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34
winter
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spr ing
waxing, buffing and polishing until they were able
to finally match the seventy-year-old high-gloss
sheen on the other parts of the floor.”
“The coloration of the grout and the time spent
matching the grout lines so they looked exactly
like the grout lines beside it,” Victoria Dolan
adds, “was the most challenging. It was weeks of
experimenting with grout color and getting it to
match just perfectly.”
The George Washington Smith-style tiles
separating the steps were handmade to match
those that already existed. As for the terra cotta
tiles themselves, they also presented an authenticity
problem, as any such tiles made today are only half
the thickness of the originals. Fortunately, the tiles
on the upper floor had been covered – and thus
protected – by carpeting. A tile mural at the end
of the hallway had also been covered up. Looking
inside a bathroom in one of the rooms, Greg
points out that the handmade tiles are taken from
designs of tiles at Casa del Herrero, an historic
Montecito estate.
Most of the furniture in the Biltmore’s
rooms and suites are either original
antiques, or custom-built reproductions
made of real wood and especially
designed for Ty Warner
Under the iconic Biltmore
tower, there was a serious
water issue that needed to be
addressed. In order to make
the needed repair, Ty Warner’s
team had to take each tile off,
number it, preserve it and put
it back exactly where it came
from in order to maintain the
historical and architectural
integrity of the structure. Roof
tiles here and elsewhere
throughout the Biltmore
complex are hand made
to ensure that replacement
tiles seamlessly fit into the
old portion. It took over four
months to get the colors right.