a pattern that feels both timeless and freshly contemporary — exactly the kind of grounded design language that today’s clients are asking for.
Endless Laying Compositions: One Collection, Infinite Possibilities
Beyond the classic checkerboard, the true power of the Vogue Series lies in its capacity for endless laying compositions. Because every shade in the range is designed to coordinate, the collection can be installed as a single colour, a two-tone grid, a tri-colour mosaic, a percentage-based blend or a fully randomised composition — all without sourcing tiles from multiple ranges.
Below is a selection of twelve curated laying compositions developed for the Vogue Series, showing how dramatically the same collection can shift in mood depending on the colour ratio you choose.
A few of our favourite combinations from the chart above include a balanced 50/50 of Vogue Cotto and Vogue Sabbia for a warm hospitality look, a calm coastal blend of Vogue Sabbia, Vogue Blu Lacca and Vogue Laguna for spa-like bathrooms, and a high-impact tri-tone of Vogue Verde Lacca, Vogue Cotto and Vogue Gemma for retail entrances and feature floors. Each combination has been pre-tested for visual harmony, which removes much of the guesswork from specification.
For projects that need an additional layer of pattern, the collection also includes the Astro decors — stylised geometric and floral motifs available across five base colours. Used as a rug effect on the floor, a feature panel on the wall or a backsplash insert, the Astro decors deliver the visual richness of traditional encaustic tiles with the practicality of modern porcelain.
Where the Vogue Series Performs Best
Because the collection is rated for both walls and floors and is built on a robust 9 mm porcelain body, it sits comfortably across a wide range of project types.
In residential interiors, the Vogue Series excels in kitchens, bathrooms, laundries, entryways and living rooms, where its small format adds character without overwhelming the space. In hospitality and commercial environments — think cafés, wine bars, boutique retail, salons and showrooms — its handcrafted aesthetic creates the kind of memorable, photogenic backdrop that today’s brands actively seek.
For darker, more dramatic schemes, the deep tones of Vogue Nero Lacca, Vogue Basalto and Vogue Bruno Lacca can be paired with brushed metals, warm timbers and soft lighting to deliver a sophisticated, design-forward atmosphere that translates beautifully into both residential and commercial settings.
Specification at a Glance
For architects, designers and specifiers, the key technical details of the Vogue Series are summarised below.
| Specification | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | 20 × 20 cm (8″ × 8″) |
| Thickness | 9 mm |
| Material | Glazed porcelain stoneware |
| Finishes | Naturale (matt) and Lucido (glossy Lacca) |
| Colour palette | 15 base colours plus 5 Astro decors |
| Suitable applications | Floors and walls, interior residential and commercial |
| Variation | V2 (slight variation, characteristic of the terrazzo effect) |
Bring an Award-Winning Collection Into Your Next Project
The Archiproducts Design Awards 2025 result is a powerful reminder that great tile design has never been about following the loudest trend — it is about combining cultural depth, technical excellence and creative flexibility in a single, coherent collection. The Vogue Series does exactly that, which is why it now sits proudly within the COCO Tiles & Mosaics range.
Whether you are planning a heritage renovation, a coastal new-build, a flagship retail fit-out or simply a kitchen splashback that will turn heads, the Vogue Series gives you the colour palette, the pattern language and the laying flexibility to design something genuinely original.
Get your tile design inspirations and explore the full Vogue Series collection at COCO Tiles & Mosaics today — order cut tile samples, request a trade quote, or speak to our specification team about creating a custom laying composition for your next project.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Vogue Series tiles suitable for floors as well as walls?
Yes. The Vogue Series is produced in a 9 mm glazed porcelain stoneware body, which makes it suitable for both wall and floor applications in residential and commercial environments.
What size are Vogue Series tiles?
The core format is 20 × 20 cm (8″ × 8″), which is the ideal scale for modern checkerboard layouts and small-format vintage installations.
Can I create a checkerboard floor with the Vogue Series?
Absolutely. The collection has been designed specifically with checkerboard and color-block layouts in mind, and any two coordinating shades from the matt or Lacca palettes can be combined.
How many laying compositions are possible with the Vogue Series?
With 15 base colours, 5 Astro decors and two finish families, the number of possible laying compositions is effectively unlimited. The chart above features twelve curated compositions to inspire your starting point.
Why did the Vogue Series win at the Archiproducts Design Awards 2025?
The collection was recognised by the ADA jury for its technological innovation, aesthetic quality, research and development, functionality, and expressive ability — the five core judging criteria of the awards.