Wooden floors direction - advice please!

[Alexandra6]

We have just laid wooden floors in our house - we went for the direction of the wood running lengthways in the long living room, and I wanted it flowing in the same direction all the way across the front of the house from there, in the same direction, into the front hallway and playroom. I think it looks great, but I’m aware there are ‘rules’ about which was it’s best to lay wooden flooring. Is there a firm right or wrong or can it just be the way you think it looks best? The reason I ask is because it runs widthways from the front door across the hallway (which isn’t narrow). Is this ok to do and can the direction down to personal choice rather than rules?! Thanks!

Ours is laid the opposite wait to the floor joists so the way floorboards would normally be placed.

No idea on the rules as such. If there are no restraints then whatever suits you. Mine all run front of house to back of house. If it’s placed width-wise then it’ll make the space look wider and vice versa.

Constraints not restraints

Have you taken the original wood floor up? If so, you could have only laid it perpendicular to the joists. If you have laid over another floor then it doesn’t matter.

Thanks both. We’ve laid it over the old floor, rather than joists, and just picked the direction we thought flowed across the whole downstairs rather than any room direction rules! It’s the hallway I was worried about as you step into the house and the planks there are horizontal?