The floor tiles we choose can hold a lot of power as they set the tone of a room and can elevate any area. Regardless of your taste and inspiration, you want to ensure that you are making the right choice for your home or business and selecting a floor tile that is going to work with the environment you are tiling. Tilemall’s selection of floor tiles includes a range of colours, patterns, sizes and finishes so that every floor tile concept is possible. With so many options out there and endless styling opportunities from our extensive range, it can be daunting to know what to choose and what you need to consider before you commence your tiling.
If you are about to tile your floors, here is a complete guide to getting you started.
What styles of floor tiles to choose
Floor tiles are one of the most sought-after tile varieties at Tilemall, which is why you will find such a large selection of looks and materials. If you haven’t thought about the type of floor tiles you want, they can be broken into the following categories:
- Ceramic floor tiles
- Concrete look floor tiles
- Encaustic look floor tiles
- Marble look floor tiles
- Mosaic floor tiles
- Stone look floor tiles
- Terrazzo look floor tiles
- Timber look floor tiles
In this extensive style collection, there are different colours, tones and patterns to suit the style of any home. Tilemall’s creative team have worked hard to curate the designs that are most popular in the Australian market, bringing a mix of classic and contemporary influences to the floor tile collection.
Floor tile design for halls
Hallways are a beautiful design opportunity to create some grandeur in your home, and should not be an afterthought. We are seeing more and more innovative floor tile designs for the hall, with this small strip of space wielding the power to transform a home. The beauty of working with this space is that it is only a small area, so you can afford to choose a very bold floor tile design or choose something more demure. If your home has a neutral colour palette with some accent colours, then you may wish to choose a floor tile design for halls that are going to harmonise with that accent colour. For example, if your walls are white and you have pops of blue in your whole decor, then an encaustic look floor tile with an intricate blue pattern might make your hall and home look very cohesive.
If you are looking to create a dramatic sense of arrival in your home entrap and hallway, then marble look tiles might be the best option to deliver that impact. Tilemall has a stunning collection of marble look tiles, so you can choose a striking black and white marble look, or something more grey and subtle. Regardless of your design choice, this marble selection will make your entrance and hall seem larger and feel more decadent when walking on these quality, shiny tiles.
Floor tiles look incredible in hallways, and they also have the added benefit of being a functional choice for the home. If you have members of the home arriving in all kinds of weather, your tiles are going to collect those dirty shoes, umbrellas and pets before they enter the other parts of the house. Tiles are wonderfully easy to clean and maintain, so your floor tile design for halls might actually save you some cleaning time.
Living room floor tiles
Choosing a dynamic floor tile design for living room spaces is going to set your home up to be a beautiful space to spend time in. Many of our customers have been choosing living room floor tiles over timber and carpet due to the low maintenance of this flooring and the endless design styles that can be achieved. If you are looking to create a classic floor tiles design for living room areas, you need to first decide on the floor tile variety.
Tilemall’s collection of timber look floor tiles has been a popular choice for renovators on the fence about whether to choose tiles or timber for their living room. We have also seen that concrete look floor tiles and stone look floor tiles are appealing choices for large homes that want to leverage that loft-style look and feel. For homes that identify as eclectic or bold in their design intention, the terrazzo floor tile and marble look floor tile will be a fabulous choice and a great opportunity to build on the personality of your living room.
Generally speaking, we will not typically see ceramic floor tiles chosen for such a high-traffic area as the living room as they are more delicate than the hardier section of floor tiles. That said, ceramic floor tiles can be beautifully incorporated into an elaborate floor tile design, either shaping a fireplace, or a small area of the room for impact. Similarly, mosaic tiles will also be better suited to other floor areas of the home that have less furniture and are more likely to be a feature of the space. For example, mosaic floor tiles can look great in bathrooms, hallways and outdoor areas.
Kitchen design floor tiles
In years gone by, kitchen design floor tiles were very modest and typically only existed within the white and cream colour palettes. Now, modern kitchens feature bright and eclectic designs and work with the available natural light to make the kitchen light and vibrant room in the home. It can be tempting to stay within the comfort of conservative kitchen floor tiles, and Tilemall has an extensive collection of timeless tiles in all materials and finishes. Ceramic floor tiles, marble floor tiles and stone floor tiles will complement a modern kitchen look, with the modest shine of these gloss and matte tiles working with chrome, brass and gold kitchen fixtures.
For a louder kitchen look, the encaustic look floor tiles, mosaic floor tiles and terrazzo floor tiles can set the scene for a fun and collaborative kitchen environment. Before you choose the design and colour for your kitchen, you may wish to order a sample tile so that you can see how it interacts with the other areas of your kitchen. The beauty of these tiles is that they are a piece of art, but if your existing kitchen is already quite bold then the impact might be lost and these design components might cannibalise one another.
Another consideration to make would be your kitchen splashback and the colour of your benchtop appliances. You may need to forfeit a bold splashback tile if you are choosing something bold as your kitchen floor tiles, and vice versa. Ideally, they will complement one another with a green tile splashback and an encaustic look floor tile in a white and green colourway. Begin playing around with the colours you love and see what is possible with tile colour options. Generally speaking, benchtop appliances are often stainless steel, but if you have chosen bright colours then you may wish to consider this with your tile selection or endeavour to choose new appliances that tie in with your kitchen floor tile concept.
Bathroom floor tiles design
Bathroom renovation inspiration is one of the most searched terms on Pinterest, with many looking to revitalise this space and turn it into a restorative environment. This is where we start and end the day, and get those fleeting moments of peace within a busy day. As such, you want to choose a bathroom floor tile that is going to exude that spa-like look and have a unique character that aligns with your home.
If you have a modest colour palette and muted decor in your home, the bathroom can be an exciting opportunity to play with colour and establish its own “zone”. Marble bathroom floor tiles have been a popular choice for decades, and this trend is far from over, but you might find the curated collection of marble tiles to be different from the ones found in dated homes. Ceramic bathroom floor tiles and encaustic bathroom floor tiles have made a resurgence, with renovators wanting to steer clear of safe colours like white and grey.
Beyond your bathroom floor tiles, there are other components in the bathroom that can set the style for that area. This would be your tapware choice, the style of your vanity and the floor walls and tiles chosen. By ordering a sample bathroom floor tile, you can conduct your design quality assurance before you order your tiles and make amendments as needed. If your tapware and vanity are quite classic in design, such as a colonial design style, then you might need to stick with a bathroom floor tile within that style and ‘era’. If you are wanting to stick within a set budget, remember that the bathroom is generally one of the smallest rooms in the home so you might be able to afford to choose a more expensive variety as there is less square meterage to account for.
The advantages of floor tiles over other floor surfaces
Homeowners have the choice of a number of floor surfaces when renovating or refreshing their homes. These selections are timber floors, carpeted floors, concrete floors, and of course, tiled floors. Tiled floors far outweigh these alternatives for a number of reasons, so let’s explore why the best tiles for flooring are winning over homeowners.
Tiled floor maintenance is incredibly easy, requiring routine vacuums and mops with little chance of allergens and debris hiding as they often can within timber cracks or in the carpet. Tiled floors also have the advantage of being a cool reprieve in the warmer months. This is particularly important in warmer climate cities or in homes that tend to retain a lot of heat. Under the right circumstances and with heating technology tiles can even be an ideal situation through winter and in cooler climate locations. You can effective have your tiled floors working with and not against your climate, so they not only look good but feel good year-round.
There is also very little chance that your tiled floors will be scraped with moving furniture or become discoloured with sun exposure or with furniture staying in a position for too long. Tiled floors are also the only way you are going to see an intricate pattern, design or material on your floors, with can be an invaluable design element. While modern concrete floors can undergo treatment to create a shine, there is just not the same impact as what you will see with a mosaic tile, a terrazzo tile, a marble tile, or any other beautifully rich tile.
Another advantage to choosing floor tiles is that they can be done DIY. Timber floors and carpets will always need to be laid by a professional, but it is easy to achieve a stunning tiled floor on your own, with tile adhesive and grout easily accessible. This capability makes tiles a more accessible option, with renovators able to take on this project over a weekend and significantly transform a space without using professionals. The price of floor tiles is more affordable when compared to carpets and timber floors, and all the treatment and labour that comes with them. Laying carpet and timber is a tedious task and one that allows for no margin of error, which makes spending more on professional services inevitable. If you have your heart set on timber floors but want something more durable and easy to install, be sure to check out our range of timber look tiles!
~ Tilemall is Australia’s trusted provider of floor tiles, with a stunning collection available for every room and area in the home. Whether you are looking for a classic, understated floor tile or want to make an impact with something bold, you will find it here at Tilemall.
