Flooring

Floor Tiles And How To Match Them To Your Home   by Annie Deakin

As soon as man started moving out of caves and building his own permanent structures, he looked for beautiful and durable ways to cover his floors. One of the best solutions pre-Classical man came up with was floor tiles. Technically, floor tiles are any hard material that has been cut and laid to create a flooring surface. Floor tiles can be seen in the ruins of Pompeii, Troy, and Crete. Baked clay tiles were used to line the communal baths in Mohenjo Daro. There are many styles of floor tiles from which to choose that vary in complexity and ease of use. Surely there is something that you will find compliments your home and lifestyle perfectly.

The most complex type of floor tiles are small glazed ceramic tiles arranged into a mosaic pattern. Each mosaic tile is no more than one inch by one inch.

They can be cut, fired, and glazed industrially, but the actually laying of a mosaic pattern is an artistic skill that can only be accomplished by hand. You will occasionally see instances of whole floor mosaics in ancient Greece and Rome, but these are extraordinarily labor intensive projects.

Today, many people content themselves with a small mosaic medallion in the middle of their floor, or a colorful mosaic border around the outside of more conventional floor tiles. Rarely will people bear the time and the cost of creating an entirely mosaic floor these days.

Glazed ceramic tiles can still be used for flooring, however. They generally come in 4' x 4' or 6' x 6' squares. It is possible to get a variety of colors, but the most popular are white and blue. These tiles also have to be laid by hand, but since they are so much larger, it does not take as long or cost as much. Glazed tiles can become slippery when wet, but there are sealants that you can purchase to treat your floor and give it a slightly tacky surface.

If you are going for a more natural look, stone tiles may be the right choice for you. There are many types of stone that are used for floor tiles, but slate or granite are probably the most popular choices.

These stones are hewn out of a quarry and are irregular in size and shape. Their coloration varies from stone to stone, but in general slate is gray in color and granite has warmer undertones. If you choose natural stone floor tiles, you should have them installed by a professional. He will be able to use mortar to create as even of a surface as possible. If one stone tile is taller than its neighbor, he will create a slight incline with the mortar to make walking less hazardous. Stone tiles are wonderful for creating an old-fashioned look for your kitchen or entryway and don't show stains and spills as much as ceramic floors.

Floor tiles have long been used to personalize homes since man started building homes. Consider using unique floor tiles in your home as well!

About the Author

Annie is an expert furniture and interior design writer. Her current area of specialism is bathroom designs, leather sofa and christmas
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