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Part of the Heirloom tierApplied before shippingFiled against the set number
The material

The grain record, and what it is for

An Heirloom Set is not chosen from a swatch and then packed. Each tile is made, finished, photographed and matched against the run before the set is closed. This page sets out that standard in plain terms.

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The standard

What is recorded, and to what tolerance

Colour is fixed per collection. Within a set, tiles are matched so that a wall built from any part of the set reads as one surface.

Grain record specification
AttributeHeirloom SetPaper & Collector
Tile-by-tile photographEvery tile, face and edgeNot applicable
Colour reference per collectionFixed and documentedFixed and documented
Within-set colour matchMatched against the run referenceBatch-matched
Tile count165 US / 160 CN160/165 US, 144/160 CN
Finish inspectionEvery tile, individuallyEvery tile
Record filed againstThe set numberNot filed
Transferable with the setYesNot applicable
Tolerances are stated for the Heirloom tier because that is the tier a record is written for. Lower tiers are still matched, but no per-tile record is produced.
How it is applied

From raw material to a filed record

  1. Raw material is judged first

    A batch is accepted or rejected on the raw material, before any tile is cut. A batch that cannot hold colour is not turned into tiles.

  2. Tiles are formed and finished

    Each tile is formed, finished on the face and the edge, and inspected individually rather than by sample.

  3. The record is photographed

    Every tile is shot flat and square on a fixed ground under fixed lighting, so slots are comparable with each other.

  4. The set is matched and closed

    The set is checked as a whole — a wall built across the set reads as one surface — then the record is filed against the number.

This is a material standard, not a certificationThe record documents what was made and how it was judged. It is not a third-party certification, an appraisal, or a guarantee of a future appearance.
Limits

What the standard does not claim

An honest standard names its own edges. These are ours.

Tile photo archiveCraft process
No colour matching to a screen A display cannot be treated as a reference. The palette is documented, the screen is not.
No ageing prediction The record is a fixed moment. How grain reads after a decade of play is not something we can state.
No inter-run matching Two runs of the same wood are matched within themselves. A tile from one run is not promised to match another.
No correction of the material Retouching is not used. Grain is the subject, and imperfections in the raw material are part of the result.