Our Favorite Things: Fantastic Floors

Cool Cork

Cork has long been an eco-friendly, easy-to-clean and -install flooring option, and now it’s got some stylish variety as well. Capri Cork (capricork.com; some styles available at Green Depot, SoDo, 1950 6th Ave. S; 206.315.1974; greendepot.com), makes a number of tile types, including recycled rubber made from post-consumer tire waste, and a cool rubber-cork combo (seen above in “biscuit,” starting around $6 per square foot, in a tile or roll). Each collection comes with many color choices—from neutral (such as “concrete”) to bold (such as “speckled crimson”)—for the utmost in design fun and flexibility. 

Green Woods

Earlier this year, Green Depot (SoDo, 1950 Sixth Ave. S; 206.315.1974; greendepot.com) not only moved into a brand-new location, it launched a new line of rustic, reclaimed hardwood flooring, which includes Bridle Trails Plank ($8.75 per square foot). Salvaged from the iconic fences of Kentucky horse farms, these knotty wood planks of red and white oak come in wide pieces that can be stained and finished to suit any taste. For something more exotic, Green Depot’s South American FSC-certified Tigerwood ($4.99 per square foot) has a red undertone with deep stripes of black, brown and gold—and is possibly the most seriously sexy flooring we’ve ever seen.

Earth to Floor

A sleek, truly earthy alternative to the modern flooring fave, concrete, Portland-based Claylin (503.957.6132; claylin.com; also available at Green Home Solutions, Interbay, 1210 W Nickerson St.; 888.447.9877; ghsproducts.com) brings non-toxic flooring underfoot. The earthen flooring ($4.60–$9 per square foot), made of sand, clay soil and fiber found in the Portland area, is sealed with a mix of linseed oil, tung oil, pine rosin and beeswax. Add color, texture or even mosaics to really put your personal stamp on your floors. DIYers: check out the techniques training course offered by Clayin’s developer Sukita Reay Crimmel.

Customized Covers

A rug is always a reliably easy, feet-friendly way to make a big style statement. Of course, great off-the-rack rug options abound, but consider splurging on a one-of-a-kind custom creation. Your architect could even be a surprise supplier. Architect Nils Finne, of Seattle’s FINNE Architects (206.467.2880; finne.com), for example, is a skilled hand at creating custom residences, furniture, hardware, lighting and rugs. He recently dreamed up a gorgeous 8-by-12-foot rug for Issaquah’s Christian Science Reading Room, which he also designed. Made in Nepal of 100 percent Nepalese wool and stain-resisting lanolin, the piece took four months to complete and makes an ideal contribution to the space. “The field of grass motif is a lively element in a serene and calm atmosphere,” says Finne. The architect says that his price to create a custom rug usually starts at about $70 per square foot.

More Good Woods

Meyer Wells (SoDo, Seattle Design Center, 5701 Sixth Ave. S, Suite 288; 206.282.0076; meyerwells.com), salvaged-wood furniture designers extraordinaire, now make solid wood flooring ($7–$15 per square foot). Their flooring, from Western Ash to Black Locust, is also from salvaged or FSC-certified trees, and sourced from within 100 miles of their Interbay workshop. In August, they unveiled a brand-new line of Island Douglas Fir ($7.90 per unfinished square foot). Not only does it have a lovely rich hue, but it is responsibly farmed in the San Juans.