Naturally beautiful and practical too, stone, slate and terracotta floor tiles are a stylish and sound investment for the home.

No longer just for the kitchen, natural surfaces are now being used to create a seamless look between rooms, with bolder designs now proving the popular choice.

While multi-tonal mosaics and smaller tiles are still popular, large rectangular slabs measuring 900 x 600mm square, or random patterns incorporating these larger pieces, are very popular..

There is also a move towards stronger shades, either in light silver tones or very dark colours.

Terracotta tiles are also staging a comeback and regularly form the basis of the popular ‘travel inspired interiors’ trend.

Rich in tone, baked clay tiles create an organic look that is very much at home in a traditional or contemporary interior.

A new breed of cladding materials in a variety of tones, textures and formats, are being used to create stunning feature walls, or to inject texture throughout a room.

THE expected life of any flooring depends partly on the wear and tear and the quality of the covering.

This is especially important when choosing carpets as making the wrong decision can result in a costly error.

For example a bedroom quality carpet would not be suitable for use in the lounge of a family home.

For a lounge you could use a 80/20 per cent wool and nylon mixture, but avoid plain colours if you have a young family.

Correct fitting is also important.

While some homeowners fit their own carpets it is probably best to call in the professionals when using top-quality carpets.

It is also good practice to use a good underlay and have grippers to keep the carpet in place.

Before fitting ant carpet it is essential to check the floor surface is clean, dry and free from damage such a cracked concrete.

It is tough being a floor. The constant tramping of many feet, dirt and water spills can all break down the surface, particularly in kitchens, bathrooms and conservatories.

One solution is to use vinyl or cushion flooring which is easy to lay and maintain.

It must be laid on a dry. even floor. To level, use either a propriatory self-levelling compound or waterresistant boards.