Showers, backsplashes, floors, and custom tile work from a family owned tile contractor serving Austin and Central Texas.
You can see a tile job that was rushed. Grout lines that wander, lippage where one tile sits higher than the next, cuts around a window that do not line up. And you can see one done right, where everything is level, the pattern flows, and the details around niches and corners look intentional. The difference is entirely in the installer.
Cornerstone is a family owned tile company in Austin, and this is work we take seriously. Shower tile, backsplashes, floors, tub surrounds, fireplaces, and custom feature walls, installed by people who care whether the last row lines up as well as the first.
The part that matters most in a shower is the part you will never see. Behind a good shower tile is a proper waterproofing system, and that is what separates a shower that lasts twenty years from one that rots out the wall behind it in five. More on that below, because it is the single most important thing to understand before you hire anyone to tile a wet area.
Our tile installation services cover prep, waterproofing, setting, and grout. As tile installers, most of our projects fall into these:
The highest-skill tile work there is, because it has to be beautiful and completely waterproof at the same time. Floor-to-ceiling shower walls, custom niches and benches, curbless entries, and linear drains, all built over a properly waterproofed base. This is where our attention to the hidden details pays off.
Floors, walls, and full bathroom tile installations. Heated tile floors, tub surrounds, and the kind of floor-to-ceiling tile that turns a plain bathroom into something that feels like a hotel.
Porcelain, ceramic, and natural stone flooring for kitchens, entryways, laundry rooms, and living areas. Durable, waterproof, and it stays cool underfoot through an Austin summer. We handle this alongside our other flooring work.
Tile surrounds that replace dated fiberglass units and give a bathtub a custom, built-in look.
Tile as a design feature, wrapping a fireplace or turning a plain wall into a focal point with stone, large-format tile, or a custom pattern.
Travertine, marble, slate, and limestone bring a look that manufactured tile cannot match. Natural stone needs sealing to protect against staining and moisture, and we include initial sealing as part of every stone installation.
Big tiles with minimal grout lines for a clean, modern, low-maintenance look. They require a flatter substrate and more skill to set without lippage, which is exactly the kind of work we do.
Demo and haul-off of old tile, plus the substrate work underneath. Backer board, crack isolation, and getting the surface flat and sound before a single tile goes down.
Not everything needs a full redo. Failing grout, cracked tiles, and tired-looking stone can often be repaired, regrouted, and resealed.
If you take one thing from this page, take this. A tiled shower is only as good as the waterproofing behind it, and that is the part no homeowner can see once the tile is up.
Tile and grout are not waterproof on their own. Water passes through grout over time, and without a proper waterproofing system behind the tile, that moisture reaches the wall, the substrate, and eventually the framing. The result is rot, mold, and a shower that has to be torn out and rebuilt years before it should have needed it. This is the most common way cheap shower tile jobs fail, and the failure is invisible until it is expensive.
Done right, a shower is waterproofed with a dedicated membrane system before any tile goes on. The industry standard systems include Schluter, Laticrete, and Wedi, using waterproofing membranes, proper shower pans, sealed seams, and crack isolation where needed. Curbless and linear-drain showers in particular demand careful waterproofing, because the water management has to be exactly right.
When you compare tile quotes for a shower, ask what waterproofing system the installer uses and how the pan is built. A quote that is meaningfully cheaper is often cheaper because it is skipping or shortcutting this step. We do not, because we are the ones you would call to fix it, and we would rather build it right the first time.
We are Joe and Julie Davila, and Cornerstone is our family business. Joe was born and raised in Austin and runs the construction side, on site and hands on. Julie handles the design choices, including tile selection, layout, and how it works with the rest of the room.
Every project is managed by our in-house team from planning through completion. Whether it is a single backsplash or a full floor-to-ceiling shower, you will always have one point of contact.
Doing more than tile? We handle tile inside bathroom remodels, kitchen remodels, and whole home renovations, and we take on interior projects of all kinds.
We keep the process simple on purpose. No runaround, no mystery.
Tell us what you want tiled and where. Free, takes a few minutes.
We assess the space and the substrate, since that determines the real scope.
Material, format, grout, and pattern, with design help from Julie if you want it.
Tile laid level with consistent lines, then grouted, sealed, and cleaned and We go over the finished work with you.
The tile you pick changes both the look and how the finished surface performs. Here is how the main options break down.
Porcelain is the most durable and the most versatile. It is dense, water-resistant, hard-wearing, and available in nearly any look, including convincing wood-look and stone-look styles. It is our usual recommendation for floors and high-traffic areas, and it works everywhere.
Ceramic is more affordable and easier to cut, which makes it popular for walls, backsplashes, and lighter-traffic floors. It comes in a huge range of colors and shapes. Wall ceramic is not rated for floors, so the two are not interchangeable.
Natural stone, including travertine, marble, slate, and limestone, brings a one-of-a-kind organic look that manufactured tile cannot replicate. Every piece is unique. The tradeoff is maintenance, since stone needs sealing to resist staining and moisture, and some stones are softer than others.
Glass and mosaic tile is used mostly for backsplashes and accents, adding light and detail in smaller doses.
Format matters as much as material. Large-format tile gives you a clean modern look with minimal grout, while smaller tiles and mosaics add texture and pattern. Grout color is its own decision that changes the whole feel.
We will bring the conversation down to your actual rooms, your traffic, and your budget, and Julie helps with the design side, including layout, pattern, and how the tile reads against everything else in the space.
The same tile looks completely different depending on how it is set, and the pattern is where a tile job stops looking standard and starts looking custom.
Pattern affects labor, since more cuts and tighter alignment take longer, and we will walk you through what each one does for the room and for the quote.
Tile is priced per square foot, but the total depends on much more than area. What yours costs comes down to:
Timeline depends on scope. A backsplash is often a day or two. A full shower with waterproofing, or a large tile floor, takes longer, since waterproofing needs to be done and verified and grout needs cure time before use.
We would rather look at your actual space than guess. As a tile contractor, we will measure, check the substrate, talk through tile and layout, and give you a clear number before anything starts. No hidden fees.
Take a look at tile work we have completed for homeowners around Austin and Central Texas.
As a local tile company, our installers take on projects across a wide stretch of Central Texas, in Travis County and Williamson County alike. If you are a little outside the Austin city limits, chances are we have still got you covered.
Get answers to common questions about remodeling costs, timelines, estimates, our process, and the services we provide for homeowners throughout Austin and Central Texas.
It is priced per square foot and depends on the tile you choose, where it is going, the layout and pattern, substrate condition, and whether waterproofing is involved. A backsplash and a full waterproofed shower are very different jobs. We measure, check the substrate, and give you a detailed quote before anything starts.
Porcelain is the most common and durable choice for shower walls and floors, since it is dense and water-resistant. Natural stone is beautiful but needs sealing and more upkeep in a wet environment. Whatever tile you choose, the waterproofing behind it matters more than the tile itself.
Porcelain, in most cases. It is hard-wearing, water-resistant, stays cool in Austin heat, and handles high traffic and dropped pans without complaint. Large-format porcelain gives a clean modern look with fewer grout lines to clean.
It is the single most important part. Tile and grout are not waterproof on their own, so water passes through over time. Without a proper membrane system behind the tile, that moisture reaches the wall and framing and causes rot and mold. This is the most common way cheap shower tile fails, and it is invisible until it is expensive. We use certified waterproofing systems on every wet area.
Porcelain is denser, harder, and more water-resistant, which makes it better for floors and high-traffic areas. Ceramic is softer, easier to cut, and more affordable, which makes it popular for walls and backsplashes. Wall ceramic is not rated for floors, so the two are not interchangeable.
Yes. Travertine, marble, slate, and limestone are porous and need sealing to resist staining and moisture. We include initial sealing with every natural stone installation, and stone needs periodic resealing over its life to stay protected.
Done right, with proper waterproofing and quality installation, a tiled shower can last twenty years or more. Done without proper waterproofing, it can fail in a fraction of that as water works its way behind the tile. The installation quality matters more than the tile brand.
Sometimes, if the existing tile is sound, well-bonded, and flat, though it is often better to remove it, especially in a shower where the waterproofing underneath is unknown or outdated. We assess the existing surface and tell you honestly which approach makes sense.
Tile in larger sizes that creates a clean, modern look with minimal grout lines and less to clean. It requires a flatter substrate and more skill to set without lippage, where one tile sits higher than the next, so installer experience matters more with large format.
Keep it sealed, clean it with the right products rather than anything harsh, and address cracked or missing grout before water gets behind it. We can reseal and regrout tile that is still sound but looking tired, which is often cheaper than replacing it.
The tile itself generally does not require a permit. If the tile is part of a larger project that involves plumbing or structural work, that portion may, and we handle any permitting the overall project requires.
We do. Every estimate is free with no obligation, and if we do not need to see the space first, you can often expect one within 24 hours.
Yes. Cornerstone Home Renovations is a licensed and insured contractor, so your home and your investment are protected.
Tell us what you want tiled and the look you are after. We will measure, talk tile and layout, and give you a straight number, with the waterproofing done the way it should be.
