Playing with Patterns: Bespoke Design Floors

The beauty of stone lies in the versatility of its aesthetic. Not only can you create a floor that has a subtly nuanced look by choosing a limestone with slight variation, or even a marble with very delicate veining, but you can also use stone to create statement patterned floors that have real impact.

Hallways are the spaces often chosen to showcase a patterned floor because it is a way to evoke the wow factor as you enter a house and sets the tone for the rest of the interior. In period houses, a patterned hall floor is in keeping with a traditional aesthetic and the look can be elevated with an elegant limestone floor featuring cabochons or a classic chequerboard design. Geometric designs can offer either a period look or provide a more contemporary take.

In the hallway of a West London period house designed by Layzell Architects, our Bardiglio Nuvolato, a dark grey stone, was teamed with Carrara, a lighter grey, and Thassos, a very white stone, to create an eye-catching monochrome geometric floor in the hallway that is true to the house’s origins. Teamed with neutral panelled walls, the flooring leads the eye through the space. ‘The Victorians loved their patterned entrance hall tiles, so we enjoyed creating a modern take on how the house would have looked when it was first built,’ explains Laura Layzell, Director at Layzell Architects.

A bold statement was the aim behind a hallway floor in another Layzell Architects’ project, a Victorian villa in West London. Here, the clients required a colourful Soho Home meets The Ned meets Ham Yard Hotel vibe. A beautiful bespoke floor was crafted from our Verde Guatemala, Kendal and Long Island tiles in a 3D geometric pattern, resulting in a striking green, black and white design. ‘It was quite a fun way to make things feel fresh and modern. It creates a lovely bespoke entrance hall that creates a statement as you walk in,’ says Laura.

Long Island Marble Honed Finish at Playing with Patterns

Layzell Architects

The grandeur of Venice was the inspiration behind a standout bespoke design in the entrance of another project. The design was inspired by the intricate 15th century marble floors in the Scuola Grande di San Rocco. We replicated the 3D appearance of the medallions in the eyecatching design, matching the original stones, including Belgium Black, Rosso Verona, Sintra, Noce, Giallo Sienna, Bardiglio Scuro, Blue De Savoir, Pietra Gray and rare Onyx.

The original tiled floor could not be salvaged in one beautiful hallway in a family home, so interior design studio NW3 Interiors’ mission was to create a timeless aesthetic in keeping with the home’s period style, and that also complemented the relatively small space. A delicate geometric design comprising a range of neutral coloured Istanbul marble mosaics creates interest. ‘The tiles are a nod to the impactful original tiled entrance but worked tonally with the new scheme and complement the salvaged stained-glass windows,’ explains interior designer Molly Fern.

Pattern was used to create a hotel luxe feel with a dramatic bespoke monochrome floor featuring three different marbles, Nero Marquina, Calacatta Iceberg and Cloud Grey, in an Edwardian home in Didsbury. ‘It’s a beautiful big, wide space, so I wanted to keep it bright with a standout floor,’ explains Zoe Fernyhough of Artisan Interiors, who designed the space. The floor tiles anchor the scheme and are complemented by warm white walls, resulting in the eye being drawn downwards.

Istanbul Marble Mosaic at Playing with Patterns

Inspired by the Scuola Grande di San Rocco

NW3 Interiors

Artisan Interiors

Patterned floors are perfect for contemporary schemes, too. Alexander James Interiors created a floor in a Hertfordshire project that begins in the hall and flows through to the kitchen dining area. The intricately patterned design was created with Domus and Avant Garde marble in a honed finish and is perfect for leading the eye through into other spaces.

Bathroom floors are another area where you can go to town with pattern. Layzell Architects’ created a fun contemporary geometric design in a bathroom in their West London project with our East Java Hummingbird Marble Mosaic Temple tiles, a soft green stone paired with a white one. The pattern works well as the rest of the scheme is kept very simple with a neutral colour palette, while the mosaic floor is the hero piece.

Domus Marble Honed Finish at Playing with Patterns

East Java Hummingbird Marble Temple Mosaic at Playing with Patterns

Alexander James Interiors

Layzell Architects

In Layzell Architects’ West London Victorian villa project, playful pattern was introduced In the son’s ensuite with flooring comprising Milan in Amazon marble mosaic, a striking green and white chevron zigzag. Teamed with walls in Verde Guatemala to dado height and Long Island marble above, it creates a fun aesthetic.

And Verde Guatemala was also the star of the show in the main bathroom of Artisan Interiors’ Didsbury project. With the timeless aesthetic influenced by a pattern Zoe Fernyhough had seen in a hotel, she teased through the green of the period-style washstand to the floor tiles. A beautiful bespoke pattern was created with Avant Garde and Carrara marble, along with Verde Guatemala. ‘The design needed to be in keeping with the age of the house - I felt it was really important to create a scheme that complemented it.’