Decorate with Laminate Flooring

Laminate flooring can add a “pop” to any kitchen, bathroom, or even laundry room. Some argue that laminate floors are difficult because they lack the durability that hardwood floors are known to have. Though laminate floors may not have the durability of hardwood, laminate floors offer flexibility, ease of maintenance and installation, and most importantly a quick design accent that can turn a room from drab to fab.

What are Laminates?

Laminates are thin layers of plywood, plastic, wood, or metal that are bonded together to make a durable sheet. These sheets can be applied to countertops, cabinets, backsplashes, and floors.

Why Use Laminate?

Laminate floor designs are all about color. Because of the primary nature of laminate floors, color choices are vast. In fact, there are some colors that not even hardwood floors can achieve. Laminates are also great for creating depth and texture in a room. The surfaces on quality laminate flooring can mimic real wood and other natural elements.

Additionally, laminate flooring can be installed over any surface. Laminate flooring, usually 7mm to 8mm (5/16” to 3/8”) is made of several layers. The layers are laminated which offers unparalelled stability and strength.

How Do You Accent With Laminate?

Take note that if you are decorating with laminate floors, you must think of your laminate floors as canvasses to paintings. Laminate floors can serve as a room's backdrop while your furniture and furnishings will create the design. First, decide on a proper laminate floor color. Generally, people like to contrast their floors with their furniture or appliance color. In this sense, you may want to pick light colored laminate floors if you own dark colored furniture, while dark colored laminate floors may be a good choice if you own light-colored furniture. 

Using a contrasting color of laminate tiles as a border may also be a good idea. Using laminate tiles as a border will add some depth to your room. For example, if you plan to decorate with laminate floors in special rooms (such as trophy rooms), you can use borders to concentrate a visitor's attention to a particular spot. Borders also have the tendency to make small rooms look smaller and large rooms look larger.

Since you need to put a little space between laminate flooring and the wall to give some allowance for the floor's tendency to expand and contract, you will also need baseboards along the wall to hide that extra space. Because of this, you must also decide on a baseboard color that will give a transition from the floor to the wall. Generally, people prefer to put a shade that easily blends with both the floor and wall color.

Where Do I Get Design Inspiration?

If you're undecided on what colors you may want to put in your home, the best place to look for ideas is your own wardrobe. Take a look at the colors of your favorite clothes and you will have a general picture on what types of colors you love, or what shade and intensity you like.

There are also things you can do to make your room stand out. For example, instead of installing the planks on a typical horizontal or vertical style, you may try to install them diagonally. Of course, diagonal laminate floors will generally be more expensive and time-consuming, but the effects are worth it.

All in all, the best way to get the most out of your laminate floor is to take advantage of the versatility of laminate floors. There are many available colors to choose from. If there is a particular color you like in a brochure you have seen, it is advisable that you ask for a sample to make sure you will get the color that you truly want. There are many manufacturers who specialize in particular colors, so take your time and browse through all of them. Use your imagination to create that perfect laminate floor design that you will be proud of!