I purchased a house last year that has a very modern aesthetic (cabinets, pulls, lighting throughout) that was combined with tumbled travertine. This otherwise very beautiful property sat on the market for a year, in a good market and a great neighborhood.... I believe it was 100% because of that tumbled travertine. I still feel guilty about getting the house at such an incredible price (we lowballed, almost an insulting amount) because of that dumb design choice in a contemporary home. I am having a difficult time picturing the look you're going for, but I would be wary about using travertine (particularly tumbled travertine with a lot of coloration variation) in a contemporary home. It really is very traditional. We ripped it up and replaced with hardwood. So sad to ruin all that perfectly good travertine, just because of a poor design choice.

Here's a shot of the kitchen before:

And after... w/ hardwood:

You need a porcelain tile that looks like concrete, or maybe s nice wood. Or skate. No travertine. Ever. Not ever. No.

You need to b working with a designer who gets Contempirary before you tank the value of this gem. Contemporaries are hot properties and you don't want a value plummeting remuddle to take away from its appeal.

I love NW contemporary! We recently were in the market for a new home and saw so many of that had been thoughtlessly remodeled, trying to make the design into something it's not.
What are the rest of the floors in the house? You're on the right track with a Japanese influence, I think.
Are you in the pnw? The st of dreams in happy valley had a gorgeous Japanese contemporary home!

Heather, was that this year's st of dreams? Is it over now? I am near Seattle so didn't make it to the st this year.

Sophie, no slate for me, ever, or tile that looks like something else. Chloe's pictures were just what I was looking for to convince me the tumbled look I love won't work. Can't seem to find the right surface that is not super modern, but not antiquey. The adjoining floors are Duchateau oiled old timber wood.

merryecho I'm so glad my photos helped! My neighbors (in a 3.5m new build) have wood floors next to a very, very large format taupe-y gray tile (45", 60"?) and it looks incredible. I've seen that here a lot (in Phoenix) in superluxury new builds - extraordinarily large format tile... in both traditional and modern homes. I don't comment often, but I'm just happy that I steered you away from the trav! :)

Here are photos of the Suteki house at this year's st of dreams:) http://www.oregonlive.com/hg/index.ssf/2017/07/kengo_kuma_suteki_1st_us_home.html

Have you ever thought about large format terrazzo tiles? There are so many color options; Could be so beautiful!