15 designs that will look great at the entrance to your house

Sunita Vellapally Sunita Vellapally
Arranjos Exteriores, Calçada à Portuguesa e Muros em Pedra, Albufeira, Algarve, ROC2C_Calçada Portuguesa ROC2C_Calçada Portuguesa Patios & Decks Limestone
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There’s more to the entrance of your house than the main door. If you want to receive guests in style, you should design everything between the gate and the door, including the theme you want to follow and elements you want to have – a garden, path, entranceway floor and the door.

In this ideabook, we present 15 ideas for designing the entrance of your house. Some of these are an extension of the path from the gate, while others have flooring options for the area near the main door. Browse through to decide which of them you will choose for the entrance of your house.

1. Granite flooring – elegant and traditional

Although polished granite has been used for a long time, it is still a popular material for floors. The material has traditionally been used for flooring because it is resistant, durable and easy to maintain. It is stain and scratch-resistant, can withstand heavy foot traffic and has minimal porosity, which makes it impermeable and therefore, resistant to mold and mildew that is caused by moisture. It is a recommended option for the entrance of the house. Moreover, it comes in a variety of colours and styles, so you can pick one to suit your entrance.

2. For a modern entrance – white concrete

The white concrete entrance flooring in this house is the same as the path. It’s a modern design that uses large sheets of concrete set at various levels, leading visitors up low steps to the main door. The installation of white concrete requires extra care. The equipment must be clean and rust-free to avoid any stains on the surface when the floor is being laid. It’s advisable to have a protective coating to finish so that the pores are sealed to guard it from wear and tear. However, in a design like this one, the slabs can be made in a workshop and installed onsite.

3. Rustic – wood and stone

If your house is modern with a few rustic details, this entrance pathway with wood and stone is ideal. Wood is perfect for a rustic feature, but we recommend wood that has been treated to protect it from insects and fungus. The stones are in small pieces so that they fit well between the wooden planks at the entrance.

4. Stone in shades of grey

Some suppliers offer stones that are already cut. You can choose different shades of the same size and combine them to form your entrance floor. The stones in this image are not the same colour, but they achieve an interesting effect with many shades of grey.

5. An interesting entrance floor with rustic stone

If you have a traditional-style home, an entrance floor in several types of rustic unpolished stone is ideal. In this image, the floor is made from a combination of round stones and slabs of varied sizes. The composition has larger stones in the center bordered by smaller stones. You can even create geometric patterns when you lay the stone to create a magnificent entrance.

6. Terracotta tiles

Tiles baked from clay can be locally sourced from craftsmen and are very reasonably priced. The colour of this floor is great irrespective of whether you have a modern home or a rustic one. You can choose a look that matches the design and style of the rest of the façade.

7. A paved entrance

Cobblestones and pavers are usually seen on pavements, and they come in many types of materials such as concrete, cement, cut stone and granite. They need to be laid in series using specialized techniques, but the result is pleasant, especially when they form a pattern on the floor.

8. Completely rustic

The entrance of this house is unique because of the complete rusticity in its design. The mud path has logs of woods cut to resemble tree stumps and are set at different heights along the entrance pathway. Another option is to place these logs between cement or stone to create an interesting effect. Use your imagination to make unique designs with logs.

9. Clay and cement

Clay tiles set in cement is another interesting solution that you can consider for the entrance pathway and the flooring in front of your main door.  You can use terracotta tiles in different dimensions to create any design that you like.

10. Limestone

Limestone is slightly porous and non-slip. They are a great solution for floors that are exposed to the rain as their anti-skid feature makes them safe. You can find limestone in different shades and designs. We like the one in this image as its light grey colour brings a bright and airy feel to the entrance of the house.

11. Grass and steps

This entrance that uses steps set in grass is an original idea as it provides an access from the sidewalk to the house.  The design has concrete steps placed in the middle of the grass leading up to the entrance door.

12. Floor with lighting

Lighting can be a special feature when you design any element of your house, and what better place to start than at the entrance? As you can see, the steps that make up the entranceway have a small gap in between, allowing recessed lighting to highlight each step. The dark colour of the flooring presents a perfect contrast.

13. Combining two colours of stone

This entrance floor has a combination of marble in beige and grey tones. The steps leading to the entrance are coated with light brown stone, while the landing outside the main door has grey marble. The combination helps to distinguish the two areas, giving a more formal and sober look to the area near the door.

14. Colours and patterns

The combination of tiles in varied sized and colours, like we see in this image, creates a charming look. The colour of the door matches the small tiles in the centre of the larger ones. You can create patterns by inserting tiles of different colours and sizes to bring a unique look to the entrance of your house.

15. Designs with bricks

Brick adds warmth to the ambiance, whether it is used on walls or floors. It infuses style to your entrance, is durable and allows you to play with the dimensions to create interesting patterns by interlocking them, which result in a great look once finished. It can be used for modern, rustic or traditional homes so long as it laid in a style that suits the overall style of the façade.

For façade designs, see 12 amazing cladding ideas for facades

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