Beyond Wood and Tile: These New Flooring Options Are Real Corkers
by Kate McIntyrekate.mcintyre@interiordesignschoolreview.com
Interior Design School Review Columnist
As a savvy interior designer, you are familiar with traditional flooring options like rich wood planks and smoothly textured stone tiles, but have you discovered the extravagantly burled and speckled beauty of cork floors? They can add a shot of personality to any interior decorating scheme.
Interior Design Using Cork's Good Looks
Natural cork comes in colors ranging from light, buttery beige to deep chocolate brown. Stains and dyes expand the color palette, giving you nearly unlimited color choices for your interior design. Cork can be cut to resemble traditional wood floors, arranged parquet-style, or applied in wide sheets. New manufacturing processes combine cork with rubber to yield heavily textured, spotted tiles reminiscent of granite.A Tough and Comfortable Interior Decorating Choice
Wine bottle corks do not seem particularly durable, so it might seem puzzling that people are laying cork down and walking on it. However, cork has been used for over a century in high traffic public buildings such as churches and libraries. Its strength comes from its elasticity. Millions of tiny air-filled cells in the cork wood allow it to expand and contract. This means that your flooring cushions your feet as you walk. Cork floors also act as insulators, absorbing sound and keeping your feet warm.Cork's Low Cost and Environmental Impact
Cork floors cost about the same as ceramic tile floors, and they are considerably cheaper than wood floors per square foot. Unlike other interior decorating options such as stone and some types of wood, cork is a rapidly renewable resource. The cork trees are not killed when the cork is harvested. Instead, workers remove the top layer of bark. The bark grows back and is ready for harvest again in nine years.Cork flooring is becoming a popular interior decorating material with good reason. Its handsome appearance, low cost, and high durability are easy to love.
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About the Author
Kate McIntyre is a writer in Portland, Oregon. She holds a B.A. from Harvard University and an M.F.A. in fiction writing from Oregon State University.
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