With a formal entrance way/foyer, you will want to understand the presentation of wood grain and its direction. Your rooms are large enough to have everything running from the front entrance back to the back of the house (the long edge of the plank running down the hallway). Run everything in the same direction.

Every room in the house will easily accept this presentation. Please do NOT change direction if you do not have to. There are people out there (I'm one of them) who are flooring snobs. These types of people do not like to see/accept wood floors that suddenly change direction in the middle of a home (or through a doorway). It tells us that someone didn't think this one through.

The one caveat to changing direction would be a patterned install like a herring bone in a single room - for effect. That's allowed and is highly prized (because it is so expensive).

Option 1 and install a herringbone or chevron pattern in the dining room to compliment your coffered ceiling and in the foyer for presentation.

I don't like how your staircase is placed so close to the closet. It doesn't look like there is enough space to get large furnitures up and down, while trying to make that turn.

Option 2. You want to see the long lines when you enter the house. Please do not change directions, as in option 3.

I agree with SJ this house lends itself to all one direction

Thank you for your input guys. I found some photos of the built layouts for visual representation. Please take a look at these 2 options and let me me know if you still think the same after looking at these:

Here is option 1 in dark wood:

Option 1 in light wood:

Option 2

I understand the idea of the feel from front of the house to back. The Above Photo Has huge Entryway( Wide and Long.)My plan has relatively small entryway. However it has an open concept kitchen to fireplace in great room. My concern is that the only visual pathway that leads from front of the house to back is thru narrow area in the front off the staircase.. All else is divided by walls. It might not be enough to feel the "flow" from front to back. Am I wrong here?

as shown here:

Some installers say to go parallel with longer wall of the room. Also some say to have planks lead you from room to room (dining to living room or kitchen to Great room on this plan) and avoid the chopped up if feel they are installed perpendicular(top to bottom) to the direction that leads to rooms.

like so:

versus

(opt2)

Since you don't have a huge hallway, all the more reason to have the planks running in option 2.

If you choose the other direction, I don't think it is wrong.

Long way down the hallway. The perpendicular layout (as in your photos) is less appealing to 90% of the population. The award winning home shown in CDR's post is what you are aiming for.

When a wood floor is installed appropriately, you do NOT notice the install. A floor that is installed inappropriately stands out and smacks you in the face when you first walk in the door. That would be the feeling I would get if I walked in to see the planks running perpendicular to the hallway (as in your photos). That's all I would be able to "see". And not in a positive way.

SJ, Thank you,

So this is better one then long way down the hallway, like so:

By perpendicular layout as in my photos you mean this ?

Understood. Thanks a lot to all.

Perpendicular from the DOOR. The last photo in your latest post shows the planks sitting perpendicular (running "across" the threshold) is the less attractive way to do this.

The OTHER thing to take into consideration is DIRECTION OF NATURAL LIGHT. Assuming your home has the same type of windows/natural lighting, you want to run the planks in the same direction as the source of natural light (windows). That means the long beams of light will be the same direction as the long length of the floor planks.

Your last photo shows the OPPOSITE to what I'm pointing out. I would run the long length of the plank from the DOOR to the bottom of the stairs (the opposite to what your last photo shows).

Going back to your original plans, that means the LONG LENGTH of the plank will start at the door and run AWAY to the back of the home (past the stairs and into the great room). And all the rooms will keep this direction. It will mean the flow of natural lighting is maintained with the direction of the plank - a double bonus.

Thank you SJ !