• About this award-winning interior design blog
    • Press and Mentions
    • Legal
      • Privacy Policy
      • Cookie Policy
    • Contact me
  • Inspiration for the home
    • Appliances
    • Artwork
    • Bathroom
    • Bedroom
    • Biophilic Design
    • Books
    • Colour
    • Flooring
    • Furniture
    • Garden
    • Heating
    • Hotels
    • Interviews
    • Interior Accessories
    • Kitchen
    • Lighting
    • Technology
    • Trend
    • Wallcoverings
    • Window Treatments
  • Get interior design inspiration in your inbox
The Design Sheppard

Interior design inspiration for the modern home

  • About this award-winning interior design blog
    • Press and Mentions
    • Legal
      • Privacy Policy
      • Cookie Policy
    • Contact me
  • Inspiration for the home
    • Appliances
    • Artwork
    • Bathroom
    • Bedroom
    • Biophilic Design
    • Books
    • Colour
    • Flooring
    • Furniture
    • Garden
    • Heating
    • Hotels
    • Interviews
    • Interior Accessories
    • Kitchen
    • Lighting
    • Technology
    • Trend
    • Wallcoverings
    • Window Treatments
  • Get interior design inspiration in your inbox
Skip to content

Flooring Inspiration

  • Construction

    How to Maintain and Upgrade an Old House

    September 30, 2024March 20, 2025

    Buying an old house compared to a new build means you may have to take extra care to ensure that it is safe, energy-efficient and looks good.

    Continue Reading
  • A living room with large windows, a corner sofa and a boucle rug

    Interior Accessories

    5 Easy Ways to Create a More Luxurious Home

    September 24, 2024October 8, 2024

    We all deserve a home that makes us feel abundant and content. with some simple swaps and easy additions you can create a more luxurious home

    Continue Reading
  • Construction

    How To Make a Statement Staircase for Your Home

    June 28, 2024June 28, 2024

    An often overlooked part of your home could be transformed into the statement staircase you’ve always dreamed of. Here are 15 inspiring ideas you may want to explore.

    Continue Reading
  • Flooring

    What’s the Best Type of Flooring for a Garage?

    May 28, 2024September 3, 2024

    Flooring for a garage needs to be strong, durable, and resistant. So what are your options and what is the best material to choose?

    Continue Reading
  • Interior Accessories

    6 Simple Ways To Keep The House Clean When You Have Pets

    May 9, 2024October 16, 2024

    Pets are adorable but there is no denying that they make it much harder to keep the house clean. Here we share 6 tips to make cleaning easier.

    Continue Reading
  • Kitchen featuring Nature-Inspired Laminate Flooring by Quickstep

    Flooring

    The Best Nature-Inspired Laminate Flooring For Your Home

    April 25, 2024April 24, 2024

    Botanic Concrete is a nature-inspired laminate flooring combining intricate details of meadow flowers with the industrial feel of concrete

    Continue Reading
  • Construction

    Slow Renovating: 10 Simple Ways to Update Your Home Over Time

    April 24, 2024April 25, 2024

    How to take an intentional approach to upgrading your home by adopting the slow renovating method & taking your time to make it work for you

    Continue Reading
  • Interior Accessories

    18 Attractive Ways to Use Cork at Home

    March 18, 2024March 18, 2024

    There are more ways to use cork at home than you can probably think of. This sustainable and circular material is also extremely versatile.

    Continue Reading
  • Flooring

    A Simple Guide to Stylish and Durable Pet-Friendly Flooring 

    January 11, 2024March 26, 2025

    If you have pets at home it’s important to choose a pet-friendly flooring option. But which flooring is best-suited to those furry friends?

    Continue Reading
  • three paint brushes and tester pots of terracotta paint

    Construction

    6 Of The Most Important Benefits Of Home Improvements

    December 11, 2023December 11, 2023

    What are the main benefits to be had from undertaking home improvements?

    Continue Reading
  • Furniture

    23 Eco-Friendly Upgrades To Make Your Home More Sustainable

    October 26, 2023January 11, 2024

    There are a whole host of eco-friendly home upgrades you can make to ensure your home is as sustainable as possible

    Continue Reading
  • Flooring

    What’s The Best Floor To Go Over Underfloor Heating?

    October 12, 2023December 13, 2023

    Navigate the world of underfloor heating with our comprehensive guide. Explore the best flooring choices for thermal efficiency, aesthetics, sustainability, and value.

    Continue Reading
  • Flooring

    Is a Cork Floor the Best Option for Your Home?

    May 11, 2022May 11, 2022

    Choosing the right flooring for your home can be overwhelming given the number of options on the market. In this post we take a look a cork flooring and all the benefits it can offer.

    Continue Reading
  • Flooring

    How to Choose the Right Skirting Boards for Your Home

    March 14, 2022March 29, 2022

    Choosing skirting boards for your home can be overwhelming due to the plentiful options. We break it down to help you decide what’s best.

    Continue Reading
  • Flooring

    Waterproof Carpet Vs Stainfree : What you Need to Know

    May 13, 2021May 12, 2021

    Waterproof carpet vs stainfree carpet. What’s the difference between the two and which one should you choose for your home?

    Continue Reading
  • Flooring

    Interview : Simon Goff of Floor_Story

    December 7, 2020December 7, 2020

    Simon Goff, founder of Floor_Story, tells us how he got involved with selling designer rugs and how he has grown the business by working with up-and-coming and established designers.

    Continue Reading
  • Kersaint Cobb - Sisal Carpet in Panama, Oatmeal

    Flooring

    My Top 5 Post-Lockdown Home Improvement Jobs

    September 14, 2020December 4, 2020

    Spending more time at home during lockdown gave me ample time to pinpoint my top five home improvement jobs that need doing.

    Continue Reading
  • Reclaimed or antique tiles on a kitchen floor and used as a splashback - Maitland & Poate

    Wallcoverings

    8 Benefits of Using Reclaimed or Antique Tiles

    April 27, 2020April 23, 2020

    Using reclaimed or antique tiles in your home renovation project offers many benefits from practicality, durability and versatility to craftsmanship, aesthetics and a unique history.

    Continue Reading
  • Camada cork flooring in a living room setting

    Flooring

    6 Excellent Reasons to Choose Cork as Flooring

    August 19, 2019February 24, 2023

    The Colour Flooring Company has launched a brand new range of sustainable, waterproof cork flooring in six beautiful finishes.

    Continue Reading
  • CC Tapis Showroom during Milan Design Week 2019

    Flooring

    Trend : Unusual Shaped Rugs

    May 22, 2019March 23, 2021

    Following Milan Design Week, I spotted a distinct trend for unusual shaped rugs. It would appear that rugs don’t just come in standard rectangle or circular shapes anymore.

    Continue Reading
  • Quickstep flooring burnt black planks

    Flooring

    Popular Flooring Trends for 2019

    May 13, 2019April 28, 2020

    Choosing flooring is always difficult but I’ve rounded up some of this year’s top flooring trends to help you.

    Continue Reading
  • Amazonia botanical hexagon ceramic floor and wall tiles

    Flooring

    Amazonia Botanical Ceramic Tiles

    March 18, 2019June 25, 2020

    The new Amazonia collection of botanical ceramic tiles from CTD Architectural Tiles will bring your interior design project to life.

    Continue Reading
  • Original Style Tile Factory Tour

    Flooring

    Original Style Tile Factory Tour

    October 17, 2018April 18, 2019

    Any of my friends and long-time blog readers will know that what I love most about design writing, whether that’s blogging or writing for magazines, is the story behind the projects and products that I feature. I love interviewing designers and finding out about their inspiration, their background and their journey so far. I also

    Continue Reading
  • A lifestyle shot of MADE.COM TALENT_LAB COLLECTION 2 comprised of various bits of furniture, lighting and home accessories

    Flooring

    MADE.com TalentLAB

    September 14, 2018October 13, 2021

    You may have noticed from quite a few of my product round-up posts that I’ve always been a bit of a fan of MADE.COM (affiliate). Ever since I first discovered MADE.COM back in 2010 and interviewed their co-founder Ning Lee in 2011, I have been a big fan of the company and the products that

    Continue Reading
  • Posts navigation

    Older posts
    Back to top

    Subscribe

    The Design Sheppard will use the information you provide on this form to stay in touch with you and to provide weekly updates about new content featured on The Design Sheppard.

    Privacy Policy

    Follow us on Instagram

    staceyjsheppard

    View

    Jul 14

    Open
    This place is beautiful.

I am so lucky to have @nkukulife right on my doorstep. I have to drive past it on my way to the office everyday and it's always so tempting to pop in. 

What I love most about it is not only the expansive feel of the space with the high vaulted ceilings but the fact that everything inside makes me feel a special kind of way. 

You all know by now that I'm obsessed with biophilic design and there is just so much that fits this concept at Nkuku. So many natural materials and so much texture. 

Come with me and take a look around the store. 

#Nkuku #BiophilicDesign #TexturedInteriors #NaturalHome #NaturalHomeDecor #Naturalmaterials #HomeFurnishing
    32 5

    staceyjsheppard

    View

    Jul 1

    Open
    [Ad] Technical design, master craftsmanship, and exquisite materials are required to create stunning oak framed buildings. 

Ever since I was a little kid, religiously watching @kevin.mccloud1 on @granddesignstv, I dreamed of one day embarking on my very own Grand Design. The idea of building my own home, exactly to my specification, felt like an ambition worth having. 

That dream home looked remarkably like the gorgeous timber-framed homes created by @carpenter_oak with their beautiful beams, floor-to-ceiling windows and honest, authentic materials. 

So when I was invited on a press trip to learn all about how Carpenter Oak works with architects, contractors and self-builders to bring their visions to life, excited doesn't even begin to cover it. 

During the trip we stayed @gitcombe, a holiday let that was designed and built by the team at Carpenter Oak, so we could fully experience such a home.

There we heard all about the employee-owned company, their impressive history and their many projects across the UK and beyond. 

We then headed to the yard in Buckfast to see the master craftsmen at work, and get some hands-on experience building our very own scale model of an oak framed building.

Do I still dream of building my own Grand Design one day? Absolutely! And especially if I had a team like Carpenter Oak bringing their passion, and expertise to the project. 

What about you? Ever considered a timber framed home? 

#CarpenterOak #timberframe #OakFramedBuilding #timberframehouse #timberframehomes #oakframedbuildings #selfbuildhomes
#selfbuilders #presstrip #Buckfast #YardTour #UniqueHomes #ArchitecturalHomes
    22 2

    staceyjsheppard

    View

    Jun 29

    Open
    Imagine spending summer hanging out here! 

That's absolutely what I plan to do as it's my local just down the road @blackpoolsandsdevon 

Yesterday was the opening event for the newly relaunched restaurant and bar which has been beautifully designed and refurbished and features lots of gorgeous goodness from @nkukulife to give it those relaxed biophilic vibes. 

I can't wait to grab a drink and perch myself under the tiki beach parasol outside. The new menu looks tantalizingly good and with those views while you dine, why would you go anywhere else! 

I'm looking forward to spending summer at the beach and soaking up all the cool coastal vibes that Blackpool Sands will be offering up over the next few months.

Credit to everyone involved in breathing new life into this stunning location. This really is what summer dreams are made of ⛱️ 🌞 🌊🏄‍♀️🍹🍦🕶️🥙🪇

#summervibing #beachcafe #BlackpoolSands #DevonisHeaven #BeachBarViews #BeachVibin #SummerBeachNights #DartmouthDevon #DevonBeach #OpeningNight #LaunchParty #BeachHolidays #UKBeachHoliday #SeaViewBar #SeaViews #SeasideLife #SeasideDecor #Nkuku
    37 13

    staceyjsheppard

    View

    Jun 16

    Open
    The most stunning flooring I have ever seen (probably!).

I kid you not, I have never been so excited about flooring and I have been writing about residential home interiors since the dawn of ages (ok since 2007).

Botanic Concrete is part of the Muse Collection from @quickstepfloors and combines the beauty of natural stone
with the benefits of laminate with a statement botanical twist. 

The concrete-look laminate flooring features delicate wildflower designs lightly sprinkled on the surface. From a distance, you don’t even notice them but when you take a closer look it appears that someone has sprinkled teeny tiny meadow flowers all over the floor. The result is a hybrid floor with a terrazzo effect that suits minimalist and eclectic interiors alike. WHAT A DREAM!

So dreamy in fact that this flooring is now installed in my own kitchen. (These photos are not my kitchen sadly!) And I'm planning to install it in my hallway too. And maybe the living room. That's how much I love it! 

There is a full interview with Anastasiia Kudashova, Chief Designer at Quick-Step over on my blog if you'd like to know more about this incredibly gorgeous flooring. 

[This is not an advert. I bought this flooring with my own money. But Quick-Step did kindly give me a press discount]

What do you think? Does this concrete wild-flower terazzo combo make your heart skip a beat too? 

Let me know in the comments. 

#Quickstep #QuickstepFlooring #Flooring #LaminateFlooring #BotanicConcrete #FlooringPorn #ConcreteFlooring #TerrazzoFlooring #TerrazzoFloor #TerrazzoFloors #LaminateFloors #BiophilicDesign #BiophilicFlooring #NatureInspiredFlooring
    32 9

    staceyjsheppard

    View

    Jun 13

    Open
    [AD] I've just been away on a press trip with @carpenter_oak and for the first time ever it was in Devon. In fact, just 17 mins away from my home. Unheard of!! 

During the press trip I stayed at the most gorgeous venue. The @gitcombe estate, just outside Dartmouth, is home to Gitcombe house, a selection of holiday cottages and Gitcombe Retreat. 

I had the pleasure of staying at Gitcombe Retreat which is a beautiful oak framed building. The frame was designed and installed by Carpenter Oak, hence us staying there. 

Gitcombe is the perfect venue for large groups who want to holiday in Devon together. It is suitable for intergenerational holidays, large family holidays, friendship group holidays or even business retreats. 

The facilities are fantastic and include an indoor and outdoor pool, two hot tubs, tennis courts, a kids play park, and a soft play area. 

The rooms are beautifully designed and decorated. And the service we received was first class. The views of the rolling Devon hills are to die for and it is so incredibly peaceful due to its rural location. 

Gitcombe is a family-run business in a beautiful location. Believe me, I know, I live here. 

This is not an advert. I'm just sharing because if you follow me, and you love well designed, beautiful spaces, you're probably going to be interested in Gitcombe too. 

#TheDesignSheppard #Gitcombe #GitcombeEstate #UniqueHomes #DevonHome #DevonHolidayHomes #DevonFamilyHoliday #VisitDevon #OakFramedBuilding #CarpenterOak #IntergenerationalHoliday #HolidayHome #EscapeToTheCountry #DiscoverDartmouth
    24 12

    staceyjsheppard

    View

    Jun 8

    Open
    On Thursday evening I attended the grand opening of @societyhouse_ in Buckfastleigh, Devon. This 9000 square foot outlet warehouse is home to a fantastic selection of distinctive homeware and furniture sourced from around the world to help transform your house into a unique home you can be proud of. 

If you're looking for something different at great prices, this place is definitely worth exploring. Very exciting that it's right on my doorstep! 

#SocietyHouse #InteriorsOutlet #UniqueHomewares #UniqueHomes #GrandOpeningParty #BuckfastLeigh #DevonHomeMagazine #DevonLife #DevonHomes
    23 2
    Load More… Follow on Instagram
    Copyright 2025 The Design Sheppard | Site design by Station Seven
    This website uses cookies to personalise your experience and provide you with the best service possible. We also use cookies to gather anonymous usage statistics via Google Analytics and for tracking referrals to advertiser websites. By continuing to use this site you consent to all cookies in accordance with our cookie policy. You can however change your cookie settings in your browser but this does mean that our site may not function as well. Accept cookiesRead more