Bamboo hard wood floors

When it comes to hardwood flooring, bamboo has become a popular option. A renewable resource that grows at exponential levels and has minimal affect on the environment. It’s a very popular hardwood flooring option because it can be stained or painted any color. You can make it look like traditional hardwood floors, or use the bamboo to highlight a unique appearance. Bamboo adds an innovative style to the possibilities of hardwood flooring.

Bamboo furniture or Wall Covers

Bamboo also makes for an affordable furniture material, perfect for kitchen tables, chairs, and bar stools. In addition, it can be used as a wall covering to compliment your furniture. Since it grows so prolifically, it’s cheap to use, and has the great qualities of hard wood. Bamboo is functionally strong, so you know your investment will be around for a long time to come.

Recycled Wall Paper

This is a hot trend in interior design, although you might want to avoid recycling the bright 70s yellow Brady Bunch wallpapers you remember from your childhood. Many companies take existing pieces of wallpaper and recycle them to make fresh new designs. Scraps of existing paper or broken paper are then added to make material that’s completely new. This saves wallpaper from ending up in a landfill and polluting the environment further.

Make Use of Distressed Wood

Distressed wood can come from broken furniture, torn down houses and even old sail boats. It’s much cheaper than new wood, but can still be reused to make quality products. The pieces are left as is, but can be sanded and stained to look new. It’s great for making wooden tables, pieces of decoration, or even a cheaper option for installing hardwood flooring.

Windshield Carpet Backing

Although you wouldn’t expect that you could make carpet from used windshields, they make excellent carpet backing. Tandus recently released Ethos, a modular carpet backing that uses waste from the manufacturers of windshields and safety glass to create a thermoplastic polymer. The non-chlorinated thermoplastic can be recycled repeatedly to divert it from landfills forever. How’s that for carpet excitement?

Redesign old drawers into furniture

Take a chest of drawers and build them into a new frame to create a charming but eco friendly new piece of furniture. This approach is retro and modern at the same time. Professional touches can range in the thousands of dollars, but find an innovative carpenter and you can probably work out a deal.

Wine Glass Furniture and Other Decorations

Some recycling companies refuse to recycle the green glass from which wine bottles are made of, leaving you with a nice collection if you save them from the landfill. These wine bottles can be cut and sanded into charming drinking glasses, lampshades, and candlestick holders. For a simpler approach, plant your wine bottles in the ground spout side down to create charming flower garden borders.

Stone Tile in the Kitchen

Considering how many times you drop things, leaving dribbles of spaghetti sauce here, grape juice spills there; putting stone in the kitchen is a natural step. There’s no reason to cry over spilled milk when all it takes is a paper towel to clean the damage. Natural stone has the capabilities to handle any stain in the kitchen, plus its classical, sound structure makes it feel like you’re cooking a medieval feast.

Making a Monumental Backyard

Stone is a perfect addition to the scenery in a backyard, creating structures that are monolithic in shape and influence. You can add stone to create a scenic backyard waterfall, build seating areas or places for plants to catch their rays. Stone is a perfect way to sculpt walking areas, separate flower beds, and tie the backyard together in a shape of wonder and nostalgic classicalism. You can add birdbaths and sundials for more scope in an outdoor garden.

If you create your own cement blocks, you can get creative and submerge items of interest for decoration. This could include other ornamental stones, statuary or rubber balls for a fun approach to style. Children’s toys make a nice addition, as do figurines or plants that leave fossil like impressions.

Fireplaces as good as a classical novel

Nothing creates classical beauty like a hearth made of impressive granite, marble or other solid stone. It’s perfect for gathering in front of the fire to tell stories like the days of yesteryear, a romantic evening in front of the glow of a fire, or just cuddling up to a hot cup of chocolate and a good book. Stone fireplaces can take a home back to life’s basic meanings with a solid goodness that’s been fashionable for centuries.

Stone for Bathrooms

Absorbing dampness yet following the suggestion of classical beauty, stone is perfect for the bathroom setting. It’s easy to cover up the surface of most bathrooms, yet suggests a classical feel that’s feels good on your feet coming out of the bath. It adds a decorative touch to meet the designs of most bathrooms. There’s something solid about stone that’s as functional as it is decorative.

Proper Installation a Plus

As equal as choosing which type of stone to use, proper installation is integral to the job looking great. Make sure you hire a professional as it means all the difference. If you are going to make the investment, be sure to do the job right. Stone lasts a long time, so be happy with the job because it may have a longevity that outlasts even you.

Solidness that lasts

When properly cared for, natural stone lasts virtually forever. It’s the stuff of castles and Greek monuments, surviving through the years to tell the legacy of the tale. Stone is classic because it is so enduring. Choose what you want wisely and carefully. What you create out of stone will definitely stand the test of time.

Did you know…

• A law was passed in the 30’s called “The 9-Year Law”, which dictates that cork cannot be harvested any more frequently than every 9 years. The tree must meet other qualifications as well, such as having a circumference of at least 60cm, and being at least 25 years of age.
• The average cork tree lives to be between 150-200 years old.
• As a tree ages, the better its quality of cork becomes.
• Dom Perignon was one of the first to use cork for stoppers in his sparkling wines, making it a significant discovery that would lead to many other uses of cork.
• Cork flooring is a recycled product- cork floors are made from the “waste” cork that is left from the production of wine stoppers.
• Cork floors are a popular choice to be used in libraries, churches, and nurseries because of its sound absorption qualities.
• Because of cork’s structure (millions of tiny, encapsulated air cells), it greatly reduces heat loss in rooms. Unlike other flooring materials, it maintains an even temperature through these tiny prisms- a temperature that feels comfortable underfoot, and is neither too warm, nor too cold.

Product: Sultan

Best Over: Hard surfaces (wood, laminate, vinyl, tile & stone)

A foam-based pad with a waffled texture- Sultan is our most basic non-slip pad for hard surfaces.

Product: Cush-n-Hold

Best Over: Hard surfaces (wood, laminate, vinyl, tile & stone)

A thicker version of Sultan, Cush-n-Hold is one step up in regards to cushioning. This is our best seller in rug padding!

Product: Super Movenot

Best Over: Carpet, tile & stone

This reversible pad has 2 sides, making it versatile enough to use on carpet, or tile surfaces. The textured, fibrous side should be laid face down for carpet. The rubberized side should be laid face down for tile & stone. This product will also prevent telegraphing of the grout lines through the rug.