Decorating
Know Your Flooring: Cork
Easy on the eye and the ear, cork is a warm-looking, quiet and environmentally friendly flooring option that will put a spring in your step
Cork is a resilient flooring material, not only because of its durability but also due to its popularity. It has become a surface of choice in recent years, drawing on its retro appeal thanks to its use in the 1960s and ’70s, and harking back to the great Frank Lloyd Wright who used it in many of his architectural masterpieces. Cork floors are soft-looking, and due to their usual honey or tan colouring, provide a warm look. They also have a cushioned feel underfoot, which deafens noise from footfalls so that walking on cork floors is relatively quiet. Here’s the lowdown on cork flooring.
What to consider when choosing cork flooring
- Choose a pattern and colour that suits the look and style of your room. Cork flooring is available in a range of manufactured colours and natural tones to suit a home’s aesthetic.
- Cork flooring has its pros and cons (see below) and these should be strongly considered before choosing cork as a flooring material, and before deciding which rooms will most benefit from its installation.
The pros of cork flooring
- Cork is a sustainable choice as it is a renewable resource; the wood bark regenerates after harvesting and can be maintained for generations.
- Durable and resilient, cork flooring is a great choice in high-traffic areas.
- It is available in a wide variety of patterns and colours to suit a variety of rooms and aesthetic styles.
- Cork is slightly spongy, warm and quiet underfoot, particularly when compared to harder flooring surfaces. It reduces the need for underfloor heating and absorbs more noise, contributing to a quieter environment.
- Cork floors are naturally resistant to mould and mildew, and they are one of the more hypo-allergenic flooring options available.
- Cork offers a cushioned surface for children to play on, and it reduces the break-ability of falling objects and bodies.
The cons of cork flooring
- While cork does ‘bounce back’, it doesn’t always hold up well with the weight of very heavy furniture. Furniture pads can help reduce indents by dispersing the weight of the object.
- Dropped objects with sharp edges can cut and carve chunks out of the cork, as can animal claws.
- Darker varieties of cork are susceptible to discolouring with age. Curtains or blinds in rooms with direct sunlight can reduce dramatic fading over time.
- Cork doesn’t always work well in damp areas, and standing water can cause damage. Spilled liquids should be promptly cleaned up to prevent absorption.
Maintaining cork flooring
- Regularly sweep or vacuum cork floors so that dirt and debris don’t scar it.
- Use a barely-damp mop with a recommended floor cleaner.
- Consider re-coating the floor with a protective seal every few years.
Variety of cork flooring
Cork floors add warmth, softness and cushioning in all rooms, but are particularly appealing in a home office environment. They create a warm feeling and contribute to welcoming work spaces. This type of flooring particularly complements a clean and contemporary look, and works beautifully within an all-white space, as pictured here.
Cork floors add warmth, softness and cushioning in all rooms, but are particularly appealing in a home office environment. They create a warm feeling and contribute to welcoming work spaces. This type of flooring particularly complements a clean and contemporary look, and works beautifully within an all-white space, as pictured here.
The office of Kansas architect Chris Fein has a cork floor, laid on top of a slab foundation. “We love cork floors, because they’re affordable, they wear well and you can put them on a slab,” Fein says.
See more of this outdoor studio project
See more of this outdoor studio project
The mottled texture and grain of cork perfectly complement timber kitchen fixtures. Nic Curragh of Objects Ltd warns that “the darker varieties of cork are very susceptible to UV fade”. Here, a burled cork engineered plank flooring system has been installed throughout the home.
Gone are the days of cork that turned orange due to solvent-based polyurethanes. Dark colours, such as ones pictured here, can be achieved with a clear-drying varnish. Cork floors in cocoa shades add depth and texture to this New Zealand home, anchoring the room with its lofty raked ceiling.
See more stylish cork-covered kitchens
See more stylish cork-covered kitchens
Cork floors are a perfect addition to this retro-inspired kitchen with 1970s colour palette, patterned tiles and under-island lighting. All in all it’s still modern and up-to-date, but it’s also eco-friendly – the cork floors have a natural oil finish and are 100 per cent recyclable.
“Cork flooring was specified as an environmentally friendly option and to provide a warm and comfortable surface that is gentle underfoot,” says this kitchen’s designer, Gavin Hepper. “It pays homage to the natural, organic feel desired by the clients.”
“Cork flooring was specified as an environmentally friendly option and to provide a warm and comfortable surface that is gentle underfoot,” says this kitchen’s designer, Gavin Hepper. “It pays homage to the natural, organic feel desired by the clients.”
Cork tiles can also be laid to create a patterned floor. Here, grey and white cork tiles in a chequerboard pattern complement the joinery and walls, and also add a sophisticated retro touch to this galley kitchen.
YOUR TURN
Do you have cork flooring in your home? Share your style by uploading photos in the Comments section below.
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Browse a gallery of cork flooring products
YOUR TURN
Do you have cork flooring in your home? Share your style by uploading photos in the Comments section below.
MORE
Browse a gallery of cork flooring products
Cork flooring is produced from a particular kind of oak tree (Quercus suber) that grows in forests in southern Europe. The bark of a cork oak tree is stripped for the first time when the tree reaches 25 years old; it is then harvested every nine years or so, cut into strips and cured. The cork that isn’t used for bottle stoppers is ground into granules that are bonded into blocks and baked in moulds. Various temperatures produce different colour blocks that, once baked, are cut into slabs, sanded and varnished for flooring.