That isn't Grecian White. looks more like a carrara or bardiglio.

once the water evaporates, it will lighten and look like the picture.

you picked a 1" mosaic tile that has a ton of grout lines. It shouldn't hurt, but those extra joint lines are what you are feeling. Going with a 3 or 4" hex would have alleviated some of that.

I have 3" marble hex on my shower floor and can't feel it.

But, I have a basketweave marble tile on the outside floor and can certainly feel that when I walk on it!

Your prior experience may have been with an eased edge porcelain. Just a guess. Personally, I find the sharp cut on smaller marble tiles not very comfortable.

I agree with the comment about eased-edge porcelain. Small penny tile or hex often has that rounded edge, not a sharp cut edge. The tiles in the mosaic you bought are also quite far apart, making the edges more pronounced compared to a lower grout profile.

The beigey-gray grout color does nothing to enhance the look of your tile, either. It might look better with a smaller grout joint, but the mosaics you chose have a relatively large joint. Compare it to Beth's or mine. Mine are smaller penny-sized hex tiles 3/4" big. I chose them for their small grout joint. Mine are also those eased-edge porcelain tiles.

Nancy, they did a very nice job laying the penny round.

I would say the installation for the Home Depot hex tiles looks VERY good. The quality of the install doesn't look to be the issue. The "pain" issue looks to be the tile edge. I'm going to bet my eye teeth that the tile you chose does NOT have an eased edge. An eased, or rounded, edge is the edge of choice when thinking about tiles. Go ahead and rub your finger over the edge of one of your left over tiles. If the edge feels "sharp" (like a 90 deg hard angle) then you have your answer. The pain is coming from the sharp edge. Sharp = painful.

As for the colour, that is what happens to marble when it is sealed or when it gets wet. I'm with Hallett & Co. A colour enhancing sealer will turn very pale stone a bit darker. It "enhances" the veining (darkens). And to be clear, marble tile NEEDS sealing. It can require 3 or more coats of sealant BEFORE it is installed and then a coat (or more) AFTER it is installed. Each coat of sealant can darken/enhance the colour of the tile.

The fact that your installed tiles are SIGNIFICANTLY darker than your raw samples is a good thing (from a technical point of view). The darkening is uniform throughout the floor. Again, from a technical perspective this is a GOOD thing. It means the darkening is from the sealant and not from standing water (tile that darkens after a shower is often "spotty" with some areas becoming quite dark and other areas looking quite light...that can indicate significant issues with the install).

I'm sorry you don't like the look/feel of these tiles. As far as I can tell from the photos, the installer did a very good job with the tile presented to him/her. The tile appears sealed, there are no areas where you can "tell" where one sheet ends and another begins. The grout lines appear regular (which isn't always the case even with sheets of tiles).

If you want to double check the look of your tiles after sealing, you can go ahead and soak some left over tiles with some water (lay a dripping-wet cloth over the left over sheet of tiles and leave it there for a few hours). When you view the wet tiles, what do you see? Are you seeing the same "dark" colour as what is on your floor? If you are, the depth of colour is coming from the sealant.

At this point, this is either a "live with it" floor or it is a "rip it out and start again" type of project. Personally I can handle the depth of colour (sure it isn't the super pale floor you wanted...but it is still very handsome), it is the sharp painful edges that would cause me to rip this out. And the sharp painful edges are a direct result of the quality of tile (eased edges = more work at the factory = more expensive).

Honestly you don't like the floor and are going to come up with a hundred reason why its wrong. Think of all the people who have that exact mosaic floor and have no issue with pain. I have installed the exact style tile and have walked on it and have zero idea why it would actually cause pain. When someone is unhappy with something they tend to find more and more wrong with it. Im sorry you don't like the floor color but pain? I am just not buying that I had the exact floor in a master bath and felt zero.

I say it every time there is a marble complaint installers have your clients sign a waiver every time you do a marble floor or shower. Every single time you get the it looks darker or there is just this one tile. It is because it is a natural product that has large variances in color. Certain sections will absorb water, sealer or even grout stain differently. It has nothing to do with Home Depot tile they don't mfg their own.

Marble is the worst material to put in a wet area. Unless you like the look of variation and wear.

The problem is they are a natural stone and people don't understand natural stones have inconsistencies that's the nature o the product. I say it every time anybody installing marble has to have their clients sign a waiver for this very reason. They will aways be different color variations and size variations. Problem is people see pretty pics and don't understand the product they are buying. The other issue is we are in an age where natural products that once were a luxury are being looked down upon for their natural qualities. All wood should be an even brown tone. Marble should loo like fake marble tile that is dead perfect like porcelain.

I have laid several of those floors and there is no problem with them that an experienced installer couldn't overcome and know would exist being natural stone. I would have not used sanded grout if that is what that is. I get that the grout line is on the border of either product but an experienced tile person can pack in un sanded and have no cracking issues.

Problem with the sanded grout is you are standing on sanded grout and now you cannot polish your floor. I bet the majority of your issue is the actual sanded grout and not the tile. Any tile would have the same harness feel on the foot. With a mosaic like that the amount of grout lines is greatly multiplied.

I am not arguing but trying to enlighten as to what the real issues are here so others don't make the same mistake. Marble is the worst product for a wet area and any installer who doesn't get a signed waiver has nobody to blame but themselves. There will always be that BUT ITS JUST THAT ONE TILE YOU SCREWED UP ON. NO its the product. If I could upload pics i would show you the difference done with unhanded grout.

Good luck and I wish you were better educated and happy with your floor.

Pros, can it be sanded? I've sanded and "honed" chunks of marble while testing for kitchen suitability but don't know how silly a concept it is for a floor. But I would be tempted to get in there with an orbital sander and try to smooth it out before having it removed. It's very pretty!

I have marble basketweave tile on my bathroom and shower floors and it doesn't change color when it is wet. It is Calacutta Gold marble FWIW.

In terms of the feel of the tile, as posted above by Beth H, I can feel the tile but it isn't an unpleasant sensation and actually makes me feel secure when the floor is damp or wet.

I defer to experts but I don't understand the dire warnings about marble in terms of consistency or changing color. The only inconsistency in my tile floors is that the color of each individual tile varies as some have the gold veining; others have the gray veining and others are cream. But to me that is part of the beauty of natural stone - and when white they are the same color as when dry - I think I would notice if there were changes in the color of my shower floor since it is going to be wet as soon as I turn on the shower.