How to Choose Flooring That Matches Your Lifestyle

Flooring is more than just a surface underfoot – it’s an investment that impacts the comfort, functionality, and aesthetics of your home. Selecting the right flooring is about balancing beauty, practicality, and longevity.

1. Consider Your Lifestyle

Before you dive into the world of wood, stone, tiles, and carpets, take a moment to reflect on how you live in your space. What activities are most important to you? Are you someone who loves hosting gatherings, or do you seek peaceful retreats in quieter corners of your home? Your flooring needs to complement your lifestyle, providing both form and function.

• Busy family homes: If your household is full of energetic children or pets, you’ll want a durable and easy-to-maintain flooring option. Hardwood, engineeredwood, or high-quality vinyl offer a blend of elegance and resilience, capable of handling the wear and tear of daily life while maintaining their beauty.
• Entertaining spaces: If you regularly entertain guests, you’ll want a floor that exudes style and sophistication. Consider polished marble or premium tiles for a luxurious finish in living areas and dining rooms. These materials add glamour while being easy to clean after a night of hosting.
• Quiet retreats: For bedrooms or home offices, comfort is paramount. A luxurious wool carpet or soft, natural wood flooring creates a serene atmosphere, ideal for relaxation and focus.

Understanding your needs will guide you in selecting the perfect material and style for each room, ensuring that your flooring serves as both a visual and practical asset. 

2. The Essentials of Wood Flooring 

Wood flooring is timeless and versatile, but the options can be overwhelming. Here’s a closer look at how to choose wood flooring that meets your practical needs while elevating your aesthetic. 

• Engineered wood: Engineered wood flooring is an excellent choice for both durability and elegance and most installers recommend engineered wood if you want to use underfloor heating. Persoanlly for my projects, I advise to search for brands which will supply boards with a 4-5mm solid veneer layer and I have worked with PurNatur, as these will hold up to sanding and refinishing if needed. This thicker layer can extend the floor’s life significantly compared to standard veneers, which are typically 2-3mm. 

• Solid wood vs. engineered wood: While solid wood offers a traditional appeal, engineered wood is often more practical in modern homes. It handles moisture better, making it suitable for kitchens or entryways where moisture is a concern, while still delivering that classic wood warmth. If you desire the aestetic of a solid wood floor, then you may either enjoy a modern contemporary look and we have used Dinesen or you may research reclaimed wood or salvage floors and we have worked with suppliers such as MAIN COMPANY. You can opt for planks or traditional parquet patterns.

• Patterns and plank sizes: Patterns like herringbone, chevron or Versailles (of which there are many configurations) add visual interest and sophistication, especially in larger spaces. My team will always draw up options of patterns and designs for the rooms so we can study the best arrangement and how to run a pattern, whether to add borders and how flooring travels between spaces. There are wonderful contemporary patterns which can be achieved with smaller boards and you can look up options with suppliers such as Bauwerk. 
• Wide-plank flooring, on the other hand, is ideal for creating a more relaxed and rustic or very contemporary feel. Oak, Douglas and walnut are popular choices for these patterns, lending a timeless, refined look to your space. 

• Wood tiles in the kitchen: For those who want the warmth and continuity of wood throughout an open-plan space, consider wood-look tiles in the kitchen. These tiles offer the appearance of wood but with the added durability and easy cleaning of tile, ideal for cooking areas where spills are common. 

And before considering the expense and effort of replacing existing wood floors, explore the option of painting them. Sanding and a fresh coat of paint can transform and modernize a room, giving new life to older wood floors without the commitment of a full renovation. We have applied chequer and striped patterns to old boards which offers a fun decorating aspect to tired floors.

3. Entrance Floors 

The entrance sets the tone for the entire home, making the flooring choice here particularly important. High-traffic, often exposed to dirt and moisture, the entrance should be both durable and inviting. 

• Material and pattern: Stone or porcelain tiles are ideal for entryways, offering durability and resistance to dirt. When choosing a pattern, consider the scale of your entryway; in narrow spaces, large or very small patterns are best to avoid overwhelming the area. Placing tiles diagonally creates a 3D effect, adding depth and interest to the space. 

• Colour and texture: Darker tones or textured finishes in entryways can help conceal dirt, while lighter, polished materials make a smaller entryway feel larger. If your entryway is particularly narrow, consider a lighter tile with a high polish or subtle pattern to enhance the sense of space. 

• Continuity vs. transition: Decide whether you want the flooring in the entrance to flow into adjacent spaces or to differentiate zones. In an open-plan home, a continuous wood or tile floor creates a harmonious flow from the entrance through to the living areas. However, some clients prefer a break in materials to define zones, which leads us to the next consideration you must undertake. 

4. Layering Flooring 

Layering flooring materials can add depth, texture, and visual interest. As with lighting, layering provides balance in an open-plan space, helping define zones without creating dissonance. When done thoughtfully, it enhances the character of each area. 

• Open-plan living: In open spaces, consider using wide-plank oak or walnut as a unifying base, and layering with plush carpet in lounging areas to create zones. Wood tiles are ideal in kitchens to maintain a continuous look while allowing easy cleaning – a practical choice I recommend in chalets where wood is part of the aesthetic but practicality is paramount. 

• Seamless transitions between rooms: In transitional spaces like hallways, the choice of flooring between rooms is key to maintaining continuity. Stone or tile in entryways flows naturally into hardwood in adjoining rooms, for example. In narrow hallways, consider either a super-large or small pattern on tiled floors to create balance in the space. 

5. Tips for Bathrooms and Kitchens 

For spaces with high moisture exposure, such as bathrooms and kitchens, tiles offer durability, style, and easy maintenance. 

• Porcelain and ceramic tiles: These tiles are water-resistant and come in a wide range of colours, patterns, and finishes. For a luxurious look, polished tiles in neutral or dark shades add depth and sophistication to kitchens and bathrooms. We work with numerous brands and recommend that you take time to visit their stores to feel and see the displays. There is incredible innovation in replicas of stone, terracotta, zelliges, encaustic and wood look tiles you can discover – some of my favourite brands are  Marazzi , Refin and Minoli . 

• Pattern considerations: In larger bathrooms, large-format tiles with subtle patterns create a calming effect, while smaller spaces benefit from intricate mosaics that add interest without overwhelming. Kitchens often look beautiful with a two-colour chequerboard effect, a timeless style that adds character and elegance. 

The work of Artisans of Devizes is a perfect example of how thoughtful craftsmanship can elevate flooring design. Their expertise extends beyond traditional flooring options to include bespoke flooring solutions that bring any design vision to life. Whether you’re seeking a custom-patterned tile, a unique wood finish, or a completely original flooring concept, I have worked on numerous projects with the team at Artisans of Devizes who excel in curating an exaquisite selection of products and creating individualized solutions. 

6. Choosing Flooring Wisely 

Flooring choices are always one of the first topics in design and renovation projects and I advise my clients to invest wisely: Flooring is more permanent than furniture and if you are renovating a home for the long term it is worth spending money on to match your lifestyle and taste. Loose finishes , even joinery can easily be upgraded, but fixtures like flooring (and cornices, doors, windows, radiators and wiring) are much more disruptive to fix later; Opt for quality materials that stand the test of time both aesthetically and practically.

• Softer and warmer alternatives: Made of natural materials, linoleum is softer and warmer underfoot than stone and can be cut and inlaid to create crisp, graphic designs in eye-catching colour combinations. Cork, another natural material, is insulating, warm underfoot, and easy to lay and clean.
• Terrazzo beyond kitchens and bathrooms: Terrazzo is increasingly being used in living areas, offering a unique and organic look. It stands the test of time and can be customised to complement any colour scheme, making it both distinctive and versatile. 
• Microcement: if you want to achieve a very uniform look which may feel appropriate for either very small or very large areas there is now increasing variety of options of polished concrete or poured resin flooring. The appeal of these materials is that there are no grout lines or patterns to consider, it offers a very calm and clean base and can be poured on top of existing floors (as long as they are appropriately covered and stabilised) this can save time and costs.

7. Extra Tip: Flooring for Chalets, Beach Homes and High-Maintenance Spaces 

For vacation homes, particularly chalets which have to handle snow and wet boots ,  beach homes which are covered by wet sandy feet or high-maintenance country side residences, you may decide that you want durable and easy-to-clean flooring.

In my recent projects I have used wood imitation tiles throughout for an open plan chalet, to create a cohesive look that’s both warm and rustic, while being much easier to clean than traditional hardwood. Other chalets have been transformed with stone imitation porcelain flooring which you would never know. In a beach side residence I have installed painted concrete and polished concrete floors to handle high traffic.

However as long as you are aware, you may be able to handle the requirements of natural products:

• Wood end grain bloc tiles: If you want a super hard wearing material which is natural and can withstand generations of traffic and you are not afraid of changes in appearance then you should consider a solid hardwood cobble flooring – it is expensive to lay but has been used over centuries in European streets, factories and homes for its acoustic qualities and durability.

• Natural stone, real terracotta or fired cement tiles: for either mountain , beach , country or city homes where you want the tactile experience of natural materials and you are not afraid of following a maintenance regime and prepared to invest into longevity then you should consider these natural products which work beautifully in high traffic environments and will create a living in and aged feeling that addds charm to your home .

Choosing the right flooring isn’t just about what’s underfoot – it’s about setting the tone for your entire home. Why settle for ordinary when you can go bespoke and make your floors a conversation starter? 

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