What’s the difference between laminate and wood flooring?
No, this is not the opening line of a joke, it’s one of the questions we get asked most often! Although laminate and wood flooring are similar in their appearance, both offer a beautiful wood look for your home, but it can be hard to know which one is going to be the best option for you. In this blog post, we look at the main differences between the two and what benefits each offers. Laminate vs Wood The main difference between laminate and wood flooring is in their material composition.. Laminate flooring has a pressed wood core which is topped with an image layer, followed by a clear one, giving it the appearance of wood flooring. While wood flooring is 100% solid wood which is usually varnished or waxed for protection Although wood flooring offers some amazing benefits, laminates also offer their own set of benefits. So which one is best for your home? Benefits of laminate flooring The first thing to note about laminate flooring is its clear top layer adds extra protection, making it very scratch-resistant. This means that the stunning wood look should remain unblemished throughout normal use. A feature that can be important for young families or homeowners with pets. The protective layer also makes laminate flooring soft to walk on. Paired with a foam underlay, laminate flooring makes a comfortable floor when compared to much harder wood flooring. It also doesn’t discolour as easily as some other hard flooring types so it’ll keep its appearance for many years. Benefits of wood flooring Unlike laminate flooring, natural wood flooring is just that, 100% wood! This makes it even more durable than laminate. It’s also warmer than laminate flooring due to wood’s natural insulating properties. You can find out more about the warmth of wood flooring by reading one of our other blog posts. When kept well, wood flooring can last for many years and can actually look better as the years go by. Best placed in high traffic areas, wood flooring has an ageless appeal and is always trending in the flooring world. Should I get laminate or wood flooring? As you’ve read, both types of flooring come with their own range of benefits so it can be hard to decide which is going to be best for you. One thing to bear in mind when making that decision is the time it takes to install. Laminate flooring is generally quicker to install than wood flooring, making it a good option if you need your home renovation to have a quick turnaround. Which is best for pets? Although we’ve said laminate flooring is scratch-resistant, wood flooring is also highly durable. So either option is pet-friendly. As they are both hard floors, they won’t hold on to allergens like fur or dust. If you’re still not sure, that’s completely OK. Deciding on what flooring is best for your home is an important one to make. We recommend that you come to either our Worthing or Storrington showroom to see all of our ranges for yourself. You’ll also be able to speak to our friendly team of flooring experts who will be able to answer your questions and give you advice. Whatever hard flooring you choose, we will have you covered!
What Flooring Is Most Popular At This Time Of Year?
Or – How to keep those toesies cosy with the right flooring! Believe it or not, Winter has only just officially started! While it may seem as though we’ve had the worst of the cold weather, the coldest months (January and February) are yet to come. Many of us are trying to prepare for those colder spells and look at what we can do within our homes to stop heat from leaking out of them and make sure it’s that bit warmer. Luckily, there are other ways besides central heating to keep our homes warm and one of the most effective is having good flooring. So what types of flooring are trending this Winter? Well, we’ve put together this short guide to give you some flooring inspiration! Carpet, of course! It’s no surprise that carpet continues to be the most popular flooring type all year round, but it’s particularly popular in these colder months. There are lots of different types of carpet, but by far the warmest are ones made from 100% wool. A wool carpet used to be perceived as being ‘hard to clean’ but many now come with stain guard coatings as standard and all wool flooring is extremely hard-wearing. The carpet industry has come a long way since its humble beginnings and now there are thousands of different colour shades and patterns to choose from. We expect patterned carpet to continue to be popular, just as it was in Autumn. While patterned carpet is a fantastic choice, it can be a daunting decision when it comes to which combination of colours or even what pattern would look best. That’s where our flooring experts come in. Pop along to our Worthing or Storrington showroom with a photo of the room you’re buying the carpet for or a sample of the soft furnishings that you wish to match the flooring to. Our experts will be happy to advise on which carpet will be the best match for both the furnishings and the room use. Don’t shy away from wood flooring As we’ve said in a previous blog post, wood flooring can actually do a really good job at keeping your home that bit warmer over Winter. Looking at The 2022 Winter Edition of Design at Home, we can see wood flooring being used a lot as a way to tie lots of different elements together. Not only can wood flooring be a good option for warmth over winter, but it can also look great too. Giving your home a modern and stylish feel. What’s more, wood flooring comes in a huge variety of colours and styles so there’s bound to be something that goes with your home decor. Why not pop into our Worthing or Storrington showroom? There, you can have a look at all of our wood flooring ranges for yourself and speak to our flooring experts. There are other versatile hard flooring options If you’re keen on having a wood flooring look within your home, but need a little more durability or even a less hefty price tag, there are other options. We often advise young families who are after a wood look in their homes to opt for Luxury Vinyl Tiles, or LVT. Mainly because of the durability that this type of flooring offers and how low maintenance it is – perfect for busy parents and small children who may be prone to spills. What’s more, LVT imitates a huge range of hard flooring so there are lots of style options when it comes to choosing the right one for you. If you love the look of wood flooring but are not sure about how well it will stand the test of pets and children, laminate flooring is another fantastic option. This type of flooring is not only easy to maintain but it also doesn’t scratch or scuff easily. Making it a perfect option for houses with furry friends. In a similar way to LVT, laminate flooring comes in a huge range of colours and styles too and we’re happy to show you all of the options. Don’t skimp on the underlay Whatever flooring you choose, spending a fraction more on the best quality underlay will increase your comfort underfoot, increase the lifetime of your flooring and also potentially save you money on fuel bills! Believe us, going ‘better’ on the underlay will be one of the best flooring decisions you can make. Whether it’s carpet, LVT, laminate or vinyl, we have thousands of flooring samples on display for you to see and feel in our Worthing and Storrington stores, so make sure you pop in and see us. We’re open most days and our award-winning team of flooring experts is on hand to advise you on what flooring is going to be best for you. For more flooring advice and inspiration, follow us on social media. We’re on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.
Our Flooring Guide For Summer 2022
Over the last few years, neutral colours have been a strong flooring trend. From silvery greys to natural hues, people have been opting for neutral colours and adding splashes of colour to their interior with bold furnishings. Recently brighter and more colourful flooring shades have begun to trend. Now we’re heading into the summer months, following these colourful trends to brighten up your home could be the refresh you’re looking for. That’s why we’ve put together our summer 2022 trends guide for you. So you can get all your flooring inspiration in one place. From colours and patterns to materials, we’ve got it covered! Colour Trends For Summer 2022 As we mentioned at the beginning, bolder and more colourful floorings are trending. Now the evenings are getting lighter again, it’s a great time to adopt the summer 2022 colour trends into your home or workplace. If you’re looking to refresh your home decor, then why not consider these four colour trends below? Yellow As a way to bring the sunshine in, yellows have been becoming increasingly popular as the weather changes. The great thing about yellows is that they come in such a wide variety of shades; from the vibrant shade, you see in the kitchen above to more soft and subtle shades in the kitchen below. If you’re choosing to change your wall or cabinet colour, it’s crucial that the flooring compliments those changes. As you’ll see from the first photo, laminate flooring is a great option as it comes in beautiful light colours. Alternatively, tiled flooring like in the second photo can be used to break up the bright colours and give the room a new look. Natural White Just like yellow, white comes in all different shades and in Summer 2022, natural white is going to be a popular choice. Natural white lends itself well to any other colour, meaning it can be used in any room in the house and with any colour scheme. Bold-coloured carpets would pair really well with a natural white interior. Remember that flooring doesn’t have to be something that is overlooked. Instead, it can be a statement piece and be used to bring a pop of colour and pattern to a room. We think this natural white colour trend in Summer 2022 is a great opportunity to be bolder with the flooring. Deep red Like all trends, there’s going to be something for everyone and so are very varied. As you’ll see from the first two colours, one of the biggest colour trends for Summer 2022 is incorporating the brighter weather and bringing Summer into your home. However; there are other trends too and deep red is making a comeback! Not only have we started to see more people choosing dark red carpet, people are also choosing to change other elements of their home interiors to incorporate this strong colour. With brighter days on the horizon, darker colours can bring tranquillity to your interior. Flooring Trends for Summer 2022 Now we’ve given you a glimpse into the colours that are trending, it’s time to cast our minds to flooring and look at the types people are choosing. Of course, liking how your flooring looks is a crucial element to choosing the right one, but there are other factors involved. Such as, which one is best for your young family or which one is going to be easiest to clean? Luxury Vinyl Tiles (LVT) Vinyl flooring has become increasingly popular over the last few years. Mainly due to its extremely hard-wearing nature and the fact that it comes in almost any shade, colour, style and pattern!. Many people opt for vinyl flooring as they want the look of wood or tiles without the price tag and, as technology has improved, so has vinyl’s ability to mimic these materials. The great thing about vinyl tiles is they allow you to create your own patterns if you wish. Offering a unique look to your home interior. On top of this, vinyl tiles are super easy to maintain and so are perfect for young families and people with a busy lifestyle… or people that don’t like chores! Laminate Just like the bright colours in the colour trends, people are choosing light laminates. Both residential and commercial interiors are beginning to reap the benefits of laminate flooring. It’s easy to maintain and continues to look stylish and modern. Being hard-wearing, it’s a perfect option for high-traffic areas; such as hallways in houses and meeting areas in commercial spaces, like the photo above. There are lots of different shades available and so there’s bound to be a shade that suits your style and interior. Wide planks As suspected, herringbone flooring continues to be a huge trend as it’s a great way to make a space unique and stylish. But there are other wide-plank floorings that are also becoming popular and we suspect will only get more popular as we go into summer. This wide plank trend goes hand in hand with the rising use in vinyl flooring as vinyl planks allow huge versatility in colour and pattern. Another great thing about using planks is that they add realistic texture to the floor, making wood-style vinyl feel like real wood; for example. If you’ve seen a look or a type of flooring that you’re interested in, get in touch with our flooring experts in Worthing or Storrington. Our award-winning team are there to help you choose the right flooring for you. Worthing: 01903 503638Storrington: 01903 744748 You can also email us at sales@wallbroscarpets.co.uk
Delivering On-Trend Flooring Across The County
Having two different shops in two different areas in Sussex (Storrington and Worthing), means that we’re able to cover a lot of areas. From as far up as Kingsfold to across the South Coast along to Chichester. Our huge coverage means that we’re able to give a huge variety of customers, from across Sussex, our award-winning customer service. As Sussex is such a large area, it’s not often that our customers are able to use both of our shops. However; this was the case for one of our customers who lived in West Chiltington and then moved down to the South Coast. On both occasions, she needed new flooring and used Wall Bros both in Storrington and Worthing. Here’s what she said: “I first used Wall Bros in Storrington when we wanted new flooring in our home in West Chiltington. From the day of coming over to quote to the day of installation, they were incredibly helpful and professional. We bought our downstairs laminate flooring and beautiful striped carpet for the stairs and landing. It was a new build so we didn’t need more but would certainly have used them if we had! A couple of years later we moved to the South Coast and sought out Wall Bros in Worthing as our closest branch. We dealt with Brian who was also incredibly helpful and professional. We loved the flooring we’d had previously so much that we repeated it again in our new home and it’s what everyone, and I mean everyone, who visits, comments on. I think I’ve sent at least half a dozen new clients to Brian just based on how friends have loved our laminate that’s throughout our ground floor. Of course, it’s not just the products, most things can be sourced anywhere, it’s about the customer service and professionalism of the staff and in that regard Wall Bros deserves 5 stars. We’ll be doing another project this year (hopefully!) and will definitely be calling on Wall Bros again!” We’re delighted that Tina loved our service in Storrington so much that she used us again in Worthing. Not only that but she often tags us in the stunning photos of her beautiful home on Instagram. Make sure you follow her for more beautiful photos!
Top 3 Things You Need To Know Before Choosing Your New Flooring
With Spring comes longer, brighter days which, while very welcome, can often highlight aspects of our home that need improving. Although it can be easy to replace cushions, curtains or other accessories, your flooring can have the biggest impact of all. Whether it’s choosing the right type for a particular room (not got round to replacing the last owner’s carpet in the bathroom yet?!), or simply refreshing your carpets, vinyl or wood, there’s a few decisions to make first: In some cases, the answer may be ‘yes’, but you might like to look at updating the style, perhaps upgrading the quality or maybe changing the shade slightly to make the room look lighter. We can advise on similar alternatives that you can feel comfortable about whilst improving the general appearance of the room. There’s a wealth of ideas on the internet and this is a great place to start gathering examples of flooring you like. But, of course, there’s nothing like the personal advice of an expert. With over 60 years of expertise – and awards for our outstanding customer service! – our expert team is well placed to help you make the right decisions. We’ll suggest ideas that work for you and your home, look great and stay within budget. Give us a call to make an appointment. We’ll ask you some basic questions about your home, your lifestyle, your favourite colours for interiors and what sort of look you’d like to achieve, and then make suggestions based on your answers. How about colour matching your flooring to either your wall colour or your soft furnishings? We can take any colour you like and make sure your carpet will fully complement your colour scheme. Matching colours across different areas of a room will pull it together and make it look like an interior designer has been at work! Alternatively you might decide you want to ditch the carpet and replace it with vinyl, or vice versa. Again, we can discuss the benefits of different options such as wood flooring, carpet, tiles, vinyl and laminates to establish what works best for you. Whatever approach you decide to take to revamping your flooring this Spring, pop in to our Worthing or Storrington shops for a chat with our experts about the choices available to you.
Time for an update!
Being 60 years old this year focused our attention on something that was perhaps a bit dated… our image! We had not changed the shopfronts or the logo since at least the mid 1990’s so we knew it was time to bring ourselves up to date. Once we looked at the project we realised that we needed some help to keep everything on track and in line, so we worked with local agency, Ask for the Moon, to help us get everything sorted. Kelly O’Haire, Director at Ask for the Moon, says, “Many clients don’t realise quite how much time and trouble a big rebranding project can take – let alone all the extra things that are involved. We have worked on everything from the very obvious things like the two shopfronts in Worthing and Storrington, to the tiny things like the envelopes. We’ve helped with the new design, advertising, website, social media, business cards, uniforms, invoices… Basically, if it’s got the new Wall Bros logo on it then we’ve sorted it out! We even got Wall Bros involved in the Adur and Worthing Business Awards – which, at time of writing, we’re not sure of winning (that’s another blog entirely!). It was really gratifying to hear from customers about how much they loved the service and to see them get involved in the nomination process too. We asked them to nominate Wall Bros for one particular category (best retailer) and they ended up nominating them for 3 different categories too! It’s great to see a project like this through from start to finish. The immediate results and feedback alone have been well worth all the hard work so far.” You can see from the pictures just how much has changed. Wall Bros is now firmly in the 21st Century and ready for the next 60 years. Bring on 2077!