A Pro's Guide to Painting a Floor Medallion

Many home remodeling projects contain the challenge of transitioning two types of flooring. A painted floor medallion is one way of accomplishing this.

When two types of flooring meet, a painted pattern can ease the transition. Here, an existing oak floor abuts an addition's heart-pine floor whose boards run perpendicular to the oak. An open cloverleaf, squared off and anchored by painted borders and solid circles at the center and in all four corners, softens the area's angles and echoes the curve of the arched passageway. In a longer rectangular space, a row of circles or smaller cloverleaf designs would work equally well. [read more]

How to Paint a Floor Medallion by Deborah Baldwin (This Old House magazine)

Cork: the Ultimate in Eco-Chic Flooring

Cork flooring is an increasingly popular choice in interior design and remodeling projects.

In a modern day home, it isn't unusual to see a family that spends a lot of time 'living' on the floor. Small children play on the floor, teens will sprawl out with friends to do homework or play video games on the floor and homeowners often use the floor as extra seating for casual eating when couches and chairs run out during a 'girls night in' or an impromptu family get-together. The floor is also used to set up intimate, romantic champagne evenings by the fireplace or as a place to exercise, stretch or do yoga.

With the amount of time that today's families are spending on the floor, it is even more important that flooring should be comfortable, durable, hypoallergenic, healthy, stylish and highly functional. Cork flooring, one of the hottest trends in design and décor today, fulfills all of these requirements, and offers much more.

Cork is a very comfortable hard surface floor. It is softer to walk on and easier on the feet then ceramic tile, hardwood or laminate. Cork is more than 50 percent air, which makes it lightweight, a natural sound absorber and highly resilient. Consequently, cork often doesn't show dents or grooves the same way wood flooring can. It is also allergy free and easy to maintain – great for a healthy, safe home. Cork is a unique product that is completely renewable, 100 per cent natural and recyclable. Incredible inherent properties, including sound and temperature insulation, cushioning and water resistance provide a dazzling array of uses for cork.

Style Meets Sustainability; Cork Flooring is the Ultimate in Eco-Chic from MarketWire