5 Elegant Entryway Tile Ideas Guaranteed to Impress Your Guests
If you’ve ever walked into an 1800s Victorian, like I have, you know that the grand foyer was always breathtaking and inviting. The fact is that when you first step into a home or business, it’s the entryway tile patterns that will make the most impression on you. While the entryway flooring has to be able to withstand lots of traffic with the space also playing a utilitarian role to greet visitors, and help them put away coats, it also has to be uniquely beautiful. Take a cue from the grand hotels and estates of the past to make your entryway as memorable as possible with these 5 entryway tile ideas.
1. Waterjet Medallion Art
Adding a waterjet medallion to the floor of a hotel lobby or luxury home instantly gives the space an air of distinction and good taste. Circular medallions that are cut with a water jet are so precise that they can even include lettering for a business with a custom mosaic logo, like this one that greets customers at a high end restaurant and bar establishment.
Porcelain Waterjet Tile - View Details>>
Waterjet medallion entryway tile ideas can also draw attention to spaces and features in a lobby, like a grand chandelier that hangs above it.
The same effect looks beautiful in a private foyer in a luxury home as well, even though the chandelier may not be as grand as in a business setting.
Waterjet Medallion - View Details>>
2. Mosaic Rug
Mosaic rugs can cover just a portion of the entry or line it completely, similar to area rugs and large floor rugs. They can have simple, natural themes, scroll work, and borders. You can even set some up to surround a medallion with cutouts that look like scattered floor rugs. Mosaic rugs can set off different areas in a really large lobby so that visitors know where the lounging area is and where to gather for social interactions. Some hotels may even add a mosaic rug and then place their furniture on top of it, the same way you might do with a textile rug. This offsets the area in a really large lobby or entryway, where visitors may be at a loss as to where to sit and where to stand.
Stone Mosaic Medallions - View Details>>
3. Checkerboard Stone
To widen tight spaces and make them seem less narrow, you can set the tile in a diagonal pattern to draw the eye out and away from the center of a narrow entryway. Not only is this a good visual trick, but it can product stunning patterns when you use a two-toned checkerboard mosaic. Along a long, narrow, entryway, the effect is practically mesmerizing as it widens the space and guides the visitor through the passageway. While a checkerboard is usually only black and white, there is still a bit of room to mix and match mosaic tiles with different materials like marble, slate, travertine, and limestone to get the same two-toned black and white effect.
Checkerboard Tile - View Details>>
4. Octagon and Multi-Colored Patterns
Using two different stone tiles gives you the option of choosing variegated marbles and smooth, non-variegated ones for additional visual interest. If the simple, yet elegant, black and white look of a checkerboard also appeals to you, but not the monotony of the same sized tiles, there are still other options available when you change the shape and size of the tiles. Try a foyer laid out with beautiful variegated white marble accented with smooth black, tiny, octagons for a pattern that is both classic and contemporary.
Octagon Mosaic Tile - View Details>>
You can also echo the colors of the room on the entryway, for instance, with this pattern.
If you don’t necessarily want a linear tile pattern, but like the multi-hued effect, you can mix and match tile colors and shapes, using materials like limestone.
5. Wall Mosaics and Art
Why should the floors get all the glory? The fact is that mosaics can play an equal role bordering an estate’s grand fireplace in a foyer as it can in a wall that lines a narrow entryway. Mosaic tiles can also produce textural detailing on the walls of an entryway so that you add instant character to your home.
Glass and Stone Tile - View Details>>
There is also no reason a business can’t add mosaic wall art to their entryway as a way to wow their guests. For instance, imagine this waterjet medallion gracing a wall in your business establishment. However, you don’t have to be limited to medallions, you can get any image you want to grace your walls using the timeless art of mosaics, like a floral or landscape mosaic. The mosaic wall art will also seem to change colors depending on how the light hits it during the day and at night. Adding glass mosaics to your wall art will also enhance that “glow” effect.
Waterjet Medallion - View Details>>