Delft Blue
A Delft Blue tile with your own photo or saying
Cobalt blue on porcelain white: for more than four centuries the Delft tile has been the way the Dutch hang their stories on the wall. We make tiles in exactly that style — except there’s no windmill on ours, there’s your story. Your own photo, drawn in classic Delft Blue, or your own words in flowing script. The design is fired into real ceramic, so it sits in the tile rather than on it.
15×15 cm from €23.99 · XL 20×20 cm €31.99 · made to order in the Netherlands
- Genuine ceramic
- Made to order in the Netherlands
- Delivered in 2-4 business days
- Free shipping over €40
What is Delft Blue, exactly?
Delft Blue was born in the seventeenth century in the city of Delft, and it started as a workaround. The Dutch East India Company brought back Chinese porcelain — snow white, eggshell thin, painted in that one unmistakable blue — and half of Europe wanted it. Nobody here knew how to make porcelain, though. So Delft’s potters cheated: ordinary red-firing clay, covered in a thick, opaque layer of tin glaze. White enough to paint on, cheap enough to sell.
On that white surface they painted with cobalt oxide, one of the very few pigments that survives a second firing above a thousand degrees without fading. Before firing, cobalt is a dull grey-black; only in the kiln does it turn the deep blue we recognise today. That is also why old Delft pieces still hold their colour centuries later: the blue sits under the glaze rather than on top of it, so there is no coating that can flake away.
The earliest pieces copied Chinese motifs, but Delft’s painters soon went their own way: windmills, ships, church towers, tulips, children at play. And the small wall tiles carrying a single scene or a saying, which ended up beside the stove in thousands of Dutch kitchens. At its peak, Delft had more than thirty earthenware potteries. That wall of tiles never really went out of fashion — it just needs new stories.
How we make ours
We’d rather be straight with you: there is no painter sitting at a table with a brush here. Your design is built digitally in the Delft Blue style and then fired into real ceramic. Here is what happens, step by step.
1. You supply the starting point
Upload a photo or type your own text. On the text tile you see immediately how the lines fall on the tile; with a photo you get a preview before you order anything.
2. The artwork is drawn
Our imaging software turns your photo into a drawing in classic Delft Blue: cobalt on white, with an oval medallion and a floral border around it. That is AI work, not hand-painting — we’d rather say so up front.
3. It goes into the ceramic
The design is applied to a genuine ceramic tile and fired in, so it sits beneath the glossy surface. No sticker, no film: what you feel is the tile, not the print.
4. Made to order, in the Netherlands
We hold no stock. Your tile is produced within 24 to 48 hours of your order, checked by hand and packed securely before it ships.
Why we spell that out: a hand-painted tile from a genuine Delft pottery is a painter’s one-off and costs many times as much. We don’t sell that and we don’t pretend to. What you buy here is a real ceramic tile in the Delft Blue tradition, carrying your own image or your own words, at a price that still works as a gift.
Two tiles to choose from
Same ceramic, same blue, same two sizes. The difference is what goes on the front.
Photo tile
Your photo rendered in classic Delft Blue, framed by an oval medallion and a floral border. It works best with a sharp photo where the face — or the snout, or the facade — is clearly visible. A name, a date or a short line can be painted in underneath.
See the photo tile →Text tile
Words only: your own saying, a quote or a family in-joke, in flowing script inside a traditional border. The tile redraws as you type, corner motifs and wreath included. Stuck for words? There are hundreds of examples ready to use.
See the text tile →
The facts, briefly
- Material
- Genuine glazed ceramic, like the traditional Dutch wall tile.
- Sizes
- 15×15 cm from €23.99 and XL 20×20 cm at €31.99, both square.
- Finish
- The design is fired in, not stuck on — colourfast, waterproof and wipeable.
- Production
- Made to order in the Netherlands within 24 to 48 hours, always in HD quality.
- Hang it or stand it
- A tile stand or a wall-hanging system can be added to your order.
- If it arrives damaged
- We make you a new one free of charge. You don’t need to send the broken one back.
What’s the occasion?
A tile is almost always a gift. For these moments we’ve written a page of its own, with example wording and tips for the photo.
Frequently asked questions
Is this real Delft Blue?
It is a tile in the Delft Blue style: a cobalt blue image on a porcelain-white ceramic tile, with the medallions and borders that make the tradition recognisable. It is not a hand-painted piece from a Delft pottery and we don’t call it one. “Delft Blue” is a style rather than a protected designation of origin — this is that style, made in the Netherlands.
Is it really ceramic?
Yes, genuine glazed ceramic, just like the tiles that used to sit beside the stove. You can feel it in the weight and in the cool, smooth surface. So it is not printed wood, not plastic and not an aluminium panel.
Can I put my own text on the tile?
Yes. On the text tile you type your own lines and see straight away how they fall; you choose the lettering, the corner motifs and the wreath around them. On the photo tile you can have a name, a date or a short line painted in underneath the image.
What sizes are there and what does it cost?
Two sizes: 15×15 cm from €23.99 and XL 20×20 cm at €31.99. Both are square, both are the same ceramic and both are always produced in HD quality. Gift packaging can be added to the XL size.
How quickly will I have it?
Your tile is produced within 24 to 48 hours of your order and then reaches you in 2-4 business days. If it is for a birthday or a farewell, leave a few days of margin: ceramic travels well packed as a parcel, not through the letterbox.
Can it go in the kitchen or the bathroom?
Yes. It is a glazed ceramic tile, so steam, splashes and a bit of soapy water do it no harm — just wipe it with a damp cloth. Leave the scouring pads and harsh cleaners out of it, though; they dull the glaze.
Want to know more about the material, the sizes or shipping? Read all frequently asked questions.
Make your own piece of Delft Blue
Photo or text, 15×15 or XL — you see the design before you order, and only then is your tile made.
15×15 cm from €23.99 · XL 20×20 cm €31.99 · made to order in the Netherlands