Laminate is widely used in the decoration of modern apartments and houses. The advantages of this material do not mean that it can be chosen at random, it is imperative to take into account all the characteristics and subtleties of its installation. Let's try to figure out what the laminate should be like and how to choose it for a certain interior.
Features of the
Laminate belongs to the category of panel-type coatings, it is installed very simply and differs in a variety of design. The raw material for the production of this flooring is fibreboard, to which layers of paper are pressed together. To make the texture look as profitable as possible, special drawings are applied to the top layer, mostly imitation of various types of wood.
They try to improve the protection of the finished product from various damages by applying a thin film of acrylic or melamine resins. A stabilizing coating is applied to the seamy side of all boards, due to which, even after a significant load, the coating hardly deforms.
In terms of stability and external beauty, the laminate is identical to parquet, but it will be much cheaper to use it on the floor of an apartment. Even if someone walks on the floor in high heels, the surface will remain unchanged, not scratched.
Views
Initially, the laminate was designed to mimic the appearance of parquet, but today such a coating belongs to the 33rd category of strength. Even if the room is very simple and unpretentious, the floor will be decorated very beautifully and will become the semantic center of the interior. Coating is widespread, reproducing the color and texture of natural oak.
If the financial issue is far from the first place for you, you can buy a laminate that looks like natural leather. True, this solution is recommended by designers only for lovers of exotic design. No other flooring material will give the opportunity to imitate the surface of the alligator's body. Panels with imitation metal (the same shiny) are mainly used in kitchens.
The decisive factor when choosing a laminate is its strength to match the loadexposed to the floor during normal use. In the bedrooms, such a load will always be less than in the living room or dining room, where they go constantly, and not only the inhabitants of the house, but also most of the guests. In the first case, accordingly, it is worth buying the coating of the lowest strength classes, and in the second - already medium.
Don't buy off-road laminate flooring, it's just a waste of money. Such coverage is designed, for example, for the waiting room of the bus station and other intensively used premises.
For information on what criteria should be considered when choosing a laminate, see the next video.
Materials (edit)
Natural laminate is already considered a classic solution, its protective layer is designed to create the impression of a thoroughly polished wood. In many collections, it looks like lacquered. There are coverage options:
- With a particularly pronounced texture;
- Subjected to artificial aging;
- Most embossed;
- Covered with a glossy layer of a combination of acrylic and corundum (these are called laminated, they last an extremely long time);
- With chamfers - reproduction of connected natural boards, thanks to which it is almost impossible to notice the discrepancies between the individual panels.
An interesting solution in many cases is matte laminate. It does not create a special play of light, like glossy, but at the same time it is quite expressive and aesthetic.
Coating location options
Initially, the developers assumed that this coating would cover the floors, and made every effort to give it high strength. But on other surfaces of the room, on which no one walks, it is advisable to use the least strong and therefore relatively cheap material options. When placing laminate flooring on the ceiling, choose one that has the highest level of moisture resistance to the substrate. Yes, this will not help from severe flooding, but at least you will receive a minimum guarantee of peace of mind.
Ceiling covering should be in harmony with the appearance of walls and floors, but not to merge with it until the complete loss of their boundaries. Be very careful and consult with experienced designers if necessary.
The ceiling arrangement of the laminate can be additionally decorated with LED lighting, but it will also have to be selected with great care.
Color solutions
It is more correct to choose a specific color scheme in accordance with the style of the room that you decide to equip with a laminate. White oak will optimally fit into the interior of Provence, as well as various pastel shades. In such a room it is more correct to use a coating with chamfers, it will emphasize the aged texture even better than usual.
For rooms in style country a dark color of almost untreated and deliberately rough wood is preferred. The closer the floor looks to the board, the better. Japanese style is compatible with any tones - brown, cappuccino, wenge can go very well.
Coloring in ash or walnut is appropriate in a Swiss chalet, because this style implies unique comfortable combinations of stone and wood motifs. The only condition is the complete compatibility of the coating with other interior details.
Minimalistic space always restrained, simple and correct, because the abundance of different colors here will be unnatural. White, gray and black tones are considered the most appropriate. To more accurately choose the type of design, you should consult with the designer.
Furnishings in style high tech must be contrasting, and the combination "black floor - beige ceiling" or the opposite is quite consistent with the spirit of this format. If you do not know, doubt what to finally choose, use a gray oak color scheme, it looks very graceful and elegant in almost any environment.
Refined and solemn Gothic is even better combined with black floor coverings, especially if they have a pattern of pronounced texture. Orange tones should be used by amateurs pop art, they perfectly emphasize the originality and creative scope of the idea. Blue, purple or green paints will be perceived just as well, especially if a stylish material with a bevel is chosen.
The color of the plinth is selected taking into account how exactly the furniture, doors, walls, decorative elements are made (painted). A light floor in a black frame is a very bold decision, but in most cases it is stylistically justified. Such a move will be most appropriate if the entire interior is generally built on the principle of contrasts. According to experts, gray laminate is harmoniously suited to colored furniture. And the bleached harbor oak will take its rightful place in the setting of French Provence.
A room designed in the spirit Art Deco, requires the use of black or white flooring. Or a different color, but always combined with the same tones and with a metallic color (usually prevailing in such an interior).
When a Scandinavian style is chosen for the entire room, it makes sense to prefer white or another very light shade of the flooring. In the country style, imitation of the color of expensive varieties of wood (but not exotic, but growing in our country) is appropriate.
Design
The design possibilities when using laminate flooring are quite large. If you want to add a touch of warmth and comfort to the room, it is worth applying a coating that reproduces canvas matter. It is not difficult to make the room more original and interesting if you choose plots with imitation of rock art or abstract motives. In the children's room, characters from cartoon series and fairy-tale books, movies and adventure novels are appropriate. Laminate, laid out obliquely and resembling stone or marble, is a very stylish and competent solution.
The cover, made under the skin of a crocodile, invariably brings a sense of glamor, sophistication to the room and makes the atmosphere exotic, even if all other parts of it are quite familiar. And the version under the white wood is stylistically very different, it simultaneously creates a feeling of warmth and expands an unnecessarily narrow room. Oak or other wood species imitated by the surface of the laminate will look even more elegant if the furniture in the room has exactly the same color.
In a modern style, the most important thing is avoid excessive brightness and do not use overly saturated, energetic colors. Remember that Art Nouveau is designed to create a space for living, and not a bright and variegated territory, which is not always convenient to use. There are a lot of options for modern style, and you can always choose the one that is most convenient for a particular house or apartment. When decorating a space, it is useful to take into account that the modern style is best embodied when some of the motives characteristic of the facade and external walls of the building are borrowed. This circumstance makes it possible to shorten the path to good design and simplify the search for original ideas.
The living room floor, decorated in a modern way, will look more attractive if you use panels in two opposite colors at once.
When the room is very small in size, it is worth giving preference to the minimalist design. It is able to harmoniously fit even into a small corridor.
Tiled flooring can create the impression of a wide variety of styles:
- Mediterranean;
- Japanese;
- Moroccan;
- A different ethnic "exotic".
The Japanese format is most accurately expressed by a coating that imitates the texture and texture of bamboo or sisal; the choice of dark and light colors is yours, if only the color balance of the entire space as a whole is not disturbed. There are also products on sale that imitate zebranos, with their help you can decorate your home in a truly African spirit.
The square or “herringbone” type of laying will help to arrange the flooring under the parquet board. But you will definitely need to limit yourself to such an installation with a special coating - its strips will be small, and the locks will allow you to interlock the blocks at right angles. Aged laminate is different not only in color. Methods have been developed that allow you to apply irregularities on it, looking like on a long-used board.
How to choose a combination?
Laminate can be applied even in very difficult operating conditions, if you choose durable and moisture resistant grades. But in addition to the practical properties and its own appearance, it is necessary to take into account the compatibility of the coating with other elements of the room design. You can often hear that it is necessary to agree on the color of the flooring and doors, but this requirement cannot be taken literally. A dark canvas laid on the floor looks quite attractive in a frame of uniformly light vertical planes. A perfectly saturated dark shade of the floor is also suitable for white doors.
Often, designers use more original moves - they use, for example, furniture as the main filling, interior doors as an accent, and skirting boards act as a semantic link of the entire composition.
It is important to consider that in the light of day, a dark and smooth canvas will not hide dust. For light wallpapers, darker coatings are suitable if the contrast effect is correctly applied, so take more time to select both.
The light floor is very beautiful and graceful in itself; it is not for nothing that many collections have been introduced with coatings of “bleached oak” color. It is up to you personally to decide whether a certain type of laminate is combined with walls, ceilings, decorative elements or not. Listen to the recommendations of designers, but do not take them as an absolute truth, try to choose what you yourself will be comfortable and pleasant. Consider the cost of various options.… Sometimes a very beautiful combination turns out to be too expensive.
Laminate, which looks like a parquet board, is ideally combined with natural wood furniture. Interior items painted in the color of wenge and pine, walnut, ash, black and light oak look good on gray floors. If it seems that it has become too gloomy due to the abundance of dark tones, just introduce some bright and expressive accent into the atmosphere.
Fashion trends
It is becoming more and more popular now to cover the walls of hallways with laminate. This is due to its practicality and elegant design of most types of panels. The classic-style coating is most often made in white, beige and cream shades, only occasionally brighter colors are allowed as single accents. Light laminate is popular in modern kitchens. There he will not overly attract attention, it will turn into an optimal background for other decoration techniques. Still often they try to use light-colored laminate in combination with bright furniture, then it acts as a neutral base.
Diagonal laying of the laminate is considered a fairly fashionable solution, but keep in mind that without experience of such work and without special training, it is not worth taking on it. Better trust the specialists, they will definitely not let you down.
In kitchens, the combination of laminate panels with ceramic and stone tiles, which occupy the wettest and hottest places, is becoming more and more in demand.
Vintage is perfectly demonstrated by various natural materials, preferably artificially aged. Vintage solutions always and everywhere look stylish, seem irresistibly attractive. An emphatically old-fashioned flooring goes well with antiques and old things in general. This style requires the abandonment of any excess and pretentiousness. So if you need a room full of decor and decorations, you should look for another style that is more suitable for your hobby.
In a vintage interior, a laminate that imitates the appearance of a parquet board is preferable., moreover, discreet and unobtrusive colors. Excessive energy and expression are completely inappropriate here. An original and expressive move - the use of floral motifs, on the contrary, fully corresponds to the canons of the style.
Beautiful examples in the interior
When choosing a laminate for bathrooms, one should take into account not only its external appeal at the time of purchase, but also the maximum water resistance. A rubber sealing part placed on the longitudinal sides of the boards helps to maintain a pleasant appearance for several years. With the help of a laminate, it is easy to delimit the premises of the house, although in most cases it is introduced exclusively as a functional decoration. Reproduction of parquet, made of light wood, will come in handy in summer cottages, living rooms and country cottages.
In the bedroom space, this coating can transform a very simple and undemanding interior, making it truly original.
In different rooms, you can put laminate flooring, made not only for wood or ceramics, but also for stone tiles or bricks. Important: do not bring too many dark and too many light tones into the room, this will either create a feeling of ponderous gloom, or cause an association with a medical institution. The lighter the color of the floor, the easier it will be to care for. - dust will not be as visible as on dark surfaces. Wide stripes imitating floorboards can be used to expand the room. The living room, which is done in neutral or cool shades, will be transformed by the use of bright and warm laminate.
If the room is snow-white, then the warm tones of the flooring can bring comfort and dilute the excessively monotonous space. If the laminate pattern contains several color combinations at once, it will be very easy to fit it into the interior, where there are already similar shades, but provided there is good natural light, otherwise it will be very difficult to assess the merits of your idea.
As you can see, knowledge of the simplest principles of space design will allow you to use laminate flooring in almost any interior.