Sofie Barfoed © 2015 Houzz
Mid-century modern living room photo in Copenhagen

Popular Scandinavian-style interiors blog 'These Four Walls' has collaborated with Kährs for a scandi-inspired, soft and minimalist living room makeover. Kährs worked with founder Abi Dare to find the perfect hard wearing and stylish floor to work alongside minimalist decor. Kährs' ultra matt 'Oak Sky' engineered wood floor design was the perfect fit. "I was keen on the idea of pale Nordic oak and ordered all sorts of samples, but none seemed quite right – until a package arrived from Swedish brand Kährs, that is. As soon as I took a peek at ‘Oak Sky’ ultra matt lacquered boards I knew they were the right choice – light but not overly so, with a balance of ashen and warmer tones and a beautiful grain. It creates the light, Scandinavian vibe that I love, but it doesn’t look out of place in our Victorian house; it also works brilliantly with the grey walls. I also love the matte finish, which is very hard wearing but has none of the shininess normally associated with lacquer" says Abi. Oak Sky is the lightest oak design from the Kährs Lux collection of one-strip ultra matt lacquer floors. The semi-transparent white stain and light and dark contrasts in the wood makes the floor ideal for a scandi-chic inspired interior. The innovative surface treatment is non-reflective; enhancing the colour of the floor while giving it a silky, yet strong shield against wear and tear. Kährs' Lux collection won 'Best Flooring' at the House Beautiful Awards 2017. Kährs have collaborated with These Four Walls and feature in two blog posts; My soft, minimalist living room makeover reveal and How to choose wooden flooring. All photography by Abi Dare, Founder of These Four Walls

he Modin Rigid luxury vinyl plank flooring collection is the new standard in resilient flooring. Modin Rigid offers true embossed-in-register texture, creating a surface that is convincing to the eye and to the touch; a low sheen level to ensure a natural look that wears well over time; four-sided enhanced bevels to more accurately emulate the look of real wood floors; wider and longer waterproof planks; an industry-leading wear layer; and a pre-attached underlayment.

When a world class sailing champion approached us to design a Newport home for his family, with lodging for his sailing crew, we set out to create a clean, light-filled modern home that would integrate with the natural surroundings of the waterfront property, and respect the character of the historic district. Our approach was to make the marine landscape an integral feature throughout the home. One hundred eighty degree views of the ocean from the top floors are the result of the pinwheel massing. The home is designed as an extension of the curvilinear approach to the property through the woods and reflects the gentle undulating waterline of the adjacent saltwater marsh. Floodplain regulations dictated that the primary occupied spaces be located significantly above grade; accordingly, we designed the first and second floors on a stone “plinth” above a walk-out basement with ample storage for sailing equipment. The curved stone base slopes to grade and houses the shallow entry stair, while the same stone clads the interior’s vertical core to the roof, along which the wood, glass and stainless steel stair ascends to the upper level. One critical programmatic requirement was enough sleeping space for the sailing crew, and informal party spaces for the end of race-day gatherings. The private master suite is situated on one side of the public central volume, giving the homeowners views of approaching visitors. A “bedroom bar,” designed to accommodate a full house of guests, emerges from the other side of the central volume, and serves as a backdrop for the infinity pool and the cove beyond. Also essential to the design process was ecological sensitivity and stewardship. The wetlands of the adjacent saltwater marsh were designed to be restored; an extensive geo-thermal heating and cooling system was implemented; low carbon footprint materials and permeable surfaces were used where possible. Native and non-invasive plant species were utilized in the landscape. The abundance of windows and glass railings maximize views of the landscape, and, in deference to the adjacent bird sanctuary, bird-friendly glazing was used throughout. Photo: Michael Moran/OTTO Photography

Keep art supplies and games contained in our Tint Stacking Drawers and Grid Totes on elfa® shelving. Both The Drawers and Totes are the perfect size for stacking and can easily be moved from room to room.

This 1990's home, located in North Vancouver's Lynn Valley neighbourhood, had high ceilings and a great open plan layout but the decor was straight out of the 90's complete with sponge painted walls in dark earth tones. The owners, a young professional couple, enlisted our help to take it from dated and dreary to modern and bright. We started by removing details like chair rails and crown mouldings, that did not suit the modern architectural lines of the home. We replaced the heavily worn wood floors with a new high end, light coloured, wood-look laminate that will withstand the wear and tear from their two energetic golden retrievers. Since the main living space is completely open plan it was important that we work with simple consistent finishes for a clean modern look. The all white kitchen features flat doors with minimal hardware and a solid surface marble-look countertop and backsplash. We modernized all of the lighting and updated the bathrooms and master bedroom as well. The only departure from our clean modern scheme is found in the dressing room where the client was looking for a more dressed up feminine feel but we kept a thread of grey consistent even in this more vivid colour scheme. This transformation, featuring the clients' gorgeous original artwork and new custom designed furnishings is admittedly one of our favourite projects to date!

Ivory Closet
Island style closet photo in San Francisco

Free ebook, CREATING THE IDEAL KITCHEN Download now → http://bit.ly/idealkitchen The hall bath for this client started out a little dated with its 1970’s color scheme and general wear and tear, but check out the transformation! The floor is really the focal point here, it kind of works the same way wallpaper would, but -- it’s on the floor. I love this graphic tile, patterned after Moroccan encaustic, or cement tile, but this one is actually porcelain at a very affordable price point and much easier to install than cement tile. Once we had homeowner buy-in on the floor choice, the rest of the space came together pretty easily – we are calling it “transitional, Moroccan, industrial.” Key elements are the traditional vanity, Moroccan shaped mirrors and flooring, and plumbing fixtures, coupled with industrial choices -- glass block window, a counter top that looks like cement but that is actually very functional Corian, sliding glass shower door, and simple glass light fixtures. The final space is bright, functional and stylish. Quite a transformation, don’t you think? Designed by: Susan Klimala, CKD, CBD Photography by: Mike Kaskel For more information on kitchen and bath design ideas go to: www.kitchenstudio-ge.com

Gelsemium sempervirens (Carolina jessamine). Tulinda's Garden, LLC

Myrill Rock vinyl color 546
Hallway - large contemporary vinyl floor hallway idea in Miami with white walls

A wear layer indicates how often an engineered floor can be refinished. The thicker the wear layer, the greater the number of times the floor can be sanded and finished. For example, you can refinish a 6 mm wear layer floor more times than a 4 mm wear layer floor.

Photo: Elaine Musiwa © 2015 Houzz
Example of a danish kids' room design in Philadelphia

Yes! Concrete pavers should be sealed. Paving stones are manufactured with the highest quality cement, but cement is a corrosive material that wears under natural elements. The sun, rain and cold, can easily wear the surface of pavers, and a good sealing job with the right sealing product, applied by a professional technician of sealing, will create a layer of protection over the paving stones making them water repellent and weather proof. This will protect the concrete surface from corrosion. A good sealer penetrates the paver surface and stays there for many years, even if the look of the sealer goes away, the color and texture of the pavers will stay new.

A wear layer indicates how often an engineered floor can be refinished. The thicker the wear layer, the greater the number of times the floor can be sanded and finished. For example, you can refinish a 6 mm wear layer floor more times than a 4 mm wear layer floor.

GAIA WHITE SERIES | SOLID POLYMER CORE (SPC)ShareSettingsMore Gaia White Series SPC represents wood’s natural beauty. With a wood grain embossing directly over the 20 mil with ceramic wear layer, Gaia Flooring White Series is industry leading for durability. The SPC stone based core with luxury sound and heat insulation underlayment, surpasses luxury standards for multilevel estates. Waterproof and guaranteed in all rooms in your home and all regular commercial. * Ceramic Bead Finish UV Coating With Stain Resistance The top layer is protected by a UV cured ceramic bead finish, true ceramic bead finish has the ability to prevent scratches more than most other mineral finishes. * Wear Layer at 0.5mm 20mil Thickness The top layer is a 20 mil wear layer that ensures longevity from wear and tear. * Hight Definiton Decor Film The decorative film has multi-layer depth in color to provide a similar realism to real wood. * Solid Polymer Core Board The core is made out of a proprietary composition of SPC and the composition is designed to provide luxury sound and heat ratings without compromising on the stability. * IXPE Antimicrobial Underlayment The underlayment is a high density antimicrobial virgin vinyl padding to provide warmth and luxury feel.

GAIA WHITE SERIES | SOLID POLYMER CORE (SPC) Gaia White Series SPC represents wood’s natural beauty. With a wood grain embossing directly over the 20 mil with ceramic wear layer, Gaia Flooring White Series is industry leading for durability. The SPC stone based core with luxury sound and heat insulation underlayment, surpasses luxury standards for multilevel estates. Waterproof and guaranteed in all rooms in your home and all regular commercial. * Ceramic Bead Finish UV Coating With Stain Resistance The top layer is protected by a UV cured ceramic bead finish, true ceramic bead finish has the ability to prevent scratches more than most other mineral finishes. * Wear Layer at 0.5mm 20mil Thickness The top layer is a 20 mil wear layer that ensures longevity from wear and tear. * Hight Definiton Decor Film The decorative film has multi-layer depth in color to provide a similar realism to real wood. * Solid Polymer Core Board The core is made out of a proprietary composition of SPC and the composition is designed to provide luxury sound and heat ratings without compromising on the stability. * IXPE Antimicrobial Underlayment The underlayment is a high density antimicrobial virgin vinyl padding to provide warmth and luxury feel.

Photo: Margaret Wright Photography © 2017 Houzz
Elegant closet photo in Charleston

A conveniently hidden trash pull-out.
Inspiration for a transitional kitchen remodel in New York

Kitchens By Cyndi
Inspiration for a farmhouse home design remodel in Other