From plain tile to finished relief
Seven stages, from a cut tile to a framed piece — each one photographed in our own workshop.
Each piece starts as ceramic tile cut to size. A resist film is laminated on, the design is laser cut into the film and weeded by hand, and the panel is sandblasted, mainly so the ink holds. The design is then built up in layers of UV ink — as crisply stepped relief or free-flowing 3D texture. No mould is used.
Cutting the tile
Work starts with ceramic tile cut to the size of the piece, in 3 mm, 6 mm, 9 mm. Thickness decides the finished weight and how the piece is fixed.
Laminating the film
A resist film is laminated over the whole face of the tile. It is the material the mask is made from: wherever it stays on, the surface beneath is protected.
Laser-cutting the film
A laser cuts the design into the film, working from the design file. This is where a customer image becomes a physical stencil — cut for that one design, which is why no mould or plate is ever needed.
Weeding
The cut sections of film are lifted by hand where the design calls for it. What remains is the mask: the surface is exposed where it will be blasted, and covered where it will not.
Sandblasting
The masked panel is sandblasted. Its core purpose is adhesion: blasting roughens the exposed surface so the ink that builds the relief keys in, rather than sitting on a smooth face. Because it runs through the mask, it acts only where the design leaves the surface exposed.
Printing the relief
The design is printed by UV flatbed inkjet, with the panel located on the bed so the print follows the design. The printer builds the ink up in layers, from a design file set up in channels — into flat planes with crisp, stepped edges for relief, or into free-flowing brushstrokes for 3D texture. Every bit of height on a finished piece is ink.
Ink: Imported Toyo ink from Japan.
- 1Digital artwork电脑图稿
The design file, set up for the printer in channels that control where the ink is built up.
- 2Panel registration板材定位
The panel is located on the bed, so the machine knows exactly where the design sits on it.
- 3Coordinate jetting喷头按坐标喷墨
The head places droplets by position rather than spraying an area, so colour follows the design.
- 4UV curingUV 照射固化
A UV lamp cures each pass where it lands. The ink sets under light rather than by drying — which is also what lets layer after layer be built up into relief.
Framing
A decorative frame in wood or aluminium alloy, a rear support frame, or both, made to the piece. Any thickness can be framed; a 9 mm panel fixed to the wall with tile adhesive as a mural can skip this stage.
Relief, or 3D texture
Both are built up in UV ink, through the same stages. The difference is how the ink is layered — crisp planes or free brushstrokes — and it is easy to see.
Ceramic Relief Wall Art
A full-colour image built up in layers of UV ink on ceramic tile, into flat planes with crisp, stepped edges — clear outlines and detail that rise and fall. As light moves across the surface, those edges pick up fine shifts of light and shade, which is where the depth comes from.
Relief: several distinct heights, with a fine matte grain across every surface.
3D Textured Wall Art
Also built up in layers of UV ink, but into free-flowing brushstrokes and texture you can touch rather than crisp planes — suited to the look and feel of oil-painting brushwork and impasto. Height varies locally with the design, bringing colour and tactile texture together.
3D texture: impasto ridges and fine droplet texture across a framed piece. Shown on a wood panel; the same texture is made on tile.
No mould, no plate
Nothing in the seven stages requires tooling. The film is laser cut for the design in front of it, and the blasting and printing run per piece.
That is why one design can move between formats without starting again. Preparing an image for production — the laser cut file and the print file — is part of planning. Planning is not charged.
Questions about the process
How is the relief made?
It is built up, not carved. After the tile is masked and sandblasted, a UV flatbed printer builds the ink up in layers into flat planes with crisp, stepped edges. The result shows several distinct heights, with edges that catch raking light — and a sample is the place to judge that for your own design.
What does the sandblasting do?
Its core purpose is adhesion. Blasting roughens the exposed surface so the UV ink that builds the relief keys into it, rather than sitting on a smooth face. Because it runs through the laser-cut mask, it acts only where the design leaves the surface exposed.
How is 3D texture different from relief?
Both are UV ink built up in layers by the same printer. Relief is layered into flat planes with crisp, stepped edges; 3D texture is built up into free-flowing brushstrokes and texture you can touch — suited to the look and feel of oil-painting brushwork and impasto. Both are printed, not hand-painted, and we say so.
How is the colour applied?
In four steps: the design file goes to the machine, the panel is located on the bed so its position is known, the print head places droplets by coordinate, and a UV lamp cures each pass where it lands. Because droplets are placed by position rather than sprayed over an area, colour follows the design precisely.
Do you need a mould or a plate?
No. The film is laser cut for each design, and the blasting and printing run per piece. There is no mould or plate to pay for, which is why one design can move between formats without starting again. Custom orders still start at 100 pieces of one design.
What does the tile thickness change?
It decides the finished weight and how the piece is fixed. The three options are 3 mm, 6 mm, 9 mm; the weight of each per square metre is set out on the specifications page.
Can it be made on wood?
Yes, as an optional material — mostly for 3D textured pieces. Ceramic tile is the main substrate, and the thicknesses, weights and installation guidance on this site all refer to tile.
How long does the whole thing take?
Sampling is 5–7 days. Production is 20–30 days, depending on order quantity. Those are the sampling and production windows on their own — approval time on your side and freight are separate, and delivery dates are confirmed with the order.
Got an image? That's all we need to start.
No mould and no tooling. Custom orders start at 100 pieces of one design.