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SURFACES: A Recap of the Largest Flooring Trade Show in the U.S.
In a recent interview, I talked with Mara Villanueva-Heras, V.P. of Marketing for Armstrong Residential Flooring, about SURFACES – the biggest trade show for the flooring industry in the U.S. – and the home décor trends that are getting her excited this year. Here’s what she had to say:
HA: Let’s start by describing what SURFACES is.
MVH: SURFACES serves as the industry’s meeting place to unveil new floor covering products, tools, and technologies. The show was a tremendous success for us this year. Our focus was to launch new products and highlight some unique merchandising and marketing concepts.
HA: What trends did you see at the show this year?
A Day in the Life of a Flooring Designer
| With this blog post, we’re introducing a new occasional series of posts that describe “a day in the life” of an Armstrong employee who has an impact on the type of floors and related products we offer you. Our first post was created by Sara Babinski, Principal Designer for Armstrong. |  |
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| 5:00 a.m. | Rise and shine. Check email, shower, and grab a cereal bar, blueberry pomegranate juice and fruit for breakfast. | |
| 6:45 | Hop in the car. Stop for the daily iced coffee. | |
| 7:00 | Work begins. Scan emails for importance and dive into my Google Alerts for: color trends, interior design trends and news on the world of hardwood. Review daily email from StyleSight, study more trends. | |
A Great Flooring Choice for a Beach House? Laminate!
At a family birthday party last weekend, my Aunt Cindy, who owns a beach house in Ocean City, New Jersey, was discussing her latest misfortune – the first level of her beach house had been flooded out. She told us that she wanted to get her home up and running quickly, so she and her two young daughters could enjoy the summer months at the shore. One of her remodeling decisions involved choosing a kitchen floor.
She posed the question at the dinner table of what everyone thought about a laminate floor for the kitchen. Turns out, not many of my relatives knew exactly what laminate flooring was. Some reacted with a less-than-positive response, calling laminate “cheap” and “artificial-looking”. After the dust settled, as usual, everyone turned to me for “expert” flooring advice.
Flooring Samples Make Your Selection Easy!
When you’re trying to find the right flooring for your home, it’s fun to browse all the room scenes on websites and social media sites like Pinterest. Of course, professionally photographed room scenes probably aren’t going to match your space, but it’s fun to look and dream.
Using Steam Cleaners on Wood & Laminate Floors
It’s that time of year again. The newspaper’s filled with “Black Friday” sales and everyone is planning their shopping strategy – the holiday season is upon us. For many, this means gathering together with family and friends. If you’re hosting a get-together, making sure your home looks its best is likely one of your top priorities. For the hardwood or laminate owner, this often begs the question, “Is it okay for me to use a steam cleaner on my floor?” As a customer service technician, I get asked this question a lot. The short answer is no! Read on to find out why.
Tool Tips for Installing a Laminate Floor
When you start any DIY project, you go through several stages. The first stage is deciding on your project. Then you move on to research. Next, you make a plan, get the materials and gather the tools. My husband and I recently went through these stages when we installed a laminate floor in our bedroom. We bought the flooring material – Armstrong Farmhouse Hickory laminate – read the instructions, watched several YouTube installation videos and assembled our tools.
Now we were ready – or so we thought.
We got off to a slo-o-o-ow start. We struggled installing every flooring plank. They just wouldn’t fit right. One side would go in, but the other side wouldn’t. When we tried tapping the planks into place with a block that we created, the edge of the laminate would chip. We were spending more time cleaning up chipped pieces than installing laminate boards. What we thought was going to take a couple of hours became several hours, and we didn’t have much to show for it.
6 Reasons Laminate Is So Popular
If you’re weighing the pros and cons of a laminate floor, we’ve got the “pros” all laid out for you here.
1. Laminate floors can look like real hardwood. Many homeowners prefer the wood look because it creates a feeling of warmth and comfort. But you can also find laminate floors that look like stone, slate and other natural materials.
2. Laminate floors install quickly and easily. In fact, they’re a perfect DIY installation. With Armstrong’s Lock&Fold installation system, the flooring planks and strips just snap together. No glue. No complicated equipment. more ►
Choosing a Laminate Floor for the Bedroom
Install a laminate floor in the bedroom? Of course! Many homeowners are choosing laminate for the bedroom because they’re looking for an alternative to carpet or because they prefer the look of hardwood or ceramic tile for a fraction of the price. Laminate is also a popular choice for DIYers who prefer to handle the flooring installation themselves. In addition, it’s an excellent flooring option if you have kids and pets.
Let’s talk about the considerations you need to think about when choosing a laminate floor for your bedroom.
Your Style. Are you an urban trendsetter or an ultra-modernist? Do you prefer French Country to country? Do you favor romantic styles with soft colors and small prints? What style makes you happiest? Floor shopping is not the time to break out of your style comfort zone. A good way to avoid a case of “flooring buyer’s remorse” is to order laminate flooring samples from our flooring website or from an independent retailer or home center. more ►
Get an Estimate for a New Floor
You’ve been thinking about installing a new floor in your (pick one): dining room, kitchen, bathroom or living room for years. So, what’s really holding you back from walking into a flooring store or home center and picking out the floor you want?
Wondering if the floor you want will hold up to the kids and the dog? Concerned the floor that looks great in a picture won’t look the same in your home? Or is it cost? While buying a floor isn’t like replacing the roof, it is a significant investment for most homeowners. Let’s explore the cost of a new floor in more detail.
How do you know if you can afford the floor you want? Start with an estimate – a fast and simple estimate you can do yourself using our Project Estimator. The Project Estimator tool is easy to use, and it will give you a good idea about how much your entire flooring project will cost – from removing the existing floor to replacing the subfloor and installing the new floor. more ►