If you want to incorporate the sleek, timeless look and feel of tile into your home?s flooring design, you will find that you have a wealth of tile options to choose from. To help you make the best decision for your personal style, check out the distinctive benefits of some of the different types of tile, as listed below:

Durability
Some of the most beautiful options for tile, such as marble, are also the most sensitive to high traffic and daily wear, so they may be best suited as accents in the home. In the kitchen, durability is a key factor for flooring, because you want to select tiles that not only stand up to foot traffic, but are also resistant to water and chemicals.

Cost
Tile can be one of the more expensive flooring options, but it is worth the cost when you choose the right tile for a given area. If you do decide to splurge on pricier tile, consider using it for a decorative mosaic or in areas where daily traffic is minimal. Synthetic materials are often a more cost-effective option for tile, and they are available in a wide range of styles to suit your home without breaking your budget.

Location
Different parts of your home will have their own unique challenges, so you should choose tile on a room-by-room basis. One of the most oft-neglected factors to consider in every room is natural light, which can damage tile flooring through extended UV exposure. In rooms where there is a steady supply of natural light, choose treated tiles with muted colors that are not prone to fading. Rethinking your window treatments can also help you preserve the life of your tile in sunlit rooms.

Are you considering installing tile in your home? Check out this rundown of different tile options on HGTV.com.

When choosing carpet, there are many different aspects to take into consideration. Visit Carpet-Rug.org to learn more.

If you?re looking for a green tile cleaner, check out this article from National Geographic.

Wall-to-wall carpet can be beautiful in your home. Learn how carpet installation works with this article from HowStuffWorks.com.

Is your carpet host to high-traffic areas? Check out these carpet-cleaning tips and guidelines.

When you consider your many options for flooring, including carpet, laminate, and tile, you might not think of cork as a choice for your floor covering. However, cork is a popular material used for floor covering that can give your home a modern, distinctive look that will last for decades. Below is a closer look at the unique benefits of cork flooring that might have you considering it as an option for your house.

Noise Reduction
Cork is a soft, absorbent material that makes it an excellent buffer for sound. While hard floors such as tile, laminate, and wood allow sound to travel and echo freely, cork keeps noise to a minimum and allows for quieter foot traffic, which is particularly beneficial in two-story homes.

Comfort
Along with noise-dampening benefits, the soft texture of cork provides a comfortable walking and standing surface that is perfect for areas like the kitchen and hallways. It is also naturally insulating, so it keeps the warmth in your home during the colder months of winter when walking on tile floors can be torture for your feet.

Durability
Cork is actually the bark of the Mediterranean cork oak tree, so it has natural resistance to insects, mold, and damage from physical impact. These natural qualities of cork make it a remarkably low-maintenance floor covering that is well suited for all types of homes.

Renewability
As the trend to ?go green? with home dcor and design continues to grow, materials such as cork have become more popular for their minimal impact on the environment. Cork is harvested from the cork oak tree, while the tree base is left intact so that it can quickly regenerate more bark for future use.

If you have pets, children, or just a naturally clumsy spouse, you may have some reservations about installing new carpet in your home. However, thanks to recent innovations in fiber technology from brands like StainMaster, it?s possible to enjoy beautiful carpet worry-free for years to come. Here is a closer look at the advantages of StainMaster Carpet:

Liquid and Stain Resistant
If you?re searching for the most stain resistant carpet available, then be sure to ask your carpet store professionals about StainMaster carpets. StainMaster carpets feature LotusFX Fiber Shield technology, which is resistant to virtually any type of liquid spill. Since this fiber technology is built into the carpet, you won?t have to treat the carpet with additional solutions or sprays in order to achieve maximum protection.

Stands Up Against Heavy Furniture
Heavy sofas, tables, and armchairs place a significant amount of weight and pressure onto carpet, which gradually results in permanent dents. As your carpet installation professionals will share with you, StainMaster carpets stand in a league of their own when it comes to preventing these dents thanks to their remarkably tough nylon fibers.

Appears Newer for Longer
One of the biggest concerns that most buyers have when shopping for affordable carpet is its ability to withstand years of wear and tear while still appearing fresh and attractive. StainMaster carpets are renowned for their long-lasting durability and capacity to look like new years after they?ve been installed. No matter how many muddy paws or busy feet walk across your StainMaster carpets each day, they?ll be able to maintain their beauty as well as their quality for a remarkably long time.