Hardwood floors are luxurious, durable, and they could be the next upgrade you make to your home. A wide range of options area available, so the main issue you’ll face is deciding which flooring style to choose.
Everyone has a different sense of aesthetics, but some styles are more popular than others. Sticking with the trends can help further boost your home’s resale value, so we have put together our predictions for the five top hardwood flooring trends for 2021.
Light Colors
Light-colored hardwood flooring has been steadily gaining popularity over the past few years, and we expect that trend to continue into 2021 and beyond. Lighter colors for hardwood flooring include honey, blonde, gray, whitewashed, and greige.
Griege, if that’s a term you’re unfamiliar with, is a shade that falls somewhere between gray and beige. Its use in interior design has soared in recent years due to its versatility. It’s the ultimate neutral color and will go with nearly anything.
Most types of wood can be stained a darker color. However, if you’re looking for a lighter color, it’s best to use wood that’s already on that end of the spectrum. Any of the following are good options:
- White oak.
- Ash.
- Maple.
- Bamboo.
In particular, white oak will see a resurgence in popularity this year, though it tends to be on the more expensive side and may not be the best choice if you’re on a tight budget. Part of the expense comes from the length of time it takes a white oak tree to grow to maturity. The rest comes from its durability. If you’re looking for a hardwood that will last, white oak is a great choice.
Herringbone or Chevron Patterns
You might think that parquet flooring had its moment in the 1960s, now serving as a novelty in homes in need of a remodel. You’d be wrong. Parquet flooring, which is what it’s called when the wooden tiles are arranged geometrically, is making a comeback.
Herringbone and chevron patterns, in particular, are on the upswing. While they look similar, the two designs are noticeably different. With a herringbone pattern, the tiles are all rectangular. They tesselate based on size. With a chevron pattern, the tiles are cut into parallelograms. The pieces fit together to form points.
A geometric pattern can make a room look busy if you’re not careful. If you love the herringbone and chevron patterns but worry they’ll overwhelm the space you put them in, use them to accent a smaller area rather than covering the entire floor.
We don’t expect herringbone and chevron patterns to be as lasting of a trend as others on this list. They’re too specialized for that. When they’re no longer in style, the good news is that the patterns are likely to be seen as charmingly vintage rather than tacky or dated.
Wide Planks
Using wide planks for your floors is less of a trend and more of a mainstay at this point, and it will continue to be one through 2021 and well into the future. Wide planks offer clean lines. They can open up a room and make it feel larger, which is invaluable if the room you’re re-flooring is on the small side.
Wide planks have to opposite effect of a herringbone or chevron pattern, making a room look more cohesive and less busy. If you have an open floorplan that you’re trying to draw together, carrying wide-planked hardwood flooring throughout the area might be just the fix you’re looking for.
They don’t look quite as traditional or conventional as more narrow planks would, but that just means they’ll stay in vogue longer. As far as investments go, putting hardwood flooring, especially with wide planks, is likely to be profitable. Hardwood flooring could increase the value of your home by as much as 2.5 percent.
Sustainable and Ethical Sourcing
No matter what industry you’re looking at, there has been a recent push for sustainable, ethically sourced products. That’s fantastic, but it can be a challenge to sort through the marketing rhetoric and misconceptions to find something that meets both your needs and moral standards.
Hardwood flooring is no exception. There’s a lot of conflicting information available. It can be upsetting to look at pictures of a forest that has undergone clearcutting, and it’s hard to feel enthusiastic about using wood products of any type when that’s the case. However, sustainable logging practices exist, and many companies use them.
Compared to the plastics, chemicals, and fossil fuels that go into producing wood alternatives, hardwood flooring is sustainable and eco-friendly. Trees are a renewable resource. Because hardwood so durable, it doesn’t have to be replaced frequently either, which is another benefit.
Reclaimed hardwood flooring has become increasingly popular in recent years. It adds more character to a room than a typical hardwood floor would, and by using it, you’re recycling.
If you’re concerned about the ethics or sustainability of hardwood flooring, look for wood that was harvested and processed into flooring here in the United States. Companies operating here are subject to a host of regulations meant to protect both you and the environment.
Weathered Textures
Our final trend of 2021 is hardwood flooring that looks like it has already withstood the test of time. What method of weathering you choose, if any, is up to you.Many options exist, including but not limited to:
- Hand scraping, which is a process that brings out the wood’s grain, making it look more rustic.
- Wire brushing, which is precisely what it sounds like. Appearance-wise, it’s less evident than hand scraping but still adds personality to a room.
- Distressed flooring is the last weathering option we’re going to cover. It’s usually done by a machine, which means it’s more affordable than hand scraping or wire brushing.
All hardwood flooring undergoes some weathering as it ages, so we expect this trend to last. It will make more recently built homes feel as if they’ve already been lived in and appear more authentic in older homes.
Are you thinking about upgrading the flooring in your home or business? Schedule a free consultation with Starwood Distributors today. In-home and virtual options are available.
