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i  n  t  e  r  i  o  r  s llc

n a t u r a l  m a t e r i a l s

• wood floors in alexandria, virginia, for instance, where we're located, it's typical to see wood plank floors laid in the early 19th century and still in use -- still in great shape, in fact, after 200 years of use and regular scraping and waxing -- no sanding or urethanes! as for those skinny, interlocking-piece laminate wood flooring products, we don't recommend them to our clients because they don't have a proven track record. See Examples.

• specialty wood tops in england, it's not uncommon to come across solid teakwood and mahogany countertops that have lasted over 50 years. installed, teak and mahogany cost no more (and usually less) than granite, and, when used around sinks, are considerably more forgiving to your breakable glass and china. since these woods are naturally very oily, they love wet environments (though they also love a little help now and again with plain mineral oil). we have recommended and used teak and mahogany counters where appropriate to the project. See Examples.

• remember linoleum? not ubiquitous vinyl, mind you, but good, old-fashioned linseed oil flooring? newer varieties of sheet linoleum, though expensive and tricky to install, offer outstanding durability and even artistic possibilities. you probably haven't seen the "new" linoleum products (marmoleum being one such), but for some kitchens (read: kids!), they're just the right product. See Example.

• tung oil. a superb floor and furniture finish, with lovely luster and good hardness. in addition to looking very natural (it is, of course -- it's a plant-derived oil), it can easily be spot-repaired. urethanes have their uses, but where traditional looks and hard-wearingness are needed, tung oil is often the better choice. suttondesign specifies waterlox tung oil products for flooring and kitchen furniture.

• hard maple butcher block, especially end-grain butcher block. okay, let's get this straight: trees naturally resist years of deadly assaults by bacteria and viruses, and butchers have used hardwood blocks for hundreds of years, but "wood tops are not sanitary." True? Absolutely not. Wood contains anti-microbial enzymes; wood is sanitary. No top is safe five minutes after being hit with contaminated chicken, but no top is any more sanitary than wood. (research references available on request). And among wood cutting surfaces, no surface is more friendly than end-grain hard maple, which grips knives and resists scarring better than other wood tops. See Example.