9 Popular Flooring Ideas Suitable For Indian Homes
By Urban Company
5 min read
Nov 29, 2017
A flooring idea chosen well can uplift and dramatically change the look of your home. Today we are spoilt for choice for our flooring, running between a gamut of ...
A flooring idea chosen well can uplift and dramatically change the look of your home. Today we are spoilt for choice for our flooring, running between a gamut of styles. And why not! We Indians are clearly exploring flooring options like never before. While the likes of traditional flooring like marble, granite and mosaic have not lessened, other options are being accepted today with great enthusiasm.
These are 9 of the most popular flooring ideas that are ideal for the Indian home.
Wooden Laminate Flooring
Most modern Indian homes use wooden laminate flooring because of easy maintenance that it offers. It further adds warmth to the room layout.
Floating wood or laminated wood tile is extremely simple in installation. Floating Wood Tile is relatively new to household flooring. It is composed of a synthetic material that stimulates a wood appearance which is then laminated. The only drawback to this flooring is that it can be very slippery when wet.
Price range:
120 – 450 INR/ square feet.
Climate Sustainability:
Wooden laminates are cool underfoot, making them a good choice for warm climates.
Stone Inlay Flooring
Stone inlay is a traditional flooring treatment, which finds a place in many of the palaces and old mansions in India. It’s perfect for a home with a luxury theme, but can also be used in a living room to glam up the space. The art of marble or terrazzo inlay is essentially a traditional form of art, where the work begins by careful planning of designs. After a design has been chosen, the colour scheme is set and tonality of the design is decided.
This is followed by a careful selection of raw material (like various semiprecious stones and marble). During this process, special emphasis is laid on choosing various shades of stones to give the right gradation and shading to the motifs.
Price Range:
150 – 1600 INR/ square feet.
Climate sustainability:
Stone Inlay is suitable for practically any climate, although homes in colder regions might need heating installed underneath to curb its natural chill.
Inlay Design Flooring
Stone inlay also works well in more modern home designs to create a stunning artistic element breaking the monotony of the white marble. The inlay flooring can be considered the most exquisite, the most luxury flooring design. And no wonder. Today, inlays can be created from wood, steel, bronze, natural stone, and even cement, to achieve modern compositions. Look at this delicate and modern looking inlay designs ideas in the hallway of a living room!
Price Range:
150 – 1800 INR/ square feet.
Climate sustainability:
Although it can last for generations, it’s not ideal for areas prone to earthquakes. Excessive movement of the substrate leads to damaged the tile.
Rustic/ Distressed Hardwood Flooring
Rustic wood flooring is appealing on a practical level too. Floors that are already made to look aged will better accommodate the passage of time and its inherent damage. Choosing a classic trend like rustic hardwood flooring is both financially sound – renovating a home is a huge investment – as well as being a clever design decision, because it is a relatively easy look to keep up to date. In its most simplistic interpretation this means pairing your reclaimed, rustic wood with cool, metallic accents; in broader strokes, it is about combining sleek contemporary furnishings with more rugged, rough-and-ready wood ones.
By the way, vintage home styles are coming back to fashion? Maybe the right time to revamp your flooring? 😉
Price Range:
250 – 550 INR/ square feet.
Climate sustainability:
Rustic flooring can withstand extreme climates whether it be extreme humidity or chilling winters.
Natural Stone Flooring
The charm of natural stone adds a lovely look to any home design, and is perfect for introducing a cooling element to beat the Indian summers. The choice of colours and grains provides almost unlimited options that can be matched to suit different colour schemes. If you’re looking for a little touch of luxury, stone floor tile provides quality, at a premium price. Some popular ones are granite, marble, limestone, slate and travertine.
The ability of stone to resist moisture and staining depends on its hardness. Softer stones such as sandstone and limestone must be finished every few years with a stone sealer. Harder stones, such as granite and marble, should be sealed every four to five years.
Price Range:
150 – 650 INR/ square feet.
Climate sustainability:
They stand up to years of abuse and are water resistant, so you can mop to your heart’s desire.
Hand Painted Tile Flooring
In a traditional Indian home, the use of hand painted tiles adds colour and also lends itself well to unique design elements such as a permanent stone carpet.
Price Range:
110 – 350 INR/ square feet.
Climate & Environment Suitability:
Usually ideal for courtyards, or balconies. They work in any room of the home, but not in bathrooms and kitchen because persistent damp conditions can lead to problems as the fibers and padding hold in moisture.
Vinyl Tile Flooring
Image Courtesy: Sheerluxe
Vinyl tiles and sheet goods are called resilient flooring — they’re flexible and slightly soft underfoot. They’re tough, durable and virtually maintenance-free. Thicker vinyl can have a textured surface that looks like real stone and wood. Vinyl comes in an array of colours and patterns at relatively modest cost. In fact, the idea of vinyl flooring is to experiment around patterns. Look at this beautiful Checkerboard styled vinyl flooring pattern – it’s classic!
Price Range:
330 – 750 INR/ square feet.
Climate & Environment Suitability:
While they’re suitable for any climate, they can feel a bit chilly underfoot.
Wood Deck Flooring
While wood deck tiling is usually used in outdoor areas such as balconies in modern homes, they also work well indoors in places that need warmth, like in this cosy reading nook.
Price Range:
130 – 700 INR/ square feet
Climate & Environment Suitability:
Wood Deck Tiling can swell in excessively damp conditions. Once the damage is done, the panel requires replacement.
Mix n Match Flooring
Instead of restricting the flooring to a single type and material throughout the entire home, mixing and matching tiles adds an interesting design element. It also helps to stay within the budget, if more expensive natural stone is reserved for the living area, while maintenance-free tiling or laminates are used in the other rooms. It can be used as a visual divider, like in this home, where different flooring is used to separate the living area from the dining room.
The kind of flooring you choose depends upon the overall home design. Use these ideas above as inspiration and get started today!