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Wall-to-Wall Style
Focus on Flooring, the Fifth Wall
By Kelly Burgess
Bland is now blah. Linoleum is so last century. Shag is for the '70s. The floor, which George Davies of Shaw Industries refers to as "the fifth wall," is the trendy place to blaze new trails for those who want a decorator look from bottom to top.
"People are beginning to look at the floor as part of the overall decor of the house and are decorating for effect rather than just as a neutral backdrop for the 'real' decorating," says Davies, spokesman for Shaw's marketing and advertising groups. "Back in the '60s or '70s it was nothing but wall-to-wall carpet from one side to another. Now that there are so many exciting options, people like to mix it up."
An unbroken expanse of carpet may not be so common anymore, but carpet still has an important role to play in the house because it adds warmth and color. In a home with children or elderly, there may even be safety factors to consider. What's most important is to know what flooring options are available and what will work best for your lifestyle.
By far the biggest flooring trend at the moment is wood and wood laminates. While it's most commonly used in the foyer, kitchen and dining room, many people are choosing this type of flooring for the entire house. Wood has many benefits, not the least of which is its classic elegance that, like the perfect little black dress, can be accessorized for a formal look or provide a naturally neutral backdrop for more casual lifestyles.
Peggy Deras, owner of Kitchen Artworks, a San Francisco-based kitchen design firm, says that most of the kitchens she designs have wood floors. "The advantage of wood in the kitchen is cleanliness because it's smooth, unlike tile, which has grout, or vinyl, which has embossing," she says. "It's also a much warmer look than most people realize."
Unlike vinyl flooring, which doesn't tend to work well visually in bedrooms, family rooms and living rooms, wood is appropriate for any room of the house. Add warmth and softness by using throw rugs or, in more formal rooms, oriental carpets and rugs.