Actually, in a lot of smaller homes, the entrance and living room are all one in the same. :)

I have a ranch style home. When you walk in the front door, you are in the combined living room/dining room. We recently pulled up the carpet and we will have the wood floors re-finished in a couple of weeks. What we need to decide is what to do with the "entrance".

When you come in the door, directly to your right is a small coat closet. Then in front of you is the dining area and to your left is the living room. We have about a space that is about 80" wide by 52" deep to put flooring down. Depending on the flooring used, we may need to cut out some of the wood floor, unless we can just lay right on top of it. Currently there is a place where slate used to be that is about 52" by 52" and it just has subfloor.

So, what kind of material would you use for this tiny entryway? My dad suggested Duraceramic, which we are considering, but it has got mixed reviews and I'm not sure its my final choice. I went to a tile shop and now I am considering travertine. The good news is my Dad is a contractor, so we can get a lot of materials at cost. The bad news is if Dad is not willing to install, we have to pay someone labor. If Dad installs, he accepts payment in the form of a couple of home cooked meals. But Dad is not as young as he used to be and I think Dad is going based on what he thinks will be easiest.