Travertine as a floor
Travertine is a limestone formed around mineral springs, with natural holes left by gas and water as it formed. Travertine has been a building stone for thousands of years, the travertine facade of the Colosseum in Rome among its best-known uses, and its appeal on a floor today is simple: a matte, slightly textured stone in warm creams, browns and silvers that feels calm and natural underfoot. The full introduction to the stone is in travertine tile.
As flooring, travertine comes in two broad forms. Honed tiles, ground flat and usually filled, are made for interiors. Tumbled pavers, thicker and with rounded edges, are made for outdoor floors. Travertine floor tile also includes pattern sets and mosaics for showers.
Honed floor tile for interiors
Honed travertine tiles are the indoor floor. Tuscany Classic, Tuscany Beige, Tuscany Ivory, Tuscany Platinum, Tuscany Walnut and Tuscany Scabas come honed in 18x18, 12x24 and 24x24, along with Durango Cream in 12x24 and a beveled 12x12, and Silver travertine in 12x12 and 18x18. A honed face is flat and matte, and on most of these the natural holes have been filled at the factory so the surface is smooth.
24x24 gives the calmest travertine floor, with the fewest joints, in large rooms, while the smaller sizes and pattern sets suit kitchens, baths and foyers.
Vein cut and cross cut travertine
How a travertine block is sawn changes its pattern completely. Cut along the natural layers, called cross cut or fleuri cut, the stone shows a cloudy, flowery pattern with scattered holes, the look most people picture as travertine. Cut across the layers, called vein cut, the same stone shows long parallel bands, a striped, linear look that suits modern interiors.
Silver Vein Cut travertine in 12x24 is the vein cut floor here, with its gray and white bands, and it reads as a linear, contemporary floor while staying real stone. Laid with the bands running the length of a room, it makes the space feel longer. Cross cut travertine, by contrast, has little sense of direction, so it can be laid in any orientation and suits square rooms and pattern sets, where a striped stone would fight the layout.
Pattern sets
Travertine pattern sets combine several rectangle and square sizes that interlock in a repeating layout, the French or Versailles pattern. Inside, Tuscany Walnut, Tuscany Scabas and Silver travertine come in pattern sets with tumbled, brushed or chiseled faces, which give an aged, Old World floor in a kitchen, a foyer or a sunroom. Outside, the same idea appears in tumbled paver pattern sets, compared in travertine pavers.
Layouts for a travertine floor
A straight lay of 18x18 squares, joints aligned in both directions, is the classic travertine floor and lets the stone's variation carry the look. A 12x24 in a one-third offset gives a more contemporary, elongated floor and suits long rooms and hallways. Squares set on the diagonal widen a narrow room visually, a common treatment in foyers.
The French or Versailles pattern, built from a pattern set of several sizes, gives the most traditional result, a floor that looks as if it was laid stone by stone. Honed and filled travertine is usually laid with narrow joints, so the stone reads as a continuous surface and the grout stays in the background.
Kitchen floors
A honed, filled travertine is a warm, practical kitchen floor. Its matte face hides crumbs and footprints, and its creams and browns suit wood cabinets and stone counters. Travertine is calcium carbonate, so acidic spills such as citrus, vinegar and wine dull the surface where they land; on a honed floor that dulling blends in, and the stone is usually sealed so oil and wine have time to be wiped before they soak in.
Over the years a travertine kitchen floor develops a patina, and the softer areas wear slightly. Many people choose it for exactly that lived-in character; the stone can also be re-honed by a stone restoration professional to bring back an even surface.
Bathroom floors and showers
Travertine is a classic bathroom floor, especially in honed 12x12 or 18x18 with a mosaic in the shower. The mosaics here include Noce hexagons, Tuscany Ivory in a tiny 3/4 inch square, Silver travertine in 2x4 and tumbled travertine pebbles, so the shower floor can be the same stone in a smaller format.
A honed or tumbled travertine is less slippery when wet than a polished stone, and a mosaic adds grip through its joints. Travertine bathroom floors are usually sealed, and a filled surface is easier to keep clean than an open one.
Entries and living areas
In an entry, travertine sets a warm, welcoming tone and copes well with the grit that comes in on shoes, since its matte face and natural variation hide scuffs. A pattern set or squares on the diagonal suit a formal foyer, and a medallion or a border can mark the center of a large one.
In living and dining areas, travertine gives a calm, light floor that works with rugs, wood furniture and both traditional and modern rooms. Its creams sit well with white walls and natural fabrics, while the walnut tones suit warmer, darker interiors.
One stone inside and out
Several colors in this collection come both as honed interior tiles and as tumbled exterior pavers: Walnut, Silver and Noce among them, and Tuscany Ivory as both a honed tile and a pool coping. That allows a kitchen or family room floor to continue through a glass door onto a patio in the same stone, with only the finish and thickness changing at the threshold.
The pavers are thicker, mostly 1 1/4 inches, against about 1/2 inch for interior tiles, so the change in height is handled at the door. The color match across the line is what makes the space feel larger.
Pavers for outdoor floors
The pavers make up most of this collection: tumbled travertine in Light Standard and Light Select, Chiaro, Walnut, Noce, Latte, Silver and Rustic Blend, in sizes from 6x6 and 8x8 to 16x24 and 24x24, plus French pattern sets and pool copings. Tumbling rounds the edges and textures the face, which suits patios, walkways and pool decks.
Light travertine colors stay relatively cool underfoot in sun compared with darker stone or concrete, which is one reason light travertine is so common around pools in warm climates. Pool decks, the French pattern and paver thickness are covered in travertine pavers.
Edges, thresholds and sills
A travertine floor needs a few special pieces where it meets other surfaces. The Durango Cream 12x12 is made with an angled bevel on each edge, which frames every tile with a fine shadow line for a rustic, hand-laid look. A honed travertine sill, such as the Durango Cream 6x72, finishes a window ledge, a shower curb or a doorway in the same stone as the floor.
Pool copings in honed and tumbled travertine, including Tuscany Ivory and Silver, finish the edge of a pool deck in the same stone as the pavers around it, so the whole surround reads as one material.
Travertine with children and pets
Travertine is a relatively soft stone, about 3 to 4 on the Mohs scale, so it is softer than granite or porcelain. Pet claws and dragged furniture can leave light marks on a polished surface, but on a honed or tumbled floor those marks blend into the texture and the natural variation. Spills are best wiped promptly, which matters more with children and pets around, and a sealed floor gives that time.
Travertine floor colors
The light creams and ivories, such as Light Select, Tuscany Ivory, Tuscany Classic and Durango Cream, are the classic travertine color and brighten a room. Walnut and Noce are the warm browns, darker and earthier, which suit Mediterranean and rustic interiors and hide dirt well in a busy kitchen or entry. Silver and Tuscany Platinum are the cool grays, the modern side of travertine. Scabas and Latte sit between, with golden and rust tones.
Travertine varies from piece to piece, and Light Standard and Light Select show the usual grading: Select has a more consistent color, while Standard allows more variation. A floor laid from several boxes at once spreads that variation evenly.
Travertine or travertine look porcelain
Travertine look porcelain copies the color and holes of the stone on a porcelain body that absorbs almost no water, does not etch and needs no sealing, and it repeats its pattern across a floor. Real travertine is the stone itself: every tile is different, it develops a patina, and it can be re-honed. The two suit different priorities, natural character or low upkeep, and both are common on floors.
