Plain Sailing Brick Topaz vs Terracotta: Which to Choose?

By Decorum Studio Cornwall | Published: 2026-10-13

Category: Comparisons

Compare Plain Sailing Brick Topaz and Half Plain Sailing Terracotta on size, format, and finish to decide which suits your kitchen or feature wall.

Quick answer

Choose Plain Sailing Brick Topaz if you want a bold, hand-stencilled brick format with organic texture and endless shape-play options. Choose Half Plain Sailing Terracotta if you prefer a classic 13 x 13 cm square that mixes easily into stripes or checkerboards. Both are hand-decorated in the Cornwall Studio, so the real decision comes down to format and the layout you have in mind.

Format and size: what changes on the wall

The most obvious difference is shape. Plain Sailing Brick Topaz is a 20 x 10 cm brick, a format that naturally creates a running bond or stacked pattern and draws the eye horizontally. Half Plain Sailing Terracotta is a 13 x 13 cm square, a classic tile that reads as a grid and works with standard square layouts. Neither is better in the abstract; the format decides how much pattern you see and how the room feels. A brick format adds movement and a hand-made rhythm, while a square format feels more ordered and calm.

Finish and colour character

Plain Sailing Brick Topaz is individually hand stencilled, which gives it a more organic texture than a flat glazed tile. That texture is the point: it catches light unevenly and makes the surface feel less uniform. Half Plain Sailing Terracotta is part of the Plain Sailing collection, hand decorated in the Cornwall Studio to show the Decorum colour palette. It is a solid colour tile rather than a textured one, so the colour itself does the work. If you want subtle variation across a wall, the stencilled brick gives you that; if you want a cleaner colour field, the square is the simpler choice.

Layout and mixing potential

Brick Topaz can be used alone or as part of the Shape play collection, so you can build other shapes and designs from it. That flexibility suits a kitchen splashback where you want a feature band or an angled detail. Half Plain Sailing Terracotta is designed to mix and match, and the catalog notes it works well with Decorum's Arc and Signal ranges. If your plan is stripes or a checkerboard, the square format is the more natural starting point because the geometry is already set. If your plan is a brick bond with a few shaped accents, Brick Topaz gives you more room to play.

Trade-offs to weigh before you order

Texture vs. flat colour: Brick Topaz is hand stencilled, so the surface has organic variation. Half Plain Sailing Terracotta is hand decorated but reads as a solid colour. Pick texture if you want the wall to feel handmade; pick flat colour if you want the pattern to come from layout alone.
Brick bond vs. square grid: A 20 x 10 cm brick encourages running bond or stacked layouts. A 13 x 13 cm square encourages grids, stripes, and checkerboards. Sketch your layout first; the format you choose should match the pattern you already have in mind.
Shape play vs. range mixing: Brick Topaz can be used within the Shape play collection to create other shapes. Half Plain Sailing Terracotta is built to mix with Arc and Signal. If you plan to combine tiles across ranges, check the square first; if you plan custom shapes, start with the brick.

Product facts at a glance

Plain Sailing Brick Topaz: 20 x 10 cm brick, individually hand stencilled for a more organic texture, with infinite display options and use within the Shape play collection. The brick format and stencilled surface suit feature walls and kitchen splashbacks where you want visible texture and flexible pattern-building.
Half Plain Sailing Terracotta: 13 x 13 cm square, individually hand decorated in the Cornwall Studio, designed to mix and match into stripes and checkerboard patterns and to work with the Arc and Signal ranges. The square format and solid colour make it easier to plan repeating patterns and to coordinate with other Decorum ranges.

Which one fits your project?

Best for

A kitchen splashback or feature wall where you want a brick format with visible hand-stencilled texture
A layout that uses Shape play or custom shape combinations rather than a standard grid

Not for

A project that needs a simple square grid, stripe, or checkerboard pattern without extra planning
A space where you want a flat, uniform colour field rather than an organic textured surface