All about floor tiles: The most beautiful choices, tips, and buying guide!

You want to lay flagstones on your floor; you've made up your mind about that. But which floor tile it should be is still a mystery. In this blog, you'll read more about stone floors.

Choice of 1001 floor tiles

There is an incredible variety of choices when it comes to flagstones, or floor tiles made of stone. They come in different sizes, colors, and thicknesses. Furthermore, there are various materials you can choose from. To make it even easier, you can also opt for a print, a motif, a pattern, and many other options.

Floor tile selection guide and tips

Listing all the possibilities would only make it harder for you. We want to help you make your choice for floor tiles.

Therefore, we've listed some tile floors that we particularly like and provided some practical tips.

Inspiration for flagstones / floor tiles

As mentioned above, there are many tiles to choose from if you want a tiled floor in your living room, kitchen, toilet, hallway, or bathroom.

Not only are different materials available, each with its own pros and cons, but there are also countless colors, prints, sizes, and finishes available. In my private and professional life, I have come across many tiles, especially flagstones.

I would like to share what I consider the best options with you. Perhaps it will make your tile choice a bit simpler.

#1 Ceramic floor tiles in dark colors

Often seen, but certainly no less attractive, are ceramic floor tiles in a dark color. The larger, the better. They are modern, often sleek, timeless, and last a lifetime.

Ceramic tiles = quality

Tiles made of ceramic, as the name reveals. Ceramic tiles are made of fired clay. Because the tiles are fired at very high temperatures in kilns, they become extremely hard. This gives them the property of being of enormously good quality. Ceramic flagstones are scratch-resistant, color-fast, wear-resistant, and dimensionally stable. Perfect for use as floor tiles where there is a lot of foot traffic.

Ceramic tiles are easy to maintain

Everyone wants maintenance-free products. I will immediately disabuse you of that illusion because they don't exist. We all have to vacuum if we want to keep things a bit tidy. This is pretty much the only thing you need to do, along with mopping, when you choose ceramic flagstones. They require no further maintenance.

Because the tiles are non-porous, dirt and moisture cannot penetrate the tiles. If your tiles get dirty, you can easily clean them again with soapy water and a cloth or mop. You won't have any problems with stains.

Ceramic tiles are waterproof

Ceramic flagstones are waterproof. This makes them perfect for the kitchen, toilet, and bathroom as well.

Ceramic tiles are suitable for underfloor heating

Ceramic tiles are made of fired clay. In kilns, ceramics are fired at very high temperatures until they are extremely hard. This makes ceramic tiles extremely suitable for floors where you want to install underfloor heating.

Ceramic tiles are easy to lay

Ceramic flagstones are easy to lay. The tiles are very light in weight and dimensionally stable. Apply the correct tile adhesive and place the tiles using spacers. Then grout with a suitable grout, and you're done.

#2 Ceramic flagstones with wood look

A second option for a floor tile that I find very beautiful myself are ceramic flagstones with a wood look. In this way, you can enjoy the benefits of ceramic tiles with the look of a wooden floor.

Quality and appearance of real wood

A wooden floor can be beautiful, especially a real parquet floor. The disadvantage is that these floors are very expensive, require maintenance, and wear out.
Nowadays, ceramic tiles can be made to look exactly like wooden planks. But then you have the benefits of ceramic: no maintenance, no stains, no wear and scratches, and also easy to clean.

Ceramic is waterproof

Ceramic flagstones are waterproof. This makes them perfect for the kitchen, toilet, and bathroom as well.

Durable ceramic tiles

Not only are wood-look ceramic tiles durable due to their quality and lifespan, but because no trees need to be cut down for these tiles, as with a wooden floor, they are relatively good for the environment. Especially since ceramic tiles last a lifetime.

Ceramic tiles are suitable for underfloor heating

Ceramic tiles are made of fired clay. In kilns, ceramics are fired at very high temperatures until they are extremely hard. This makes ceramic tiles extremely suitable for floors where you want to install underfloor heating.

Ceramic is pet and allergy friendly

A wooden floor has seams and gets scratches. Dirt, including pet hair, can get into all these crevices. With wood-look ceramic tiles, you don't have to worry about this.
Firstly, pets cannot scratch the floors. Secondly, no dirt gets trapped between crevices that can cause problems for people with allergies.

Ceramic tiles are available in various sizes

You can choose ceramic tiles with a wood look in square formats such as 60x60cm. But you can also opt for tiles that resemble lifelike planks. Not only because the top layer of the tile looks like a real plank, but also because the size of the tile is the same as with parquet floors. For example, you can imitate a real parquet floor with elongated planks, and you can lay the rectangular tiles in a herringbone pattern. Read the blog post about herringbone patterns if you want to know more about this.

#3 Rustic flagstones or Terracotta flagstones

Certainly one of my personal favorites is authentic rustic flagstones. In Southern Europe, they are known as Terracotta flagstones. Typical rustic red tiles made of fired clay in a beautiful earthy reddish-brown color. At tile supplier Solza, we specialize in terracotta tiles for outdoor and indoor floors. But they can also be used on walls, for example, behind a kitchen.

Traditionally, these fired tiles are also called "Oude Estrikken" (Old Dutch Tiles) or abbey flagstones. They look beautiful in rural homes, farmhouses, or other living styles where a warm, romantic atmosphere is paramount.

Terracotta for a warm appearance and literal warmth

Rustic flagstones have a warm appearance due to their natural colors. They are often handmade, giving them a rustic and robust shape. In addition to their warm appearance, these tiles literally provide warmth. The tiles are very strong, double-fired, and quite thick. This means they not only retain heat but are also ideally suited for underfloor heating.

Easy to combine

The typical look of these rustic flagstones can be well combined with other colors and materials. Walls in homes are often white, making them easy to combine with an authentic, striking floor. Steel and wood also combine well with these rustic flagstones.

High quality and low maintenance

Fired flagstones, often from Dutch soil, are of good quality. High-quality clay is double-fired, making them extremely hard. They can withstand a lot and last a very long time.
Because the tiles are so hard, they don't get dirty quickly. You can simply mop these tiles once a week and clean them thoroughly once or twice a year.

#4 Natural stone flagstones white and black

Natural stone comes in an incredibly wide variety of types, colors, and shapes. I want to highlight the white marble flagstones and the dark Chinese bluestone flagstones. Simply because I find them the most beautiful and they fit well into modern homes.

Natural stone is durable

Natural stone tiles have the characteristic of being indestructible. They are extremely wear-resistant and last for centuries. There is no manufacturing process involved other than extracting natural stone from mines and shaping the tiles. Due to their indestructibility and the fact that it is a natural product, you choose a sustainable solution for your floor.

Natural and luxurious appearance with natural stone tiles

Natural stone flagstones are natural products. This means no two tiles are exactly alike. Do not confuse these tiles with imitation ceramic tiles that have a natural stone look. The varying color nuances and patterns in natural stone tiles give your floor a beautiful natural appearance. Natural stone is a valuable product, and this, combined with its beautiful looks, also creates a luxurious appeal. Natural stone flagstones, with all these characteristics, can be applied in almost all styles.

Natural stone becomes more beautiful with age

The beauty of natural stone is that the tiled floor becomes more beautiful over the years. The tiles come to life as the years pass.

Maintenance and price

These beautiful natural stone tiles do not only have advantages. A disadvantage of natural stone is that it is extremely expensive. However, it does last for centuries. This last point is not a guarantee. You do need to maintain the tiles properly. Natural stone is susceptible to stains. Clean it with pH-neutral cleaning agents suitable for natural stone. Always get good information when purchasing these tiles.