Top tips on how to do flooring right during your home decor update in 2022
telegraph.co.ukwall colours get a lot of air time, the unsung hero of every room that quietly (or not) sets the tone, is the floor. As interior designer Jessica Summer says: “The floor is so fundamental to the fabric of the building that it’s crucial to get it right.
It’s often my starting point.”While the choice of floor covering depends on many factors – the period of the house, the use of the room and its inhabitants (pets and children need careful consideration) – Summer says she starts by thinking about “how the materials are going to age.
The aim is to put down a natural material that will last well and develop its own character and patina over time.”There are endless choices, so it can be tempting to pick and mix and have a different finish in each room, but Summer advises a more sedate approach. “I prefer as much as possible to carry a floor finish through as many rooms as I can to stop the house feeling like patchwork,” she says. “One finish helps to tie rooms together, which I feel makes a successful project.”Summer says she is most often drawn to timber on the floor, even in bathrooms, as she loves the warmth it brings, as well as the fact that it is versatile in most spaces.
But says to avoid anything that looks “faux aged” – it means it won’t age well. Reclamation yards are good sources – Retrouvius frequently stocks reclaimed wooden flooring from board to parquet blocks.
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