Flooring, Carpets and Rugs

If you want a touch of luxury in your home travertine flooring is an ideal choice, after all it has been chosen for flooring in the finest buildings since Roman times due to its unique qualities .

Natural stone of the kind used for flooring such as slate, marble and travertine is formed by heat and pressure beneath the earth’s surface. Travertine floor tiles are produced using natural stone from quarries which have been established in many parts of the world to extract the stone from the earth. It is the natural quality of the stone which gives travertine floors such character and beauty. No two tiles are exactly alike. Although you will of course choose the color of your travertine flooring, you will find natural variations in every tile.

And as you can also choose various finishes for your travertine floor you are unlikely to find a floor just like yours no matter how many floors you see.

The finish which most customers choose is called “honed and filled”. This gives the stone a smooth regular look with all holes and natural imperfections filled in with a ground natural compound. If you want a more rustic appearance take a look at a floor which uses a tumbled travertine floor tile to see how well this might fit in with your home. The tumbled tiles have a pitted rough look which is definitely an option to think about if you have a country style interior. Smooth travertine tile flooring is a more contemporary look.

Despite their origin in ancient times, smooth travertine tile floors are less suited to traditional interiors unless they are softened by a traditional floor rug but it does seem a pity to cover up such a beautiful (and expensive!) floor. If you love smooth travertine floors but have a classic interior you could think about using travertine flooring tiles in your bathroom or kitchen if they are more contemporary than the remainder of your home (which is often the case in even the most traditional of homes).

Although travertine flooring tiles are not cheap by any manner of means prices are reducing over the years as the quarry process has become more automated and imports have become more common. This means they are now within the reach of most of us if we are looking for a long term flooring solution. You really have to think about travertine flooring as an investment purchase and not compare it to other types of flooring which will not stand the test of time. However if you like to change your decoration substantially every few years and do not have a large budget it may not be wise to make the investment in this type of flooring.

You will find cheap travertine tiles for sale but do be aware that the quality can vary considerably from one offer to another. The cheaper tiles may have a higher degree of variation than you might like or they may be softer and less durable than more expensive tiles. If you are in any doubt order a sample of full sized tiles (even though you will have to pay for these) and not just a small free sample so that you can get a true measure of the quality of the travertine flooring you are ordering.