Fabrication Process
Every bespoke piece we fabricate — a tiled basin, coffee table or wall-mounted shelf — goes through the same disciplined process: a waterproof structural frame, hand-cut and mitred porcelain, careful tiling, and a resin-sealed finish built to last. This page walks through that process in detail using a bespoke tiled basin as the example, since it's the most technically demanding piece we build and shows every stage of the craft from start to finish.
It Starts With the Frame
Every piece starts with a structural frame built from tile backer board — typically Wedi board or Jackoboard. These are tileable insulation boards that are lightweight, incredibly strong, and fully waterproof. This matters more than people realise. Timber, for example, might seem like a logical alternative — but if any moisture ever penetrates through to timber, it warps and rots over time. Tile backer board can't rot. It's built to last.
The boards are cut down to precise sizes at this stage, and this is where the accuracy really matters. Every measurement accounts for the thickness of the porcelain tiles that will be applied on top, so that once the finished tiles are in place, the piece comes out at the exact dimensions the customer has specified. Nothing is left to chance.
Once all the pieces are cut, they're bonded together using a high-strength tube adhesive and then screwed together to anchor everything firmly in place. The result is a solid, stable base that everything else is fabricated on top of.
Tanking the Bowl
For basins specifically, once the frame is built, the internal corners of the bowl are tanked before any tiling begins.
Tanking is a waterproofing process — a membrane or compound is applied to seal the internal corners of the basin bowl, creating a watertight barrier before the tiles go on. This is an extra step that adds time to the build, but it's one we consider non-negotiable on every commissioned washbasin.
Cutting and Mitring the Tiles
With the frame built (and tanked, for basins), attention turns to the porcelain. Every single tile used in a Jacko piece is cut to size by hand — nothing comes pre-cut.
For a basin, the pieces that need to be prepared include:
- The front and side panels
- The top surface
- The bowl opening, cut directly out of the top tile — often a large rectangle removed from the centre
- All of the internal bowl tiles, cut and mitred to fit
- The envelope cuts at the base of the bowl interior, which create the slope that directs water toward the waste
- The waste hole itself, drilled using a specialist hole-cutting kit
Mitring is the process of cutting the tile edges to a 45-degree angle so that where two tiles meet at a corner, they form a seamless joint rather than a visible edge. It's one of the most technically demanding parts of the fabrication process and one of the most important — a clean mitred corner is the difference between a piece that looks hand fabricated in the best possible way and one that looks unfinished.
Every cut is measured, checked and cut again if needed before anything goes onto the board.
Tiling the Piece
Once every tile has been cut to size and mitred where needed, the tiling begins. Each tile is fixed to the backer board carefully and methodically, working outward from the centre or the internal bowl and checking levels throughout.
This stage is about precision and patience. Every tile needs to sit perfectly flush with its neighbour, every joint needs to be consistent, and every mitred edge needs to line up exactly. Once a tile is set in adhesive it stays where it is — so there's no room for error.
Once all the tiles are fixed and checked, everything is left to cure fully before the next stage.
The Finishing Touches
With the tiles set and dry, the final stage is the finishing detail — the external mitred corners are sealed with resin. This protects the exposed tile edges, adds durability, and gives the corners a clean, refined finish that holds up over time.
On a basin, the waste fitting is installed and the piece is ready. On a coffee table or shelf, the base or wall fixings are attached at this stage instead.
From start to finish, a typical bespoke basin takes around twenty hours to fabricate. That's twenty hours of measuring, cutting, mitring, fixing and finishing — by hand, to your exact specification.
Every Piece is Different
No two commissions are the same. The dimensions, the tile choice, the finish, the number of bowls or legs — all of it is decided by you. The process described above applies to every piece we fabricate, whether it's a washbasin, a round or square coffee table, or a wall-mounted tiled shelf — but the result is always unique.
If you've got an idea in your head — even a rough one — it's worth getting in touch. There's no commitment involved in asking for a quote, and no idea is too vague to start a conversation. Whether you know exactly what you want or just have a feel for the style you're after, reach out and we'll talk it through.
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