Thanks Deborah. It looks like a good possibility. Did you use the "autumn", and if so, did it have a rosy tint? I don't want to go in that direction, but fear that the "multi-color" would be too dark and too busy? But thanks so much for the reference!

Why are you afraid of using natural surface? No issues with black slate and my puppies :)

The slate I have fallen in love with has a rough, cleft surface and would probably snag dog hair quite easily. I don't think that all slates are necessarily as rough as this one, especially the darker, more monochromatic ones. But my color scheme needs a lighter slate with more of the brown tones.

We did use the Autumn. It is a very nice tile. I'll try to find a picture when I get back to the office.

Thanks Deborah. I'll have to see where I can find this tile locally. I've found that bringing a sample into the space where it will be used is the safest way to make a selection!

http://www.houzz.com/pro/stonesource001/stone-source-inc-india

Absolutely you're right to get a sample and look at it in your space. We sampled several before deciding on the Autumn.

YOU CAN TRY DIS MATERIAL

I can't find the picture of the Autumn except in a book here at the office. I tried scanning it but the quality is pretty bad. It does not have any rose tints to it.

If your biggest concern is the cleft finish, check out other suppliers who may offer the same stone in a honed or tumbled finish. California Gold is a pretty popular stone, so it shouldn't be too hard to find.

Deborah & Valley Floors - Thanks so much for your comments. I think I will have to spend some time visiting more flooring showrooms to better investigate all our options. We used to live in Las Vegas . . . A veritable "candy store" of sources for flooring. Not only stores that carried multiple brands, but many manufacturers (Daltile, Arizona Tile & Stone, Walker Zanger, Interceramic, to name a few) had their own large showrooms and stone yards. We now live in the Pittsburgh area, and the sources are more limited. But I am slowly finding some that we will be visiting. Deborah - I am glad that the tile you mentioned doesn't have rosy tones; now I just have to find a sample, hopefully locally. And to Valley Floors, I may still try to find a less fragile slate, perhaps in a honed version. I have to wonder whether the Daltile that I got from Home Depot is of lesser quality (seconds?) than what I would have gotten by sourcing through Daltile?

Sometimes Home Depot does purchase seconds. But, some slates just want to shale and flake off.