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Last month we discussed a few home design trends for this year, but what's popular in flooring for 2013? There are two trends we see at San Jose Hardwood Floors: a move to exotics and handscraped or distressed flooring.

Incorporating Exotic Hardwoods

Incorporating exotics into your home through hardwood floors is very popular right now. In flooring, the term "exotic" can describe pretty much anything besides oak, but the more unique ones are getting the most attention. Some hardwood floors are even made from unconventional materials like whiskey barrels!

Hardwood flooring hasn't been around forever. When did it make its debut, and how did it rise to popularity? Here's a bit of fascinating history about wood floors.

Hardwood Floors Debut

Hardwood flooring didn't make its debut until the 1600s. Before that, many homes simply had dirt that was smoothed over as their floor, and guests were asked to take their shoes off so they wouldn't create mud or kick up the dusty earth. In 1625, the wealthy started incorporating wood flooring with ornate, elegant designs such as French parquetry and marquetry patterns. The intricate designs during this era were time-intensive to create, with craftsmen using multiple species and hand scraping, sanding, finishing and waxing the wood flooring by hand.

Designing your hardwood floors is an important part of the flooring and remodeling process. Picking a flooring pattern that fits your vision is especially important to ensure a quality end product. While there are dozens of unique flooring patterns, there are five common options that we would like to introduce to you today. Each of these flooring designs will aid in creating a beautifully unique and lush atmosphere in any space, determining which is right for your space, figuring out your needs and style preferences.

Are you exploring exotic hardwood options for your home? Don’t miss Brazilian Cherry, a favorite species due to its strength, durability and style.

As exotic hardwood floors become more and more popular, homeowners are given a wider variety of styles, strengths and shades to choose from. Most exotic hardwood flooring is known for its durability, with Brazilian Cherry being the hardest according to the Janka scale.

Exotic hardwood stands out from domestic wood in color, texture and grain pattern. Brazilian Cherry, for example, offers a rich variety of hues that don’t need to be stained to pop. The beautiful colors combined with texture and wood strength is unique to exotic hardwood, and what makes it an investment that will last for years to come – and withstand years of pets, children and clumsy adults.

Although exotic hardwood like Brazilian Cherry is more expensive than the domestic variety, it is also much more beautiful and extremely durable. The countries that export the wood have natural climates and landscapes that allow the trees to mature before being harvested. Because only a small percentage of these forests are cut down at a time, the cost to the consumer is a bit higher, but homeowners can rest assured their floors were made with the habitats overseas in mind.

Where can you get exotic hardwood like Brazilian Cherry? Here are the manufacturers we work with and recommend:

• Armstrong (see their manufacturer spotlight!)
• BR-111
• Garrison Collection
• IndusParquet (see their manufacturer spotlight!)
• Lauzon (see their manufacturer spotlight!)
• Mirage (see their manufacturer spotlight!)
• Mullican Flooring (see their manufacturer spotlight!)
• Oshkosh Designs
• Ownes Flooring
• Reward Hardwood Flooring
• Robinson Flooring
• Saroyan Hardwoods (see their manufacturer spotlight!)
• Tesoro Woods
• TreeSmart (see their manufacturer spotlight!)

Want to learn more about exotic hardwood? Read more on our exotics page, or contact our team of experts!

Photo courtesy of IndusParquet