Black and white floors aren’t really ‘in’. Herbert Minton actually began creating coloured floor tiles in England back in the 1830s. By approximately 1860, lots of British houses featured tiled front paths and entrance halls. Melbourne’s Parliament House still retains a Minton tile floor – from 1879. If you want to try black and white tiles at home, plan it well, because strong contrast shows every mistake. A misaligned design in an inappropriate space really gets on your nerves. Here, we explore just where this style actually shines, how much black is needed, the perfect tile size, and what grout color will spare you from scrubbing for ages.
Where should a checkerboard floor go first?
Start small, then get brave. These spots take the pattern well.
- Entry halls: guests see them first, and they handle muddy shoes.
- Laundries: small, wet, and happy to be bold.
- Bathroom floors: keep the walls plain, or the room gets dizzy.
- Front verandahs: a classic on old Melbourne terraces. Pick a tile rated for outdoor rain.
- Kitchen splashbacks: a small patch with big drama.
Skip the big lounge room. A checkerboard over a huge floor shouts all day. If you love the look but fear the volume, swap black for charcoal. It keeps the drama and cuts the shouting.
How much black is too much?
Black eats light. Paint makers measure this with a number called LRV. The darkest black reflects around 5 percent of light – whilst the whitest white about 85 percent. A half-black floor in a small room with just one window really will make it feel like a cave. Melbourne gets loads of grey days, and a very dark floor just makes them even grayer. Test it. Stand in the doorway at noon with the lights off. If the room feels dim, go whiter. Let white lead instead. Try a white floor with a thin black border, or one black tile for every three white ones. Long, narrow hall? Turn the squares on the diagonal. That version is called Oxford – and the straight one Cambridge. The diagonal line takes your eye sideways – making the hall feel much wider.
Which tile size and finish should you pick?
Old Victorian floors once used as many as 600 very small tiles per square metre. A highly detailed hallway might feature around 4,000 of them. Really you don’t have to be quite so fussy. Just match the tile size to your room.
| Tile size | Look | Best spot |
|---|---|---|
| 50 mm mosaics | Very busy, very old | Feature walls and niches |
| 100 mm squares | Busy and old style | Splashbacks, small bathrooms |
| 200 mm squares | Classic checkerboard | Hallways, verandahs |
| 300 mm squares | Clean and calm | Kitchens, laundries |
| 600 mm squares | Bold and modern | Big open rooms |
Finish counts just as much as size. Glossy black will show each footprint and water spot all too well. Matte finishes hide far more – and grip even better. Polished tiles are often the really slippery kind, so if you have a wet floor go with matte every single time. Have a look at the slip rating on the packaging – and target P3 or higher wherever water is present.
