Home flooring trends: What's the next big thing?

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Flooring is one of the largest surfaces affecting our decorating style at home. We’re starting to see dramatic changes in people’s tastes when it comes to the ground beneath their feet.

While caramel-coloured broadloom, pale oak and large-format neutral tiles have been steadily popular, things are shaking up. Richer woods, graphic patterns and a host of exciting vinyl-flooring options are increasing in popularity. Here are some new flooring choices to help keep your home on trend.

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With the grain

Wood is the most popular flooring for the main areas of our homes. Natural, light-washed oak has dominated since forever, but that’s changing. Pale walnut stains are emerging to add warmer tones to our homes, yet keep them fairly light overall.

For durability, many flooring options look like wood: laminate, tile and luxury vinyl are fantastic alternatives to getting that wood look without the upkeep and maintenance. In many cases, the cost is less than installing the real McCoy.

A perfect example of a light-brown stained wood with durability is Home Hardware’s CoreLogic Canadiana collection SPC plank flooring. It’s got a natural, wood-look appearance, uses a quick-click system to install and is 100 per cent waterproof.

Luxury vinyl has come a long way from its predecessors. It not only looks like wood, the touch will fool you with its grooves and realistic texture. I’m partial to Yukon — a light-to-medium brown wood that will blend all your dark and light furnishings together in one room.

Wall-to-wall love

Carpeting makes a room cosy and warm, even though it is controversial. Sure, carpet is icky in a bathroom, or when it’s not maintained, but treated right it’s a plush platform for your feet. And it’s very stylish. The colour, pattern and material can set the tone in a room.

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Sustainability, maximalism and texture are buzzwords in the carpet world, making carpeting feel fresh and new again. You can source carpeting made from recycled or sustainable fibres, which are beneficial. The carpeting shows less wear and there’s less shedding, fading and staining, to name some plusses.

Similar to tile and wallpaper, patterned and colourful carpeting can inject major style into a room. Tip: the colours and patterns in your broadloom should be planned at the same time you choose drapery, your upholstery fabrics and paint colours to create the right balance. Try Kravet’s organic patterns.

A solid-coloured fabric and a mix of small and large patterns create a favourable balance in a room. In most cases, the most prominent pattern should be on the carpet, since it’s the largest surface in the room. If you like colour and pattern, but are afraid you’ll do it wrong, then choose a variety of neutral hues from nature. Green, blue, terracotta, cream and camel are good starting points. These colours pair perfectly with vibrant tones.

Tile me right

Ready to add pattern and pizzazz to your rooms — or be a maximalist? Do it through flooring! The floors are the perfect way to implement pattern and set the tone for a room.

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Classic black and white diamond tiles have returned to the spotlight. If you’re drawn to this look, here’s a tip to update the old favourite. Choose a different scale of tile than the standard 12-by-12-inch-tile. The smaller the room, the smaller the tile can be. Also, choose a natural-looking stone tile to replace the white tile. White can be too stark. If you want a plain tile, choose an off-white to warm up the room. Try the Surfaces And Co. brand.

If you love colour and pattern, consider hand-painted concrete tiles, with their lively Moroccan or arabesque patterns. I prefer a smaller-scale pattern, which evokes the feel of a patterned Persian rug in wall-to-wall form. This look goes exceptionally well in a foyer or kitchen dinette area, as it hides a myriad of sins in those busy areas of the home.

Do you have a decor dilemma or want to give feedback? Follow and contact Karl on Instagram, @Karl_Lohnes.

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