HERRINGBONE OR CHEVRON - DO YOU KNOW THE DIFFERENCE?

Something has come to my attention recently that shocked me a little, and I'll explain to you why in a moment.  My favorite Social Media platform is Instagram, and it seems to me that people are very much confused with the Herringbone and Chevron patterns.  I mean, they are posting Chevron when it's actually Herringbone and vice versa.  What "shocked" me the most is just the other day I was going through the feeds on IG and saw a post from a very reputable and well known leader in the interior design industry (which will remain nameless) who had posted an image of a room with Chevron floors and said they were Herringbone.  Many comments quickly followed to correct the error, which in turn led the Instagrammer to edit their post.  I saw the same mistake on a well known blogger's post (again won't mention names), where she did a spread on a Parisian apartment with Chevron wood floors throughout the entire space and said it was Herringbone. I've seen this inaccuracy countless times and wonder, do people even realize there are two different patterns here?

Although the patterns start off very similar, there really is quite a distinction between the two of them...and it all lies at the point where the two blocks meet.  In the Chevron pattern, the blocks run point to point and the ends are cut at an angle to create a continuous zigzag design.  Whereas, in the Herringbone pattern, the blocks finish perpendicular to each other, resulting in a broken zigzag.  The difference is the blocks match up symmetrically in the Chevron pattern, and in the Herringbone they are slightly off.

Although the Herringbone pattern has a pleasing geometry which seems less busy than the Chevron, I really do prefer the Chevron pattern because I like the structure and regularity, and also because I'm a little OCD and crave symmetry!

Note that in a flooring design or tile work, because all the blocks have to be cut at an angle to create the zig zag, the Chevron pattern costs more to produce than the Herringbone.

Whether it's the Chevron or Herringbone, these two patterns provide a wonderful sense of movement and animation to a room; not the mention the sophistication and the elevated sense of character they bring to a space.

Chevron or Herringbone floors are quintessentially French, and to be more specific - very Parisian...n'est ce pas?

xo,

Emi