I have black and white 12" tiles and black grout like Elizabeth, but mine are straight to feel right in our old farmhouse. The kitchen entrance is used almost exclusively, so the tile handles the grit, snow, and mud that comes in from the gravel drive without any issue. We have in-floor radiant heat, so it is toasty warm in winter and cool in summer. I've lived with this floor for 17 years, and the floor in my previous house was tile as well. It wears well (I am not into renovation for the sake of newness), cleans easily, and looks as good as the day we installed it. Ours has a bit of a gritty texture that prevents it being slick if it's wet, and I think I've only broken 2 items in 30+ years in the two tiled kitchens. I don't find it is hard on my body, but I usually wear supportive shoes when I cook since I don't want to worry about burns or injury from dropped items when I am cooking.

I love having the weathered wood look tile floor in the kitchen. It is practical for me. The rest of the house (minus the bathrooms and basement) is wide plank pine, and impractical to run into a kitchen. I have this tile running perpendicular to the real wood (not weathered) in the house., which makes it look purposeful. It is a really good quality tile which did not cost all that much. Looking back a couple years ago, I understand (when I was researching for someone who wanted to us this himself in his own home) that the tile I selected was discontinued. (I do have additional slabs in case anything needs replacement - always order a bit more than you need so the tilers can cut as indicated...) It also helps me demark space in my home, as I am not really an "open space" aficionado - but am content with "semi-open". I bought my tile from a high quality supplier (South Cypress), and I did not pay an arm and a leg for the tile I chose. Edit: This is a log home, and the wide plank pine fits into the home ambiance wonderfully. I just didn't want a soft wood floor in the kitchen... but I wanted something hardy but wood-like. Being "weathered" meant I wasn't trying to "fool" anyone, but going with the nature of my home. Absolutely love it, and love the supplier I bought from. It also has some brownish sections, which keeps me out of that monochrome area of décor I personally dislike.

I know this thread is a bit old but I wanted to chime in as people are continuing to debate and google-search the decision between wood floor and wood-look tile. I am a Realtor and I don't think this is necessarily "just a trend." Wood-look tile is continuing to change dramatically and can be quite impressive! I often see investor-flipped, new-construction, or standard pre-owned homes/condo's with updates, etc. In the past year, I have seen a big increase in wood-look tile. Sometimes it looks good, other times, just okay. When it is of lower quality, you may as well just do a cheaper tile. I absolutely think laminate is on the out, unless you are getting a higher quality. If you go cheap, it looks cheap and feels cheap. Families today often want updates, nice finishes/fixtures, and the idea of also having something that looks great, but also durable, is a big plus! So, I would say, go ahead and do wood-look tile, BUT, do it right! Invest in the higher quality product and be sure to take in consideration the grout color. A lighter color looks more obvious AND you have to seal it to help keep it clean. A medium-darker color is less obvious and easier to keep looking good year around. I am in the Fort Worth, TX area.

We have both in our house...no dogs, no pool. We used amtico in our main level: kitchen/family room, library and dining room. It is very durable, easy to clean, quiet and soft under foot. Though we are careful about scratching it...we do put felt feet on the bottoms of chairs. We live in an area where we get winter and use a lot of heat and warmth was a big factor for us. We used tile in the laundry room, in the bathrooms and in the pantry for durability, washability, we have a radiant floor in the master bath and the tile works better with that, and the expense. The amtico we got was more than twice the cost of hard wood so we didn't use it in the more utilitarian spaces. We first came across amtico years ago when Home Depot had their upscale stores called Expo. They used amtico in the high traffic areas and were driving tow motors across the stuff and it still looked terrific. We figured if it could stand up to that, it would certainly stand up to our household.