Seeking modern kitchen flooring? Sure, you’ve probably examined the usual suspects – linoleum, vinyl, perhaps even stained hard wood – but have you considered something a little more exotic? How about cork and bamboo? Curious? Here’s what you need to know.
Cork – Not Just for Wine Bottles
Soft yet Durable
As with the cork in a bottle of wine, cork flooring “gives” when confronted with pressure, and is thus comfortable to walk on. Further, cork’s ability to absorb impact means you’ll end up with fewer broken plates if, like me, you occasionally drop one while emptying your dishwasher. (If you have young, accident prone children, this feature will serve you and your wallet well!) However, you don’t need to worry about your cork flooring denting as it always springs back to a flat surface.
Cork Can Match Your Kitchen Decor
Black, green and red are just a few of the colors that your cork flooring can come in, so you can, if you want, coordinate it with your existing kitchen colors.
Green Kitchen Flooring?
Further, since no trees are actually destroyed when producing cork, it’s environmentally friendly – thus, not only will you feel physically comfortable walking on it, you’ll also be able to take pride in the knowledge that you’re doing your part for environmental preservation!
Sound Sensitive?
Because cork takes in sound waves, it will help prevent noise from travelling in your house, meaning a rambunctious family activity won’t spread to the rest of the home – at least not by sound waves.
Bamboo – Not Just for Pandas
As is Cork, Bamboo is a Friend to the Environment
Fortunately, bamboo is actually a grass. It’s not a tree derivative. So, by using cork kitchen flooring, you would be doing your small part to save the environment as no trees would have been destroyed for your kitchen floor.
Natural Beauty in Your Kitchen
When you think of the color of Bamboo, what do you think of? Well, when it’s in your kitchen, you’ll think of – and see – a beautiful gold-like tone. This coloring will literally brighten up your kitchen, lifting your mood when you enter it.However, the coloring may clash with your existing kitchen colors, so make sure you are comfortable with the color contrast that bamboo would bring to your kitchen before purchase. In addition, the bamboo often comes in the form of planks with your choice of vertical or horizontal grains, adding a rustic look to your kitchen.
A Solid Addition to Your Kitchen
Watching pandas chew bamboo in the wild, you might think it breaks easy, making your kitchen floor unacceptably fragile. But bamboo is actually stronger than oak! Consequently, it can withstand the constant pounding a high traffic kitchen is subjected to as well as easily support heavy furniture and appliances.
Perhaps Cork and Bamboo are Viable Options For You….
So if you want practical yet unique kitchen flooring, consider cork and bamboo. They each run about $5 per square foot, putting it slightly on the expensive side. But if you don’t mind the extra expense, you could have a unique kitchen you could be proud of.
