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Flooring 101: History of Floors, Pt. 2

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The last time we talked about flooring, we dug all the way back through human history to the days when a floor was little more than a simple patch of dirt. Over time, humans developed the technology and know-how to turn these dirt surfaces into something more, going from primitive straw-and-cow-dung cement to wood planks to heated stone floors within a few millennia. Carpets and rugs began to pop up around the known world in Asia and the Middle East, eventually being brought back to Europe and beyond. But where did we go from there?

Interestingly, a lot of the flooring options other than stone and hard wood came to us largely by accident. You likely either have or know someone who has linoleum flooring in their kitchen. This material was developed in England by a man named Frederick Walton in the mid-1800s. At the time, rubber floors had fallen out of favor and had been so for two centuries. Walton was a rubber manufacturer and noticed that linseed oil formed a flexible skin when it solidified, not unlike rubber. Once he perfected the process of manufacturing sheets of this skin, we had our first linoleum flooring.

Along with Walton’s linoleum, materials such as cork and asphalt became popular in tiled floors in the late 1800s and continued to be so until the early 20th century. It was at this time that an American inventor named Waldo Semon accidentally created what we now call PVC, or vinyl. He was attempting to bond metal with rubber in the year 1926 and in the process, invented PVC. At first, his material was used in shock absorbers, synthetic tires, and wire insulation. After the end of World War II, however, it became a popular flooring material that you can still buy and install to this day.

The truly remarkable thing about floors these days is that nobody is limited to a single type of floor, and indeed, I’m willing to bet that you have multiple materials in your own home. What kind(s) of flooring materials are you interested in or do you already own?

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Refinishing Hardwood Floors: DIY or Professional Help?

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The great things about hardwood floors: they’re pleasing to the eye and very durable, meaning that if they start getting worn out, they probably don’t need to be replaced. All you need to do is refinish them in order to make them “pop” once more.

Now, we say “all you need to do”, but that should be taken with a word of caution. While it is possible to refinish your floors by yourself, experience is key here. A professional will know how to handle the process from start to finish, whereas someone who is inexperienced may skip some steps or do them improperly. A poor refinish can devalue your home rather than improve it!

A pro can take anywhere from two to five days to complete the task, adding time for complex jobs or poor weather that interferes with drying times. They will typically do one of two things: 1) they will rebuff the finish, or 2) they will sand and finish the floor. The downside to hiring a professional is, of course, the cost. Either of these two jobs can cost you anywhere between $1 and $4 per square foot of floor that needs to be done.

If you don’t want to shell out the money for a pro and you are supremely confident in your DIY ability, here’s what you can do to save some cash.

First of all, make sure you’ve purchased some high-quality dust masks or respirators. You will also need eye and ear protection (this process is messy and loud!). You can seal off doors and other rooms with plastic sheeting to prevent dust from escaping to other parts of the home.

If you’re going to buff the floor, you will need to rent a buffer and purchase about a gallon of floor finish. Make sure you test the buffer and the finish before committing to doing the whole area! Find a small, inconspicuous spot, buff out the old finish, then apply the new one. If it sticks, you’re in good shape.

If your intention is to sand and refinish the floor yourself, you’ll need to rent a drum sander and buy sandpaper, wood filler, and floor finish. We do not recommend using a drum sander unless you know what you’re doing with it, due to its tendency to gouge the floor if left in one spot for too long. Use progressively smaller grains of sandpaper as you go to get a nice, smooth surface.

Be smart about this process! We can’t emphasize enough that this is a job for somebody that at least has experience, if not formal job training. If you aren’t certain of your own ability, it is a lot cheaper to hire a pro than it is to have to redo everything after a mistake. Good luck!

-Kelly Dillon

Rearranging Furniture 101

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Occasionally, a given living space will need a change of some kind. Perhaps the walls need to be painted a different color, or those drapes need to come down and be replaced with blinds, or maybe all you need to do is rearrange things a little bit. Moving the furniture in a room can be a daunting task, but if done properly, it can make your space look new and exciting without having to spend money on paint or blinds.

The great thing about furniture rearrangement is that there is no set-in-stone rule for how it’s supposed to be done, so you can afford to be a little adventurous. There are only a few tips that you need to get started:

1) Find the focal point of the room and build around that. This is likely either a television or a fireplace. All you need to do is orient everything so that it draws the eyes towards that centerpiece.

2) Don’t place too many items in the room. This creates a cluttered, overloaded look and can appear uninviting. If a piece isn’t being used for comfort, utility, or storage space, consider moving it elsewhere.

3) Try to avoid placing too much along the walls of a room. This looks very stagnant and leaves a lot of open space in the middle of the area. Obviously, entertainment centers and couches can go on the perimeter, but try and break things up with some armchairs, a coffee table, or an ottoman.

4) Think about the function of the space and how you intend to use it. One of the key things you can do in any room, regardless of its intent, is to encourage conversation. For a living room, point two chairs at one another. For a kitchen, add some bar stools to the counter so you can talk while you cook.

5) Last but not least, take accurate measurements before you start going to town on this project. You don’t want to move your couch and then discover that it doesn’t fit where you wanted it to go! Try taping out the dimensions of your furniture to get a better idea of how everything fits together. Keep in mind that you’ll need walking room and space to pull out chairs.

-Kelly Dillon

Benjamin Moore Color of the Year 2016

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Classic Floor Designs on Sunday, November 22nd, 2015

Autumn is one of our favorite times of year. Not only can we get the perfect spiced pumpkin latte, don our new boots, and cozy up with a soft scarf, but it is also that time of year when color trend forecasts for the coming year start to roll in. We love the excitement, the surprise, and the inspiration!

Benjamin Moore just released their 2016 Color of the Year and we think it is an interesting choice!

Take a peek and see what you think.