Kitchen Flooring — Beauty Or Function?
More choices are on the docket this week for your kitchen remodel. When choosing your flooring, which comes first, beauty or function? While we are now gathering where we live and making the kitchen the focal point of entertaining, we certainly want it to be beautiful. Why do we entertain, anyway? To show off to our friends, of course. However, function is important for all the traffic that results in a gathering space.
Ceramic tile is stunning and is low-maintenance. It can be swept, vacuumed or mopped, and a light color does not show the dust or dirt. The grout must be kept clean, though, and this can be a tedious task – picture yourself on the floor with a toothbrush. Ceramic tile flooring is not for the clumsy – it’s an unforgiving surface. Glasses and dishes shatter in thousands of pieces if dropped, and falls on a ceramic tile floor are quite painful.
Wood flooring offers a uniting presence, as well as a softer touch on your feet. It contributes an element of warmth to the room and is also easy to clean. It does, however, scratch easily or become marred from dropped glasses or utensils. Dog owners might think twice about hard wood maintenance, due to scratches from the dog’s nails. Although, if scratches and dents are not deep, they can easily be made to look new with another application of a poly sealant.
For the softest touch on your feet and warmth – cork anyone? Cork offers a resilience unmatched by other flooring, as well as versatility and durability. It’s priced between wood and tile, and cleaning is a bit more challenging. Cork can’t be wet mopped, and spills must be cleaned promptly so they don’t stain or get absorbed by the cork.
All in all, we need both beauty and function in any area of a home addition. With the right materials and design, your kitchen remodel can be everything you hoped it would be.
