Herringbone patterns are most often, I think, laid out on a 45 degree grid, so that the chevron is clear. That's up to you, of course, and what looks best to you in the room you're putting it in.

I almost always specify that the layout for patterned flooring begins at the center of the room, determined by chalk lines snapped from the centers of the walls. That can shift a bit, if the room has an irregular shape, and a different center point can be established where it makes the most sense. Then all the trimmed irregular bits that make the materials fit the floor land at the edges, where they have the least impact, and the pattern itself is centered in the space.

I would plan the layout to work in the stove room and the mudroom will end up falling where it may.

Are you going to have a large area rug in the room or not? this may inform your decision re: how to lay it out--in your case I may want to have it lay out so there was a very clear and centered pattern right in front of the stove.

This is the type of thing I would draw out on graph paper in its entirety to check, and try different centers as brownynsmom suggests.

bronwynsmom - I take the point about starting in the center or some designated area of the room. palimpsest - I haven't yet thought as far as a rug but probably will have something at some point. Drawing out the tiles on graph paper is an excellent suggestion (and one I should have remembered myself).

I'll post my designs after I work up a few designs. Thanks to both!

I haven't ever done herringbone pattern, but when doing diagonal tile, it's helpful to consider how it will lay at the doorways--trying to center some part of your design there if possible. Another potential point to check would be in front of the stove. Is that hearth curved, and is it a different material? How that curve will lay out against the tile is helpful to check. I also agree about drawing it out on graph paper--making sure you include the spacing in the tile size you draw. Good luck!