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How Thin Brick Is Made

by Riley Chatham

Posted on August 6, 2026 3:31 PM

How Thin Brick Is Made: From Full-Size Brick to a Half-Inch Veneer 

If you've ever wondered how thin brick gets its name, the short answer is: it starts out as full-size brick. At Cherokee Brick, thin brick isn't a separate product dreamed up from scratch — it's made from the same brick that goes into our full collections, cut down to a lightweight veneer that's easy to install almost anywhere. 

Here's how the process actually works, from full brick to finished panel. 

It Starts With a Full-Size Brick 

Every piece of thin brick we produce begins as a standard, full-size brick — the same brick used in our Classic, Handcrafted, Antebellum, and Architectural collections. That matters more than it might seem. Because thin brick is cut from the same material and fired in the same kilns as our full-size product, the color, texture, and finish are identical. If a homeowner or designer wants an interior accent wall or a fireplace surround to match the brick on the exterior of a home, thin brick cut this way gives them a true match — not an approximation. 

Cutting the Face With a Water Saw 

Once a full-size brick is selected, it goes through a water saw, which slices the face off the brick to create the thin brick veneer. The water in the process keeps the blade cool and controls dust as it cuts through the fired clay. 

The result is a thin slice of brick — typically about half an inch thick — that carries the exact same face, color variation, and texture as the full brick it came from. Because it's a cut, not a mold or an extrusion, every piece retainsthe natural, slightly irregular character that makes brick brick, rather than a uniform, manufactured look. 

Because every piece of thin brick starts as one of our full-size bricks, we're able to offer thin brick in every size and every color we make — the entire Cherokee Brick collection, available in a half-inch veneer. There's no separate, limited thin brick lineup to choose from; if it's in our full-size collection, it's available as thin brick too. 

Drying in the Sun 

After cutting, the thin brick pieces are laid out to dry in the sun before they're packaged. This step lets any excess moisture from the water-saw cutting process evaporate naturally, so the brick is fully dry and stable before it ships. 

Packaging and Ready to Ship 

Once dry, the thin brick is packaged and ready for installation — whether that's an interior accent wall, a commercial lobby, a kitchen backsplash, or any application where the weight and depth of full brick isn't practical. 

Cut vs. Extruded: Why the Method Matters 

Not all thin brick is made the same way. Some manufacturers produce thin brick through extrusion — pushing clay through a die to form a thin panel shape and firing it as its own product, separate from any full-size brick. 

Extruded thin brick can be efficient to produce at scale, but because it's a different process from start to finish, it doesn't always match a manufacturer's full-size brick collections exactly. Cherokee Brick's approach — cutting thin brick directly from full-size brick — means what you see in our thin brick is a true, exact match to the full brick collection it came from. For anyone trying to blend an interior thin brick application with existing exterior brickwork, that consistency makes a real difference. 

The Bottom Line 

Thin brick gives you all the character of real brick — the color, the texture, the imperfections that make it look genuine — without the weight or depth of a full brick installation. At Cherokee Brick, ours starts as the same full-size brick in our collections, gets cut down with a water saw, dries naturally in the sun, and ships ready to install. It's a simple process, but it's what makes the final product a true match to the brick you already know. 

Interested in thin brick for your next project? Explore our collections or reach out to our team to talk through your application.