How To Find The Right Timber-Look Floor For Your Home

Andersens have teamed up with Houzz Australia to help you find the right timber look floor for your home, below.

The timeless appeal of a timber-look floor is not to be underestimated, but the options to achieve it can seem endless. Should you invest in engineered-timber flooring? Or can you achieve the timber look for less with hybrid, vinyl or laminate flooring? To find out, and to help you find the right floor to suit your home’s style, we spoke to Andersens to learn some of the best options for homeowners.

Mid-Century, Country & Period Properties

If you’re building, renovating or retrofitting a period property, it pays to invest in engineered-timber flooring in timeless shades to suit. Classic choices in traditional shades include Natural Oak, Spotted Gum and Blackbutt.

These enduring hues feature in the Compact collection from Andersens and are sure to complement older properties. The range has a 2.5-millimetre top layer of timber on a durable substrate and a total plank thickness of 12.5 millimetres.

If you would like to warm up your interior by introducing some subtle pink undertones with your engineered-timber flooring, look to Sydney Blue in Andersens’ Readyflor range or, for a more striking reddish undertone, consider Jarrah floorboards from the same collection.

In the same range, Tasmanian Oak can be used for a blonder finish, while the Timbre collection includes paler planks in Wheat Oak, Barley Oak and Ash Oak for a more neutral look.

One notable characteristic of period properties is the extra width and length of their floorboards, so search for designs that remain true to this format. While engineered timber is often regarded as the ideal choice for older properties, new innovations in vinyl, laminate and hybrid flooring offer the traditional timber look for less – and with minimal upkeep – making them well-suited to family homes.

The Looselay Longboard range of vinyl planks from Andersens comes in a generous 250 millimetres wide and 1500 millimetres long, and their high-definition photographic layer beneath the protective polyurethane finish mimics the knots, grain and classic aesthetic of timber at a more affordable price.

Coastal & Scandi Style

Paler planks are ideal for homes with coastal, country and Scandinavian styles. Bleached boards that evoke the look of driftwood, or blonde woods that conjure the feel of coastal homes, are perfect to achieve a relaxed beachy vibe. For engineered-timber floorboards, seek out light shades such as Wintry Forest Oak, Cliff Grey Oak or the Creamy White Oak found in the Compact collection at Andersens.

If you are keen to recreate the appearance of timber flooring with vinyl planks, consider pale designs including Ashland, Waterbury or Country Oak in the Looselay Designer Plank range.

Scandinavian style often spotlights grey-toned timber-look floors, which can be found in the laminate Lifestyle range at Andersens. Planks in the Lifestyle collection are 196 millimetres wide and 1215 millimetres long, and the range covers the entire spectrum of greys from light Sea Coast to darker designs in Antique Grey and Moon Grey.

If your interior already has a medley of materials or colours, opt for wider plank formats; or if your scheme is more muted and not quite as busy, slimmer planks can work a treat in Scandinavian and beachy homes.

Modern & Contemporary Aesthetics

Monochrome is the key catchphrase to know when selecting timber-look flooring for modern or contemporary houses or apartments. First, decide whether you are aiming for a bright, light look; a dark, dramatic interior; or a bold contrast between the two. The latter can easily be achieved by pairing pale furniture with dark flooring, or vice versa.

Darker flooring shades will anchor your palette with a dash of drama, while lighter flooring options will brighten your space and act as a background rather than a focal design feature.

Contemporary interiors can handle a splash more colour than purist modern designs. Nevertheless, eschew timber-look flooring with overly warm undertones in red, pink or yellow and instead, aim for boards that bear a striking, monochrome aesthetic.

The Quick-Step Classic laminate range at Andersens sports pale timber-look planks in Havanna Natural and Moonlight Oak Light that have a distinctly contemporary aesthetic. For modern homes, the Clix Plus collection of laminate flooring presents timber-look designs in greyscale colours ranging from an almost-white Magnolia Elm to a pale Authentic Oak Light Grey, right through to the mid-toned Taupe Oak and a dark Oak Slate Grey.

Fancy embracing hybrid timber-look flooring? The Korlok collection, which includes a click-locking mechanism and can be installed over many floor coverings, features monochrome planks from the fresh Texas White Ash and Washed Grey Ash to charcoal greys in Silver Barnwood and Baltic Mistral Oak.

Industrial Interiors

If you’re building or retrofitting an industrial-style home, steer clear of lighter hues and select planks in greys, browns or ebony. Extra-wide planks work particularly well in industrial-style abodes, so narrow your selection of engineered timber, vinyl, hybrid or laminate planks to wide-format designs.

Should you opt for grainy, knotty or smooth styles? The purpose-driven nature of industrial interiors is flexible and forgiving, so be guided by low-maintenance finishes – and your own preferences, of course.

Rich chocolates, such as Antique Teak in the XL Range of laminate planks at Andersens, chime well with industrial design style. Prefer a monochrome shade? This collection also has an ultra-dark Black Magic and moody mid-tone greys in New York, Lincoln and Miami. The XL Range also ticks the box in terms of extra length and width – each plank measures 235 millimetres wide and 1830 millimetres long, with a thickness of 12 millimetres, so is ideal to infuse your interior with industrial style.

If the ease and resilience of hybrid flooring appeals to you, the same guidelines apply – go big with the dimensions of your timber-look boards and choose darker hues. The range of hybrid Odyssey planks from Andersens has 10 designer colours to choose from that resonate with industrial style, including the mid-grey Elkwood and a dark charcoal Storm. The generous dimensions of the planks (Odyssey boards measure 230 millimetres in width and 1500 millimetres in length) also work well with this aesthetic.

Did you know Hurst Homes uses Crestia by Andersens for all our flooring?! There local team in Wagga provides a wide range of high quality products at affordable prices, thats the Andersens outstanding buying power. Their 5mm Luxury Vinyl Planks & Redbook Belcanto Carpet are a part of our standard range of inclusions. Just another reason why we are considered Wagga’s best builder. With over 30 years in the industry as a Wagga Builder you can trust Hurst Homes with your dream home. For information on our upcoming custom Wagga house & land packages, contact us today on 0438 692 962 or fill out the contact us page on our website.

For more tips and tricks from the Houzz experts visit Houzz.com.au