Checkerboard Marble-Look Entry Hall

The room and the layout

This center-hall entry runs from the front door past a staircase with white balusters, with wood floors in the rooms off the hall. The hall floor is a diagonal checkerboard of white squares with soft gray veining and darker blue-gray squares.

A diagonal checkerboard is unforgiving. The rows have to stay straight down a long hall, and the triangle cuts along both walls should come out even. Transitions to the wood floors and the bottom stair also need clean, level edges.

Installation details to note

1. White and blue-gray squares alternate in a checkerboard set at 45 degrees.
2. The pattern runs the length of the hall, from the front door toward the rear rooms.
3. Triangle cuts line both walls where the diagonal pattern meets the baseboard.
4. The tile meets wood flooring at the doorways and the bottom stair.