Decorating & Design
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Buying guide: 11 flooring options Buying guide: 11 flooring options
Buying guide: 11 flooring options ofVinyl, linoleum, ceramic, porcelain, laminate 1 VinylPros• Huge selection of styles and colours. Available in tiles or sheets.• Low price, low maintenance. Double-thick vinyl is ideal for damp areas like bathrooms. Tiles are easy to DIY if the subfloor is level.Cons• Vulnerable to scratches, tears, stains and wear. Cost: $2 to $9/sq. ft. 2 Linoleum Pros • Huge selection of styles and colours. Available in tiles or sheets.• Natural, biodegradable and hypoallergenic, composed of flax and natural resin. Does not trap dust or bacteria, which helps air quality. Low maintenance, durable and mildew-resistant.Cons• Does not suit all decors.Cost: $6 to $13/sq. ft.3 Ceramic tiles Pros • Huge selection of colours, styles and sizes. • Can easily be coordinated with tile backsplash.Cons • Can cause discomfort to legs and back after prolonged standing. • Not all tiles are equally wear-resistant; high-traffic areas like kitchens call for stronger ceramic. Can crack or chip. Needs a level subfloor. Cost: $5 to $20/sq. ft. 4 Porcelain tilesPros • The look of stone, for less! Huge selection of colours and designs.• Stronger than ceramic; durable and low maintenance.Cons• Can cause discomfort to legs and back after prolonged standing. Cost: $6 to $14/sq. ft. 5 LaminatePros• Great selection of styles and colours. Looks like wood, stone, ceramic. • Resists stains, scratches, dents, even cigarette burns. Relatively easy to DIY, often directly on top of existing floor.• Click-into-place styles can simply be dismantled and taken with you when you move. Good-quality laminate can last up to 25 years.Cons• Not recommended for bathrooms or other damp areas. Must be replaced when worn.Cost: $4 to $10/sq. ft. Wood, bamboo, cork, natural stone, concrete 6 Hardwood Pros• Oak and maple are the most popular. New : pre-oiled exotic woods, now available with semi-gloss and gloss finishes. • Creates a warm, natural atmosphere. Never goes out of fashion. More comfortable for legs and back than harder surfaces. Durable if properly sealed. With oiled floors, a sanding and a coat of mineral oil will hide scratches. Look for longer boards to avoid a patchwork effect.Cons• Requires resealing every few years, but floorboards with a factory-sealed finish can be extremely resistant if they're good quality. Dirt can accumulate in too-wide joints between boards.Cost: $6 to $15/sq. ft. 7 Engineered woodPros• An alternative to hardwood and laminate, it is also a more versatile option.• Produced by adhering sheets of real wood to a composite surface. Does not expand or contract with temperature changes. Sold prefinished. Can be glued or clicked into place directly over concrete or an acoustic underlay.Cons• Less durable than hardwood. Cannot be sanded more than twice.Cost: $7 to $20/sq. ft.8 BambooPros • Gives decor an exotic accent. Beautiful blond tone with natural striations. Carbonization process deepens grain and colour. Some natural shades available. • Environmentally friendly: Bamboo is a renewable, rapid-growth plant. Harder and more resistant to dampness than wood, making it particularly suitable for the kitchen and basement.Cons• Relatively limited selection of shades.Cost: $7 to $10/sq. ft. 9 CorkPros• Available in either tiles or interlocking planks to make a floating floor. Good selection of colours and styles, allowing you to create a one-of-a-kind design.• Warm and cushiony on bare feet. Hypoallergenic and mildew- and dent-resistant, making it suitable even for bathrooms. As durable as wood, but an extra application of sealer is recommended in damp rooms.Cons• Does not go well with all decors. Less popular than wood.Cost: $7 to $16/sq. ft. 10 Natural stonePros • Slate, marble, limestone and sandstone are popular choices.• Slab marble and limestone are not especially hard-wearing, but tumbled (travertine) marble is highly durable.Cons • Can cause leg and back discomfort after prolonged standing. Because it is a natural material, stone can contain imperfections (texture, colour, veining). • Needs regular sealing. Cost: $10 to $30/sq. ft. 11 ConcretePros• Provides the industrial look that's increasingly popular. • Perfect for lofts. Good selection of colours and finishes. Cons• Can cause leg and back discomfort after prolonged standing. Surface receiving the concrete must be properly prepared. • Needs yearly resealing. Cost: About $13/sq. ft.- Credit
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James Dyson: Vacuum virtuoso James Dyson: Vacuum virtuoso
James Dyson: Vacuum virtuoso ofJames Dyson on logic and innovation You know the story by now: In 1978, James Dyson got annoyed -- his vacuum cleaner clogged up. Being an engineer, he decided to do something about it. And 5,127 prototypes later, he had created the cyclonic vacuum technology, taking the world by storm and earning $10 billion in sales worldwide. In March of this year, two new Dyson vacuum cleaners were launched in Canada: the Dyson Slim and Dyson Stowaway. To encourage other creative thinkers around the world, James established the James Dyson Award, which honours innovative design, with the first international winner to be named in 2008. We visited James at Dyson headquarters in Malmesbury, England, to talk to him about vacuums, inspiration and more.STYLE AT HOME: What inspires you?James Dyson: Irritating things -- things that are not as good as they could be and I get angry. That's the starting point. It's not so direct as someone inspiring me. Quite negative things, like complaints, are always interesting; that's how one learns what he or she can fix. And sometimes it's just something that we think can be done better.S@H: Where does it go from there?JD: We start building prototypes. Even if one doesn't work, it can still set us off on a certain train of thought. Thinking only of the next logical, sensible thing is a lousy way of doing it -- that's what everybody does. So we often think of a rather unusual and quite stupid idea, and although that doesn't in itself work, we've gone off on a different path than anyone else.S@H: Your products have a masculine, industrial, playful look. When does form start coming into play?JD: Quite early on, but it doesn't dictate the function. Well, certain things might, practical issues: if the bin is up front, you can see what's going on. But we don't have any idea at the beginning how something will look. The engineering and technology come first, and then practicality, ergonomics and how it looks.S@H: Colour is used prominently in your products. Is it dictated by what's trendy?JD: Certainly not! We choose our colours a good year before products hit the market because a new colour has to be tested first -- it affects the durability and strength of the plastic. Blues in plastics look awful. Purple looks great; it's got a richness you'll never get in blue. Fashion doesn't come into it at all.S@H: What do you consider to be ugly?JD: Poor use of materials and bad design are the ugliest things to me. I can tolerate ugly shapes more than poor design and workmanship. James Dyson's idea of beauty and favourite kitchen gadgets S@H: What's beautiful?JD: I find gears, bits of engineering, far more beautiful than nearly any sculpture. It's almost heresy to say that, but they have a sort of beauty and a meaning that sculpture never can.S@H: Because they perform a function as opposed to just being beautiful?JD: Well, some sculptures have a statement to make, a profound statement, but I'm happiest with an engineering statement: the ways gears mesh and transmit power and produce the speed, and just the sheer look of them.S@H: Which architects do you admire?JD: There are a lot of good architects about, which is exciting. People like [Norman] Foster, [Richard] Rogers and [Chris] Wilkinson, whose company did this building [the Dyson headquarters in Malmesbury, England] -- these are people who are engineers, at least at heart, so the structure is very apparent in their buildings.S@H: What are your fave household product designs -- other than your own, of course!JD: I don't have many. They're very dull!S@H: Nothing stands out to you?JD: Very little. There's this [electronic eraser] I got for $2 in Japan. And we have something called the Quooker; it provides boiling water on tap, cutting out the need for a kettle and speeding up the cooking of rice, pasta and all sorts of things. And Global knives -- they're the best.S@H: What about Philippe Starck's Juicy Salif lemon squeezer?JD: I prefer his interiors. I do like Boffi kitchens. And the Achille Castiglioni Toio lamp; designed in the '60s, it has a transformer on show and a fishing rod vernacular. I'm more keen on high-tech things than anything else.S@H: Favourite place to be and thing to do?JD: Golly! I don't think I particularly have that! I'm very happy on the water, sailing or doing something that involves battling the elements, and driving a digger -- what do you call it? An excavator. I'm happier doing that than lying on a beach. Spring cleaning smarts Always dust before vacuuming. Dusting disturbs particles that will eventually end up on the carpet, where you can vacuum them up.- Credit
- Laurie Grassi
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Eco-friendly flooring options Eco-friendly flooring options
Eco-friendly flooring options ofBamboo and linoleum flooring options Installing an eco-friendly floor is a stylish way to improve your living space while treading a bit more lightly on the planet at the same time. For style, pricing and availability in Canada, your top eco-chic choices are bamboo, linoleum, cork and -- one of our favourites -- reclaimed or recycled hardwood. Here's a rundown of our top flooring choices, listed from least to most expensive.Bamboo flooringBamboo flooring offers a modern, Asian-inflected look that's incredibly loft- or condo-friendly. A fast-growing grass that requires no pesticides or fertilizers to thrive, bamboo is a renewable resource par excellence: not only can a stand of bamboo be harvested for "wood" every five years, it produces 35% more oxygen than an identically sized grove of trees! Available in planks that range from three-inches to six-inches-wide, bamboo comes in trendy transparent stains, as well as luxe hand-scraped distressed finishes to replicate exotic rainforest hardwoods. Farmed bamboo provides habitat for birds, and isn't the same species that pandas like to eat. Very durable, water-resistant and antimicrobial.Caveats: Very strong, yet anecdotal evidence points to a tendency to scuff; buy at the higher end of the price scale to get a more durable finish. Approximate Canadian price without installation: From $2 to $4/sq. ftLinoleum flooringThis circa-1870's invention is enjoying a renaissance right now, thanks to its eco-cred. In fact, this linseed oil/pine resin/ wood flour/jute-backed product is often architects' go-to eco flooring in commercial settings, and is gaining popularity in homes, especially for kitchens and playrooms. Forbo's Marmoleum is the top brand of linoleum and an environmentally responsible manufacturer to boot. Marmoleum comes in 1" x 1" tiles, 2-metre-wide sheets (cut to your desired length), and 1' x 3' click-in floating panels. . It's non-toxic and biodegradable, yet boasts a 40 -year lifespan, and is antimicrobial.Caveat: Make sure you're getting real linoleum flooring and not a synthetic version containing eco-unfriendly polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Approximate Canadian price without installation: From $4 to $7/sq. ft Cork and reclaimed hardwood flooring options Cork flooringCork flooring feels great beneath your feet. It's warm and shock absorbing. Cork comes from the bark of the cork oak tree (without destroying it), and is both highly durable and water-resistant, making it a great option for many areas, especially the kitchen and playroom. (Or basements, which can get chilly: that's where its insulating properties really shine!) It's covered with a UV-resistant acrylic, adding to its longevity. As far as eco-chic styling goes, cork flooring has got a casually upscale kind of charm: think West Coast beach house or wine-country retreat. As an aside: the wine industry's switch towards synthetic "corks" is threatening the traditional Mediterranean cork industry, so buying cork flooring helps support cork harvesting communities.Caveats: More prone to scuff than other options, so not suited to high-traffic hallways. Likely to need replacing in 10-15 years.Approximate Canadian price without installation: $4 to $8/sq. ftAntique or reclaimed hardwood flooringFinally, an eco-holic decorista's dream come true: beautifully rustic wide-plank wood flooring that re-uses planks "harvested" from out-of-use barns, century homes and factories, not old growth forests. Here's how it works: a property owner calls a salvager to take down an old barn and haul away the mess. The boards are sorted, de-nailed and kiln-dried, then planed and tongue-and-grooved for installation ease. Random-width planks are installed so your hardwood flooring avoids a cookie-cutter uniformity, and staining and finishing is done on-site post-installation to further ensure you get the bespoke look of your dreams. Whether you live in a century home or a loft conversion (or anything in between), antique hardwood flooring is guaranteed to give it instant design cred. The naturally distressed patina means it just looks better and better with age. As a bonus, though, as with cork, you're supporting smaller-scale industry as opposed to corporations. Durable, water-resistant and will last practically forever. Check out Woodstock family business Revival Flooring for information on a number of reclaimed wood options, ranging from antique hemlock barnboard to rare antique chestnut and heart pine.Caveats: Rare varieties may require longer wait times for delivery; costlier than other options.Approximate Canadian price without installation: $5 to $13/sq. ft depending on type of wood.function fbs_click() {u=location.href;t=document.title;window.open('http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=' encodeURIComponent(u) '&t=' encodeURIComponent(t),'sharer','toolbar=0,status=0,width=626,height=436');return false;} html .fb_share_link { padding:2px 0 0 20px; height:16px; background:url(http://static.ak.facebook.com/images/share/facebook_share_icon.gif?51:26981) no-repeat top left; }Share on Facebook- Credit
- Yuki Hayashi
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How to choose fabulous flooring How to choose fabulous flooring
How to choose fabulous flooring ofCarpet and ceramic tile Do you dream of having a Tuscan kitchen, a country den or a luxurious bedroom? Great flooring helps to achieve the look and feel you desire in every room of your home."Flooring is a background to your furniture," says Anna Merotto, an interior designer and former instructor of wall and floor coverings at George Brown College in Toronto. "It can make or break your decor."But selecting flooring can be a daunting task. A room's function, traffic and location, as well as the amount you can spend, are all contributing factors in your flooring decision, be it carpet, ceramic tile, hardwood, laminate or vinyl. Which one is right for you? Here's a look at the most popular flooring options for your home. CarpetCarpet keeps feet warm, steps soft and kids' knees protected when they take a tumble. It hides sub-floor irregularities and can be used throughout the home, including the basement, where moisture can ruin other types of flooring materials. It's also inexpensive to install and comes in a variety of colours and textures, making it easy to decorate with. Carpeting should be short and dense, made with a tightly twisted yarn and a good quality cushion to resist crushing and matting. To reduce the risk of pilling, look for continuous filament nylon (CFN), which begins as a long strand before being spun into yarn.Keep in mind that dust particles can easily be trapped in carpeting, says Anna. So, if you have allergies, carpeting may not be the best choice for your home. Ceramic tileBecause of its dense composition of clay, minerals and water – and a coating of liquid glass for colour and texture – glazed tiles are resistant to moisture, odour, fire, stains, scratches, allergens and bacteria, making this material ideal for kitchens, bathrooms and entranceways. Shiny, glazed tiles should be restricted to walls as the surface can be slippery and can scratch easily when used underfoot.Laying ceramic tile can be a lengthy and costly process. "Floors have to be completely level," says Anna. "If not, you'll have cracking that you can't repair." It can be tricky to restore eroded or discoloured grout between the tiles.Clck to continue ...Related articles:How to buy great bath towelsTips for picking out your home office chair11 flooring options Hardwood, laminate and vinyl HardwoodHardwood is certainly one of the most beautiful flooring choices, and can, at once, give a space a rustic or elegant feel. It can also wear out in high-traffic areas, especially if you have pets. If you truly love hardwood, sanding and refinishing it every few years is one option, says Anna, as is placing an area rug or runner "so you get the best of both worlds – the comfort feeling of carpet and the classic look of wood."Hardwood flooring comes in classic 3/4-inch solid wood floors, usually made from maple or oak, as well as engineered and longstrip plank floors, both made from a variety of domestic and exotic woods. All three look similar, but because engineered and longstrip planks are made from thin strips of wood glued together, this option provides better stability and resistance to moisture – which means it can be used in basements or over concrete, where solid wood would contract and separate.LaminateIf you love the look of hardwood, tile or marble, but can't afford or maintain these finishes, you may want to consider laminate. The Swedish import can resemble any of the materials since it is simply a photograph under a clear wearlayer – and therein lies its biggest fault. For Anna, the inexpensive alternative is "almost too perfect."That said, laminate is almost impossible to stain, scratch or burn, and because it is a collection of interlocking planks or squares glued to one another – and not the floor or subfloor – it is easy to replace and is moisture-resistant. VinylWith its easy maintenance, resistance to stains and spills and ability to hide scratches, vinyl has long been the number one choice for kitchens. Perhaps it has also been the ugliest – but newer offerings of this material are more hip, with a dynamic selection of colours, patterns and textures. Related articles:8 rules for buying containers5 tips for organizing a home officeOrganizing the bedroom- Credit
- Heather Camlot
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