Flooring can be one of the biggest expenses when decorating a home, so it's important that you get it right. It is the backdrop for a decorative scheme and sets a mood - rustic, modern, cosy or elegant. Its attractiveness must blend with practicality - a cream carpet would soon get dirty in a busy family hallway, and coir matting would become soggy in a bathroom. So think carefully about where the flooring is going to go, how the space is to be decorated and your budget. Also take into account the rooms dimensions - flooring used cleverly can alter the look of a room eg floorboards used horizontally could optically enlarge a narrow room.
The choice is bigger than ever - with flooring available in paper, bamboo, metal and leather - the list is endless. Hard flooring (stone, terracotta, marble and brick) is best for areas of high traffic such as halls and corridors and wet areas such as bathrooms and kitchens. Limestone flooring is very popular at the moment in contemporary homes, used in sitting, dining, even bedrooms and can be softened with rugs.
Wood is the most versatile of flooring, is warm, hardwearing and can be used in any room. Either use existing boards, painted, sanded or varnished; laminate which is cheap and very easy to lay; or opt for solid wood boards or blocks, though take care on the finish - try it out first on an off cut.
Lino, vinyl, cork and rubber are cheaper options and have been launching new products in great colours and patterns in recent years. Warm, tough and very practical, they are easy to clean and lay, especially on uneven floors, and are perfect for kitchens and bathrooms.
Carpets are warm and soft and work well in bedrooms, though avoid pale colours in children's rooms. In busier areas, natural floorcoverings are increasingly popular, such as sisal, jute, coir, seagrass, as they are tough, neutrally coloured and more reasonably priced than carpet.
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