hardwood flooring trends, The result of almost 20 years of the home visits, work with contractors, and observing the changes in design preferences according to the season, I have developed a fairly good eye when it comes to what is really trending and what is merely the product of marketing. Flooring patterns reveal much about our lifestyle and how we live, what is important to us, how we utilize our environments, and most importantly what we are ready to use our money on.
The recent couple of years have come with some interesting developments in the world of hardwood. I will take you through what I am seeing literally in real houses, not only via Pinterest boards.
Wide Planks Everywhere (And They Aren’t Going Anywhere).
Do you remember when the standard was 2.25-inch oak stripes? Those days are long gone. The inclination to wider planks, to 5 to 7 inches and even more, has been among the most radical changes I have ever seen. The visual effect of the less seams on a floor is visually peaceful. It makes rooms look bigger and even, frankly speaking, more costly.
I have just visited a restored 1920s bungalow with owners who put 7 inch white oak planks. The difference was striking. The floor was not in rivalry with the architecture, it was in line with the architecture. The reduced number of lines also implied a smaller number of visual elements, which is a perfect fit with our obsession with minimalism as a group.
The Great Lightening: Natural and Bleached Finishes Take Over.
Dark floors with a dark espresso stain were popular in the period around 2010-2015. Now? Many designers that I work with regard them as old-fashioned. The pendulum has swung far on the lighter side to natural finishes, white-washed appearance, and even the perfectly bleached wood.
This change is understandable in terms of the abundance of time we spend at home these days. Lighter floors are more natural and spaces are more airy and open. They are also more lenient towards dust and pets that shed hair as a dark floor owner knows very well.
I have observed that European white oak is on this trend. Its natural variations of color, its open grain texture make it look marvelous with a light stain, only a clear protective finish. Other house owners are also going a step further to lime-washed or cerused finishes which bring out the wood grain with white paint- a method that has been in existence for centuries but seems new again.
Incandescent and Lustre finish beats gloss.
Hard finish polyurethane polishes are not in. Definitely in are the matte and satin finishes. The reason behind this shift is a general abandonment of anything that appears too perfect or artificial.
Matte finishes also have the benefit of practical use. They conceal marks of scratches and wear more than smooth finishes, which reveal every mark of scuffing. I have also seen matte floors of ten years old that gave a reasonably fresh look, and glossy floors of the same age that were battered.
The catch? Matte finishes are a little bit more difficult to clean and may need to be repaired more often. Unwiped the liquids spills are able to propagate faster. The aesthetic payoff however is more than the additional care needed to most of the families.
Engineered Hardwood is given The Due Respect.
Solid hardwood is still being snobbishly considered as the best, yet the engineered hardwood has advanced to an extent where it is becoming the better decision. The technology has advanced significantly, including wear layers of greater abundance and construction procedures.
The feature of engineered hardwood that I like is its stability. It can tolerate humidity changes more than solid wood so that it can be used in basements, over radiant heating and in climates where solid wood may cup or gap. I have put in engineered floors in beach houses and mountain cabins in which solid hardwood would have been a tragedy.
Texture Is the New Frontier
Bare floors that are smooth and uniform are being replaced with textured surfaces. Scraped by hand, brushed with wire, and broken finishes also give it personality and, the most important aspect about this, conceal a flaw perfectly.
I especially like wire-brushed finishes, in which the soft grain is cut away leaving the harder grain a little bit raised. It provides an intimate touch, and it does not appear artificial. Hand-scraped floors can be either good or bad; when skillfully done, a beautiful floor, when overdone were obviously an imitation of a theme restaurant floor.
Sustainability and Reused Products are on the increase.
Green awareness has ceased being a marginal interest and has become a priority. FSC-certified timber, the local species and reclaimed lumber are all increasing in popularity.
I have done a number of projects with reclaimed barn wood and factory flooring. The patina and character are truly inimitable. Admittedly, reclaimed wood is very expensive and has to be sourced very carefully, though it is worth the money to clients who are concerned about sustainability and history.
Combined-Width Installations is more aesthetic.
One more trend that I did not anticipate is the deliberate diffusion of plank width within the same installation. Rather than standard 5-inch planks, others of the homeowners are opting to install a mix of 3-inch, 5-inch and 7-inch wide planks in random applications.
This gives this a customized, nearly Old-World appearance. It works well especially in the re-modeling of historical homes where even uniform planks would be out of place. This technique can be mastered by not everybody in the installer business, though when it is mastered, the results can be beautiful.
The Bottom Line
The trends in hardwood flooring are a final depiction of our desired lives. The current trends tend to favor natural and minimalistic grace as compared to polished perfection. We desire floors that grow old beautifully, which are not required to be carefully maintained and which should be compatible with our real life pets, children, dampness, etc.
Hardwood is beautiful because it is long lasting. You can always refinish it in the future even when you want to use a fashionable finish today. Part of the reason is that hardwood is the gold standard, despite the changing aesthetics.
FAQs
Wide plank floors are more expensive?
Yes, generally. The broader planks need larger and older trees and generate more wastes in milling and cost 15-30 per cent more than normal plank thicknesses.
What was the life expectancy of the matte finishes?
10-15 years prior to refinishing with proper care will do the same as glossy finishes. It is only the looks that are different–matte hides better to look at.
Is EHW truly as strong as solid?
Hardwoods of quality with a solid layer of wear (4mm and more) are compatible with solid wood and can be refinished twice or thrice.
What is the most popular wood currently?
The prevailing oak is white with the next being European oak. Red oak is no longer so popular as it was.
Are the textured floors more prone to accumulation of dirt?
Slightly, yes. Finishes that have been wire-brushed are easier to clean as compared to heavily hand-scraped. It is well vacuumed occasionally.
