Despite being one of the largest parts of a room, the floor is frequently forgotten.  Imagine a restaurant or bar or even your best friend’s living room and you’ll be hard-pressed to remember what the floor was covered in.  And, what a shame, because if you look closely, you will find some truly unique and beautiful floors right beneath your feet – from marble to rubber, wood to wool, vinyl to concrete.  And each can look magnificent.

However, before the more enjoyable aspect of aesthetics comes into play, your choice of floor is most importantly, governed by practical issues. Rules exist on which materials fit where, as materials can be porous, slippery or noisy and potentially difficult to live with.  On the other hand, with some careful planning and advice from the experts, the pores can be sealed, the smooth can be made safe and the clatter can be removed. Let’s take a tour of the house and see what works where.

Hallway Floors

This is the room where dirty feet pass and bags/prams/sports gear is unceremoniously dumped.  On the other hand, the all-important entrance to your house is where people get that first impression about what to expect from you, your home and your hospitality.   

You, therefore, need impact combined with something that will clean easily. So choose marble for a statement, dark wooden boards for drama, birch for the clean and friendly feel, carpet for warmth or porcelain for crisp and clean.  

This image is of the hallway at Harewood House and has traditional parquet wooden flooring. To see the whole project for more inspiration check out this project here.

Stairwell Flooring

Stairways use runners to reduce the sound of pounding footsteps of worse still, stilettos. Bright and cheery they will attract you up and inside the house.  For a traditional look, they can be held in place with brass rods and brackets. Try hardwearing sisal or luxurious woollen stripes or for a more contemporary feel try shapely edges or vibrant floral carpets.  

Kitchen Floors

For the most part, a kitchen is no place for a carpet.  However, this room is for considerably more than just cooking these days, so a rug by the sofa is certainly not out of the question.

However, kitchens are most frequently covered in ceramic or porcelain tile or stone and what an amazing selection there is to choose from – terracotta, quartz, slate, marble and limestone in a vast selection of colours and each with their own unique characteristics. 

Besides cost and your personal style there is little to keep you from any choice as even limestone, which has caused many issues in the past due to its porosity – especially noticeable in the cheaper stones – can now be properly sealed.  Seek professional help for sealing as it is essential that it is done correctly if you want the stone to look its best in the long run.  

Bathroom Tiling

Another no-go area for carpets is the bathroom as moisture and bacteria will lead to rot in no time. However, for those who like to feel warm feet after their bath, underfloor heating is the perfect solution for under tiles.  Underfloor heating can now be fitted under most types of flooring and will keep the whole room at a welcoming temperature.  

Bedroom Flooring

If you fancy polished concrete in this room, there is no strict reason why you shouldn’t but, if like most, you want a more luxurious and certainly softer floor for your boudoir then carpets and rugs are your best choice for flooring.

Living Room Flooring

A carpet or good quality laminate flooring or wood looks great in these areas. Don’t worry about changing flooring types between rooms, as a new material helps indicate the new zone so a change between the living room and dining room or the dining room and the kitchen is perfectly acceptable.

For flooring advice and ideas, or to book a consultation please get in touch. To view our full range of services available follow this link http://www.nikischaferinteriordesign.co.uk/services/

Niki@nsid.co.uk

sarah@nsid.co.uk