Its a Irreversible process , if its visible cover it with A rug .

are their cheap yet attractive substitutes for tiles?

Anshu, You should share the images . You have gone for a bold choice with Grey and black in my guess it should look good with light pastel shades. Thanks Nitin Cornerstone Designs, Bangalore.

@Rock Doc: Are you addressing this to me? I haven't actually bought these tiles yet - when I do, I will definitely be going for the handmade ones. They're a work of art and irreplaceable in my opinion. However, there are also screen-printed tiles available in the market in more or less the same patterns; the workmanship is of course different, but you get them cheaper, and they're also more easily available. You could give that a shot. I'd recommend Aakaar Flooring Solutions - they're here on Houzz and are able to provide both the above-mentioned types.