Floored for choice

If you are jaded with conventional carpet, combine beauty with practicality to take the right step in alternative flooring.

A natural weave - Coir, sisal, jute and seagrass come in a range of colours, weave patterns and even printed finishes. You might be surprised how rough some of these materials are on tender bare feet, so have a touch test if you regularly kick off your shoes at home or want to put a prickly, but hard wearing coir upstairs. Check with your supplier for the ease of maintenance too as some open weaves can become dusty. Some natural floor coverings are unsuitable for stairs as they can become polished and slippy with use. Compares in price to a good wool carpet from 30Euro a square yard and up.

Out on the tiles - Hardwearing, versatile and very Now, tile flooring ranges from 25Euro per square yard for a good ceramic tile to the floor-is-the-limit for imported natural stones such as marble. Matched to underfloor heating, tile floors provide the warm, elegant radiator-free interiors of the executive style homes featured in many interiors magazines. Choose your tile floor carefully, with an eye to both safety and maintenance. A glazed tile on a wet bathroom floor can be lethal, and many natural stones tiles and require dainty treatment to maintain their good looks. If you have a conventional heating system, ceramic tile or stone throughout leisure areas can be visually and physically cold demanding the addition of some rugs for children to sprawl on. Superb choice if you have anyone in the family with a respiratory problem such as asthma as it is virtually impossible to hide dirt and dust on a tile floor. The installation of tile flooring is best left to the professionals. In a new build, seriously consider underfloor heating to turn your acres of tile into toe-warming economical storage heaters.