 Open floor plans continue to remain a popular interior design element. They allow for a seamless flow throughout a home and lend themselves well to a feeling of unity, conversation, and fellowship with family and friends. Whether you have a home with a large, open space or a smaller home that is cozier, the right use of flooring can open up your design.
One way to achieve this is by installing the same flooring throughout your space. For some, this may seem unusual because we are often accustomed to tile in the kitchen and bath, hardwood in the living room and hall, and carpet in the bedrooms. Good flooring choices to take throughout the whole house are LVT (luxury vinyl tile or plank), WPC (wood polymer composite), and sheet vinyl. These flooring choices, depending on brand, are either waterproof or water resistant and very durable, making it possible for them to be installed anywhere in the home. Each of these products are also able to be installed without transitions, thus creating a continuous flow. In addition, these products all come in wood or tile looks, perfect for whatever design you’re going for. Tile is also an excellent flooring choice that can literally be installed anywhere in your home. Today’s gorgeous, stylish wood-look varieties go with any décor from rustic to modern. The options are pretty much endless with tile, whether you’re looking for a natural stone look, classic design, or something sleek and bold. Tile is easy to clean and maintain, no matter where it’s installed. Laminate and hardwood also lend themselves well to open, common areas of the home, with certain considerations. Engineered hardwood is a better choice than solid if being installed in potential wet areas like kitchens. Any spills or leaks should be cleaned up quickly, and you should only use a damp mop when cleaning. Many types of laminate now come with water resistant properties, but care should also be taken in not exposing laminate to large amounts of liquid. We do not recommend laminate or hardwood for bathrooms, but they’re great for the main living areas of a home. So, our takeaway tips are:
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 Hardwood flooring is one of the most popular floor coverings on the market. The classic wood look has always been a buyer’s favorite, and now there’s more than one way to get that wood look in your home.
Laminate, sheet vinyl, LVT, WPC and even tile are all stepping up their games in wood-look styles and durability. With these new players out there, why does real hardwood remain on top? One reason real wood remains popular is aesthetics. Many floorings come very close to duplicating the textures, stains, and characteristics of real hardwood, but they’re still not the real deal. Home owners know this and often lean toward hardwood for their home because of the beauty and resale value it adds. As far as your options with hardwood, there are solid and engineered planks. Plank sizes can range from 2-1/4 inch to 6-inch planks giving you a variety of looks, including the popular random-width category which mixes plank sizes. Solid hardwood can be stained and refinished many times, while with engineered hardwood, you may only be able to refinish it once. Also depending on your climate, you may need to take into consideration the size of your planks and which hardwood type is less or more susceptible to swelling and shrinking. To learn more about hardwood types, including climate effects, check out this post. These are just a few reasons why hardwood floors remain a very popular and sought-after flooring. So, if your considering hardwood floors or maybe have discovered your home has been hiding them under some other flooring, consider the benefits of wood floors and the beauty and value they bring.  Daltile's Brickwork backsplash Modern Industrial design encompasses the feel of the city and is often made up of a clean-lined design with brick, metal, and wood textures. Do you have to be in an old brick building in the city to achieve this look? No, let's take a look at how you can use flooring and other fun accessories to turn any space into a city escape. As mentioned, the main components of modern industrial style are brick, metal, and wood textures. All of these textures can be achieved with tile. Specifically, we’re going to look at Daltile's 2”x8” Brickwork Terrace tile and Yorkwood Manor 6”x36” Pecan tile. Brickwork Terrace offers a distressed brick look often seen in traditional metropolitan architecture like factories and lofts. It’s an ideal tile for accent walls and backsplashes. Yorkwood Manor Pecan tile comes in large planks and is most often used on floors for a distressed, reclaimed wood look; however, it can also be applied to walls to really make a statement. Both of these tiles come in various shades and color combinations to suit whatever design you’re going for.  Yorkwood Manor Pecan You can’t talk about industrial design without mentioning metal. There are so many fun accessories for the modern industrial look, like metal wall art. Another popular design tenant is metal lamps and light fixtures with exposed bulbs. One key to the modern industrial look is unfinished or distressed accessories, so keep that in mind when picking your lamps, art, etc. Don't forget to keep furnishings such as couches, tables, and chairs modern and clean-lined with solid fabrics to offset the metal and wood textures you have playing throughout the space.
You don’t have to live in the city to achieve the modern, industrial look you desire. It can be achieved in your own home with the right materials. Brick and wood-look tiles are a great option for creating accents like an exposed brick wall, backsplash, or distressed floor. With advancements in technology, the possibilities in flooring and tile are almost endless to achieve any look you want in your home.  Custom commercial vinyl design for Northeast Alabama Regional Medical Center If you own a business, you know the effect a first impression can have, whether you’re a retail, medical, or service-based establishment. People are drawn to and enjoy being in a business that is clean, comfortable, and appealing to the eye. Flooring plays a big part in that aesthetic, but in addition to looking good, businesses experience a lot of traffic and need durable flooring. Commercial flooring is often thought of as generic and bland. There hasn’t always been a wealth of options for durable flooring that could meet a business’s needs and be stylish. These days though, there are a lot more options as the flooring industry is revolutionizing flooring to be both durable and beautiful. A go-to for commercial flooring is often carpet or carpet tiles. One of the many brands we offer is Mohawk’s ColorStrand SD which is equipped with colorfastness to sunlight, atmospheric contamination, and harsh cleaners. It’s also great against stains with its Protection Plus Soil and Stain Resistant Technology. ColorStrand is guaranteed not to wear more than 10% of its surface pile weight for the life of the carpet (it lasts!), and it’s also equipped with Weldlok Plus backing. Weldlock Plus is an advanced, high performance backing system designed to provide long-term carpet durability while delivering sustainable benefits. ColorStrand SD is also an easy, direct glue down or stretch in installation. To see more of the ColorStrand line, click here.  Mohawk Commercial carpet tile for Oxford RMC Mediplex But, let’s not forget about hard surfaces! You can always go basic, but hard surface commercial flooring features many options in resilient sheet flooring and luxury vinyl tile. Resilient sheet flooring and luxury vinyl tile are both perfect for the commercial scene in durability, maintenance, and style. Hardwood and tile are beautiful but can have a hard time standing up to the high traffic needs of commercial areas; whereas resilient sheet flooring and luxury vinyl tile you give the best of both worlds. So many styles are available in wood and stone looks and even patterns. We are also proud to be able to offer a vinyl heat welding procedure, often used in medical areas such as labs and imaging rooms. The appearance of your commercial area can bring in more business and make a better environment for your employees. With today's floors you don't have compromise style for durability. To see more of our commercial jobs and what we can do for you, click here.  Most of us are familiar with shag carpet, characterized by having a deep thick pile, giving it that shaggy look. Shag carpet has been around longer than most realize, dating back to Ancient Greece. Of course, this style of carpet was very popular in the 60’s and 70’s, then it experienced a sort of “fall from grace.” Now, once again, shag carpet is experiencing a new birth in the design industry. So, what happened?
Shag carpet got a bad reputation thanks to the design trends of the 60’s and 70’s. During that time, everyone was experimenting with their artistic, adventurous side which brought us many cool things but not so much in the interior design world. You've probably been in or seen a home from that era with hideous, bright-colored shag carpet, maybe even in rooms it should not have been in like the bathroom. Unfortunately, this is what people often think of when they hear the words “shag carpet.” In addition to these pre-conceived notions working against it, shag carpet also has a fairly high pile and not a high twist level in strands (long strand carpet is very durable with high twist levels, not so much with a lower twist level). Its thick strands make it easily crushed and damaged and very hard to clean. Do these facts mean you have to give up on the plush softness, comfort, and texture shag carpet brings to your home? No. While you can still purchase shag carpet in today’s styles and colors, another option to consider is frieze carpet; it’s basically the new shag. Frieze carpet is generally constructed of thinner fiber strands than traditional shag carpet. Frieze is characterized by long fibers that have high twists, contributing to its durability. A standard carpet strand is most durable on its side not its top, so frieze’s long, high twist strands that lay on their sides make for a very durable carpet. The long, loose strands also help to conceal stains which make it perfect for high traffic homes. Frieze carpet comes in just about any color you can think of. It’s commonly found in multi-colored designs which heightens its ability for hiding stains, making it perfect for homes with kids, pets or high traffic areas. Frieze carpet adds a plush warmth, texture, and style to any home, whether you have it wall-to-wall or as an area rug. Also, frieze is great for stairways because it's long fibers hide seams and also give added traction underfoot for safety. The “shag” or frieze carpet look is enjoying a massive resurgence in home design. Carpet manufacturers continue to up their game with gorgeous patterns, designs, and colors in this style. Stop by our showroom today to see our selection!  Mannington Resilient vinyl in Savannah Firewood. Photo: Mannington Textures are an important element in home décor. Accent pieces, artwork, throws, pillows, and even flooring can provide texture, warmth, and style, helping to transform your house into a home. When it comes to textures in flooring, most people immediately think of hardwood or tile. Today though, other flooring options like vinyl and laminate are engineered with distressed and hand-scrapted looks that make it hard to tell the difference from real hardwood or tile.
Most people think of laminate, vinyl tile, sheet vinyl, and vinyl plank as being smooth with little to no texture and limited patterns. What you may not realize is that today’s vinyl and laminate are very realistic with looks that make it hard to tell they’re not the real deal. Depending on the look you want to achieve in your space, you may want more or less texture. Wood and tile looks with more grooves and textures tend to look more realistic and are often used in rustic design schemes. For a modern, streamlined look, go for less texture. Some examples of textures are: Wood-look:
Tile-look:
When you’re looking for a wood or tile look in vinyl or laminate, remember smoother and lighter textures lend themselves well to an open, modern designs with clean lines. More textured planks or grout grooves will add realism and complexity to your décor for a rustic look. There's a whole new world of vinyl and laminate, come see what we have in store for a beautiful look in your home.  Samples from the Natural Elements, Brushstrokes, and Finish Line series One of the best ways to update your home and increase its value is to remodel the kitchen and/or bath. Usually at the forefront in these areas is tile. An update to outdated tile can take your space from drab to fab, especially with today’s stylish choices in materials, colors, finishes, and patterns. Today we’re going to take a look at what you can do with our newest selections from Lungarno Ceramics. Lungarno has a wide variety of wall tiles ranging from classic to super unique styles. The Brushstrokes line is a 1” thick wall tile with a beautiful wavy surface. Colors available are latte, rust, and a stunning turquoise blue. Brushstrokes is a unique, vintage tile that feels warm and looks great with contemporary rustic designs that utilize worn textures. Finish Line features an array of porcelain and mosaic tiles with white, gray, and black color schemes for a unique modern design. On the more simplistic side, Finish Line features subway tiles and thin, interlocking rectangular tiles with a unique subtle texture making them perfect for walls, floors or backsplashes. In mosaic tile, Finish Line has a unique 1”x4” newspaper print wall tile that comes in white, gray, and black. This newspaper print backsplash tile is perfect for modern looks and adds a chic, city feel to your modern space. Finish Line also has hexagon tiles in black and white with beautiful and subtle metallic textures. Natural Elements is mosaic waterjet wall tile with unique styles and organic looks. This series of tiles comes in a variety of neutral combinations in beige, taupes, gray, and cream. Themed by natural shapes, they are simple, beautiful, and calming. Natural Elements features designs like hexagon leaves, teardrops, lace leaves, chevron, and 3D cubes. These tiles are unique and perfect for neutral spaces with a need for Feng shui. These are just a few of our favorites from the Lungarno collection. There are many more styles to suit just about any décor and add a fresh, unique flare to your kitchen or bath. Stop by our showroom today to see our selection, or learn more at lungarnoceramics.com.    LVT, WPC and laminate flooring are durable and come in many different hardwood and stone looks that make any space look beautiful. But is flooring just for floors? Not necessarily. Let's look at some ways to think outside the box with you flooring.
You might have recently had flooring installed, and you have some extra left over. What are you supposed to do with it? Don't underestimate the style and texture a wood or stone-look accent wall can bring to a space. In addition, wood planked ceilings are stunning and easy to achieve with lightweight materials like LVT, WPC, and laminate. Hardwood can also be used for ceilings and accent walls, but it’s just a bit more labor-intensive because of the weight of the wood (want to make sure it’s secure to your surface). If you don’t have enough excess flooring for an accent wall, what else can you do with it? Wood or stone-look picture or mirror frames are a stylish and easy way to use up those extra pieces. How about a wood plank headboard? Since LVT, WPC, and laminate are lightweight and very durable, they’re easy to work with and can be used almost anywhere. You can use those extra pieces on the walls in other ways too like funky wall art or floating shelves. LVT, WPC, laminate, and even tile are perfect for covering shelves and tables, giving them a stylish wood or stone look. Another benefit to using that extra flooring to make accents in your space is that it draws the look of your space together with the color and texture of your floors. Maybe you've already had your floors installed and have extra flooring, or maybe you’re about to buy new flooring. Either way, don't forget the other uses for the leftovers that can really draw your space together and make it unique.  There are many elements to consider when decorating your home. You may first think of color schemes, furniture, and accessories, but there is a décor secret you might have overlooked. Textures can play a very important part in achieving a desired design.
Textures add depth and help to draw a space together and complete a look. The amount of textures you use and where you use them will depend on the style you’re trying to achieve. For example, rustic styles will have many layers of textures, whereas modern motifs will use very few. Think about the style you want to achieve: does it have a streamlined-feel or a softer-curved line feel? As a rule of thumb, the simpler the design, the less texture you'll use and Vice versa. Texture can be incorporated into a room through fabrics, such as that of furniture, throw pillows, drapes, rugs, and blankets. Additional depth can be added with artwork and accessories like vases, books, trays, and flowers. Floors can also provide a great deal of texture in a space, whether you have hardwood, tile, vinyl, carpet, laminate, or WPC. If your space requires a more streamlined look, go with a flooring that has a smooth, simple grain. If your space needs more texture, hardwood floors or wood-look floors offer many styles with features like scraped, brushed, knotted, and distressed planks. And of course, carpet, whether it’s wall-to-wall or a rug, adds warmth, softness, and depth to any room. Textures are an important key to achieving the look you desire in your space. Keep in mind the simpler the design, the less textures you'll use. Furniture, accessories, and flooring all work to bring the design together.  Emser's Woodwork Bend. Photo credit: Emser Despite growing trends in flooring of all kinds, tile is still a favorite. Tile is not only loved for its durability and classic looks though; it’s keeping up with all the trends and making new ones. Let's take a look at some current and emerging tile trends and features.
For starters, wood-look tiles are here to stay with new looks and tile sizes like 6x36 and 4x28 that are perfect for using in herringbone patterns. Sizes are also getting bigger and better with new sizes like 12x24 and even 24x48! New textures and finishes are adding more style and enhancing the beauty of wood-look tile. Tile is taking on new shapes too with wood look tiles in planks, bricks, and hexagons of all sizes. Tile doesn’t have to be limited to the floor either. You can take it up the walls to make quite a statement in your space. Tiled walls using large format wood, concrete, or brick make a big impact. New designs and materials in brick, metals, and printed patterns can take a backsplash or accent wall to the next level. The possibilities are endless with these new trends. We see more and more people gravitating toward a seamless indoor-outdoor look in their homes. Wood-look porcelain tile is perfect for a hardwood look in your space that can flow to an outdoor living area for a seamless, open look with no worries about the weather. Or, if you like a more modern, industrial vibe, consider using concrete tiles in your home, and let them continue outside into an outdoor kitchen or patio. Tile in the home continues to stand the test of time while evolving with new trends that we love. Next time you have a tile project, don't forget to explore your options and see what’s out there. You can find all the latest tile trends and fashions in our showroom. We’ll be happy to help you find the one that completes your home. |
