Now don’t get me wrong, I know I’m incredibly lucky to have a rented flat with plain white walls and fairly decent laminate flooring.
If you’ve ever found yourself flat-hunting in the UK rental market you’ll know such blessings are few and far between! But that doesn’t stop me daydreaming about what I would do in the space should I actually be able to make a few basic décor decisions for myself.
Beyond the simple luxury of being able to choose paint colours for the wall – or even hang a picture frame without fear of repercussion! – it would be marvellous to switch out my slightly-too-yellow tone floorboards for a more luxury product, such as the beautiful new parquet flooring from Woodpecker.
Influenced by Oliver Heath’s biophilic design philosophies, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the best way to incorporate natural materials into my home, and Woodpecker’s passion for the personality, life and atmosphere that wood flooring brings to a home really caught my attention and had me intrigued to learn more about the brand.
Nothing gives a space that warm, comfortable feeling quite like a beautiful wood floor. It’s something that can remind you of time spent outdoors admiring a woodland scene, or a barefoot walk among the trees with their scent on the air and soft foliage under your feet.
Woodpecker select the trees they use before they are felled, and pay close attention to how they’re sawn, stacked and dried, and all is sustainably harvested with full FSC and PEFC certifications. This freshly sawn wood is then air dried for over twelve months, before being put through the kiln twice in order to draw out any residual moisture, and ensure maximum stability is achieved in every Woodpecker floor.
One of the things Oliver Heath had suggested was that having surface material contrasts on the floor —so you can step from hard to soft— helps in both delineating spatial zones and connecting you with your senses, and I love the fact that all of Woodpecker’s ranges utilise the inherent pattern and knots in the woodgrain, so that the natural texture remains in the surface of each plank.
Parquet
I’ve long had a love for parquet flooring, and always thought the angular geometry of this classic floor style to be effortlessly chic – don’t you agree? From traditional herringbone or chevron, to more complex bordeaux, mansion weave or parquet de versailles patterns, I love the sense of tailoring this style brings to a room, without needing anything else showy or extravagant to play off – the flooring alone is statement enough. Woodpecker’s parquet flooring is engineered so that to the naked eye, it retains all the natural beauty of solid wood – from the intriguing textures to the rich and subtle colours – but constructed in a way that makes the planks far more versatile – and indeed more practical – in a busy, modern home.
Goodrich
Woodpecker’s Goodrich parquet flooring** collection is available in a range of hues from ashen tones of Whitened Oak through to the sophisticated matt black tones of Espresso Oak.
While I’ve always found myself drawn to lighter shades of flooring, the soft cocoa tones and tactile textures of the Truffle Oak have definitely draw my eye and conjured up daydreams of a long sophisticated dining hall, while the aforementioned Espresso Oak feels full of character and perfect for a entranceway or grown-up home office with plenty of mid-century modern furniture and luxe brass accents.
The calm white grains peeking through soft grey in the elegant Feather Oak planks would make a wonderful parquet in a calming bedroom sanctuary, while the Haze Oak (which feels the most Scandinavian of all the shades in my opinion) would be a perfect contrast to most of my favourite Nordic design pieces, with simple elegant shapes and a soft colour palette.
My favourite of all though – and the one I’d most like to upgrade my yellow-toned laminate to – is the Salted Oak; sawn matt rustic tones that have just enough natural warmth to match my Scandi-boho rattan cabinet, and would pair beautifully with the cooler undertones of my navy blue sofa.
So, I’ve pulled together a little mood board of how I might incorporate Goodrich Salted Oak parquet flooring into my current living room scheme:
Clockwise from top left:
Desenio, IKEA, Pampa, Woven, Earthborn Paints, Woodpecker, Casa Cook, NKUKU*, Urbanara.
While I’m thankful for my current white wall rental situation, if I could start from scratch in my living space I’d love to embrace a soft muted background palette of warm greys, greens and caramel in creamy eco clay paint, reminiscent of the beautiful Casa Cook Kos decor I shared on the blog last week..
What do you think – would you opt for parquet flooring in your home?
This post is a Paid Partnership with Woodpecker but all thoughts and opinions are, as always, my own. All photography © Kate Baxter.
10 Responses
It is my DREAM to have parquet flooring once we move. I would have loved to have done it in our current house but we went with dark stained pine at the very start and I wanted that consistent look carried through. But the next house? I’m so going for parquet. It’s absolutely stunning and all these choices in finishes make it so difficult to choose a favourite. xxx
Absolutely stunning. Really the dream kind of flooring if I’m honest!
Love your moodboard palette hun. xx
Oh my goodness, I can’t wait to one day have a home with gorgeous parquet flooring! These timbers from Woodpecker look really great, such muted tones and definitely not too orange toned like a lot of timber floors can be and it’s great to see such a good range of engineered boards with a decent thickness!
P.S your moodboard is amazing, need that IKEA cabinet!
Oh parquet, the absolute dream!! When I think of parquet I think of the darker, more traditional colours, but I love the light tones of the Goodrich, their light staining reminds me of a beach house by the sea for some reason xxx
The moodboard colour palette really brings it all to life – what beautiful colours and gorgeous flooring.
I’ve wanted parquet flooring in my new flat too – this is gorgeous. I like how simple it looks and from what I can tell it looks like great quality (I’ve looked at a lot of flooring lately I feel like I’m going blind)
Absolutely love these warm, neutral colour tones, and there’s something so rich and tender about wood flooring. The parquet design is all at once striking and there’s something natural and inviting about it. Love it! Thanks so much for sharing your insight, and these design-inspiring photos!
I hear you with the slightly too yellow tone floorboards. Ours were quite a nice shade of oak when we laid them a few years ago but over time they have turned a bit too ‘golden’ for my liking. The Woodpecker range looks really nice. I like the idea of parquet and the paler tones are lovely.
Oh my goodness,it looks fantastic and fabulous!! what a beautiful colours and gorgeous flooring.i’ve wanted parquet flooring in my new house too ,love to have this type of flooring.Thanks for this amazing post