These Modern Kitchen Floor Ideas Deserve Some Serious Consideration

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There's one phrase to remember when it comes to modern kitchen flooring: The sky's the limit. Gone are the days of standard white tile and traditional hardwood flooring as your only choices for a kitchen floor. Today, there are tons of kitchen flooring ideas you can play with in your modern kitchen.

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In addition to materials like concrete and terrazzo, tile (from cement to ceramic to slate) has become increasingly contemporary in recent years, displaying eye-popping patterns and hues that bring instant personality to any cook space. While wood flooring is still going strong, ingenious homeowners and designers are pushing the boundaries of their wood floors, opting for short planks to create more visual interest or laying down planks in an oh-so-cool herringbone pattern.

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If you're gravitating toward an unexpected color or if you want to try an on-trend pattern, you can do it with all of the modern kitchen flooring options that are out there. Here are some ideas and tips:

1. Experiment with surprising shapes.

One mark of modern kitchen flooring is laying down tile in an unconventional shape. Departing from the typical square or rectangle-shaped tiles, consider tile that resembles chain link for example, a choice that Joanna of Jojotastic went with in her kitchen.

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Get the look: Fireclay Tile Slate Blue Chaine Homme, $50/square foot

2. Go graphic and eye-catching.

White tile isn't going out of style anytime soon, but for a modern kitchen floor, we suggest something in a contrasting black-and-white pattern and geometric detailing. It's a look that Erin and Kirsten of House of Jade Interiors have perfected in this kitchen.

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Get the look: Clé tile compass 8"x8"x5/8", $14.49/square foot

3. Paint a wood floor in a bold hue.

So, you've been blessed with a wood floor. That's great! Now, we want you to push the envelope in a modern direction and cover it in a coat of brightly-hued paint. It's the pop of contemporary color your kitchen needs. Brittany of White Dog Vintage chose to paint her floor in a shade of vibrant green, and we're in love with it.

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Get the look: Sherwin-Williams Kale Green

4. Pick non-traditional tile colors.

White. Black. Black and white. These are baseline hues for floor tile, in most cases at least. But you're searching for kitchen flooring ideas of a different color — literally. To try something completely unanticipated, ponder tile in anything-but-traditional hues. For her kitchen, Justina Blakeney of Jungalow picked a turquoise and tan combo for her modern kitchen flooring, and the result is pure gorgeousness.

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Get the look: Badia Design Traditional Moroccan Cement Tile, price upon request

5. Try a large-scale pattern.

Back in the day, some homeowners may have installed floor tile with tiny, super-subtle patterns in their kitchens. Modern kitchen flooring tends to be all about "the bigger, the better" philosophy when comes to visuals, and we especially love it when it's applied to a black-and-white plaid floor. Ashley of The Gold Hive DIY'ed this modern plaid floor using vinyl tiles, and it's a flawless finishing touch in this kitchen.

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Get the look: Achim Home Furnishings FTVSO10120 Nexus 12-Inch Vinyl Tile, Solid Black, 20-Pack, $10.96

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Achim Home Furnishings FTVSO10220 Nexus 12-Inch Vinyl Tile, Solid White, 20-Pack, $10.98

Achim Home Furnishings FTVMA44920 Self Adhesive Nexus Vinyl Tile (Pack of 20), 12", Salt N Pepper Granite, $13.38

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6. Embrace a black kitchen floor.

Black is pretty much as modern a color as you can get. From black cabinets to black kitchen islands, the color has now made its way to kitchen flooring ideas. Using slate, tile, hardwood, or even vinyl in the case of this kitchen belonging to Suzannah of Create/Enjoy, we think it's an incredibly current choice for a kitchen floor.

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Get the look: Amalfi Vinyl Sheet in Black, prices vary

7. Turn your floor into a work of art.

A kitchen floor is no longer simply something that rests underneath your feet. Nowadays, modern kitchen flooring looks like its own artful masterpiece, bringing patterning and eye-pleasing appeal to a cook space. For instance, in this kitchen styled by Shea of Studio McGee, the black-and-white patterned tiles look a lot like a mural, but happen to work beautifully as flooring.

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Get the look: Cement Tile Shop "Bristol," $82.80/box

8. Choose short planks.

Long planks tend to be a tried-and-true choice for hardwood flooring. But these days, we are loving short planks for a wood kitchen floor. Between the wood's imperfections and varying colors, short planks tend to create more patterning and visual interest, something that's proven in this kitchen belonging to Megan of Fresh Exchange.

Get the look: Mercier Hardwood Flooring Pro Series Solid Maple Natural 3.25in Wide x 0.75in Thick, $4.92/square foot

9. Opt for a futuristic look.

For a modern, even futuristic, aesthetic in your kitchen, look no further than tile showcasing starburst shapes. It's a nod to midcentury modern design, but it looks very "now," which is witnessed in Jeran's kitchen of Oleander + Palm.

Get the look: Bedrosians Tile & Stone Allora 8.5" x 10" Decorative Tile in Stella, $6.99/square foot

10. Herringbone is always a modern choice.

We certainly adore herringbone floors around here. We think they're an ideal modern kitchen flooring choice, with their zig-zag patterns that communicate an avant-garde take on old-school wood flooring. Sign us up for the herringbone modern kitchen flooring seen in this kitchen belonging to Sarah of Room for Tuesday.

Get the look: Bruce Addison 2.25-in Spice Oak Solid Hardwood Flooring (20-sq ft), $3.49/square foot

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