Antique Flooring
Many people choose to put antique flooring in their homes.Some say it just looks better and some are motivated by the urge to
recycle, both from an enironmental standpoint and to preserve a part of an old house,whether it be their own or someone elses. There is something
special about transfering a part of the old house to your new one.
Most people think of wide hardwood boards as the only type of antique flooring, but in fact antique tiles
and stones make popular floors too.Antique wood flooring can be an expensive. At an architectural antique store, the prices
can soon outgrow the home owners budget.This is no ordinary home improvement project! If you expect something unique,be prepared to shop
and scour until you find what you are looking for. Going antique can net great finds that are just not available today to most
people.Wide planks and odd hardwoods are not easy to get in any situation, but they’re much easier to get hold of as antique flooring than
as new pieces.
Do not go straight to the antiques high road.Spend sometime
looking,asking friends and by all means if you see a house being torn down or demolished,get out and ask what they are doing with the old
wood.Many times they will say they are just throwing it out! Can you imagine?Sometimes an old building is put up for a demolition sale:
that is, you bring your own tools and buy anything you can pry out. Or you may get lucky and find someone selling antique flooring that is
already been removed from its old home. Check out salvage shops and the internet. If you are willing to do your own refinishing, you
will save money. And take a look in newspapers’ classified ads.
And naturally, do not forget your dimensions. With antique flooring, what you see is what you get,
imperfections, scarcity and all. If you find a good thing at a good price, but it’s just a little short, see if your room could take
a different trim around the edge, or a complementary patch near the furniture. It will add character and a conversation piece to
your home.
Consider tile.
In hot climates, tile floors have always been popular. The Roman mosaics at Pompeii are tile. Some centuries’ old
palaces in Europe are floored with mosaics that were taken from ruins that had already been buried for hundreds of years when dug
out. But you do not have to loot a Roman villa for antique tiles. Victorian tiles are readily available, but to find enough to
cover a floor, you will probably have to look on the internet or engage a dealer.The most durable tile antique flooring material is
encaustic tile. These thick Victorian tiles come mostly in muted shades and usually make an intricate geometric pattern on the
floor. Even incorporating a few of these into a modern tile floor makes a unique statement.
Consider the costs,the aesthetics,the costs and the adventure of it all!
Read about antique books. Consider antique flooring.
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