Why? Because we’re crazy. And coming home to a partially-finished floor is our idea of a good time.
You think we’re kidding, but getting a jump on our cork floors by starting to lay them before we left for Portland/Hawaii wasn’t half bad. Heck, returning from paradise to the idea of finishing them and enjoying a rich, glorious mocha floor is downright titillating to nerds like us. They snap together and float over our old vinyl floors (which have an asbestos liner, so we followed safety recommendations and didn’t tear those up before laying the cork). And the floating aspect of our new snap-and-lock flooring means that our house sitters can just step on the cork and the thin underlayment that you see peeking out, or around it – depending where it’s laid – so they haven’t minded the half-done corner they came “home” to (no messy/smelly glues or anything like that to worry about).
They’re so cushy and soft – it’s already a huge improvement! We’ll be back with alllllll the details next week when we’re back on the DIY train (so please hold any questions that you have for Monday when we hopefully can answer them all in that morning’s post). For now we’re just soaking in the sights and making friends with the fishies…
… you know Clara loves her fishies.
Psst- We announced this week’s giveaway winner. Click here to see if it’s you.
jessica@fourgenerationsoneroof says
The new floor is going to look great! We recently installed a floating “wood look” floor also. LOVE it and it is so easy to maintain :)
Susan says
I love the cork flooring! I have the same (or really close) in my basement. Love it! I need help though, we have some scratches in it from our cat running and sliding on the floor. Maybe you can do a post about how to fix or cover-up the scratches?
YoungHouseLove says
Will definitely do that if we encounter it! We hear that sealing it after ibstalling it can add durability so we’re planning to do that! But that might be more of a preventative than a fix once it happens. Anyone have ideas for Susan? Just like hardwood floors you can sand and re-stain cork so that might be your best bet.
xo,
s
Chrissie says
Hmm, I didn’t know you could sand and restain… I’ll mention that to my parents, their cork floors in their kitchen look a little sad these days (although I think they put them in when I was 12, so they’ve held up about 13 years without too many major issues).
Debbie says
Ohhh, can’t wait to see the floors! And I am so jealous of your Hawaiian vacay. sigh…
Carley @ On One Hand says
Those floors are gorgeous; although not as gorgeous as the photo of Clara on a Hawaiian beach – what a cutie!!
I love the fact that those floors are so easy to install. When you do a lot of stuff yourself it’s common to run into roadblocks, so it’s nice when you get to do stuff that is easy and makes a huge impact. Looks great!
Bethanyblntn says
ha. lol. I was going to say, on your last post about some house sitters doing this for your, “why you already did it” because I just KNEW you did. lol. so I was only half right but still. got skillz! It looks SO good with the white even though its not done yet and a little hard to see the two color right together. OH, its going to look SO SO good when its done!
Heidi P. says
Oooohhh aaaaahhhhh. Be-eautiful. Already stunning and it’s not even finished! Oh yeah, and jaw-dropping that you squeezed one more thing in before your big trips.
Kate says
I have high hopes for this floor! Especially now that you mentioned the cushy factor.
Have a great time in Hawaii! I went for the first time last year, and it is (as I’m sure you are finding) awesome. I feel super lucky to be living on the west coast now because I can find a cheap(ish) nonstop flight and be in paradise! Enjoy :)
Karen @ bellacarina.com says
So exciting!! I can’t wait to see what the kitchen looks like with the floors done! Enjoy Maui!
Jenny says
That floor is going to look GREAT when it’s all put down! Half doing it before you left will probably great motivation to jump in and finish when you get back.
ruthy taylor says
cork? well, so far they look beautiful! I’m gonna have to look into this stuff!
Kristen @ Popcorn on the Stove says
Looks great! Can’t wait to see them finished!
Michelle says
We go to Maui a lot…we actually were married there also but if you’re still there and haven’t eat at Da Kitchen please do so immediately. Also go to any of the grocery stores and go get fresh tuna poke…you can’t find anything like it on the mainland and it’s one of the greatest joys in life (IMO).
I’m totally jealous, I haven’t been to Maui in a year or so and I’m dying to get back there. Enjoy it!
Also, where did you purchase the floors? We’re interested in doing cork in our bathroom but I just read that they aren’t recommended for bathrooms…that makes me sad as we’re not the best at tiling.
YoungHouseLove says
We got them from Lumber Liquidators! They did say it can work in a half bath (no shower/tub) when there’s just a sink and toilet – but it’s not recommended for a full bathroom!
xo,
s
Robin says
So gotta know… is Clara’s Italian side tanning well or sunburning? :) Such a cute pic of her!
YoungHouseLove says
No sunburn! But we’ve been loading up the sunscreen!
xo,
s
Shirley says
Miss you guys so much. Your words are among the first I read each morning. I am glad though that you were able to take this vacation. You work son hard and give us all so much inspiration. Thanks again!
Kim says
Oh, boy! Can’t wait to see how this turns out! We’ve got cork waiting to do down in our hallway, and are a little apprehensive about how it will work.
I hope Hawaii was all you hoped!
Adaisha says
You guys are so sneaky! Leaving the CONUS without warning us, then starting on those beautiful floors and leaving us with just a tease! Lol! Well, I’m glad you teased me on a Friday opposed to Monday… less time to wait to see the finished product. :-)
I only discovered your blog New Year’s Day (via Pinterest) and I love it. You guys are such an inspiration. Keep up the great job!
chan says
I love you guys, but you are doing a terrible job of taking a week off. Stop posting! :)
excitingLA says
LOVE cork floors – they look awesome and they’re eco-friendly! such a great choice!
Stacey says
My husband and I just finished laying our new wood laminate click-lock floor last week: http://hodoeporicon.blogspot.com/2012/02/progress.html For various reasons (like not having the right saw blade, etc., etc.), ours look longer then expected and was waaay more stressful. But now that it’s done, we’re in love! I’m sure yours will go much more smoothly. :)
Stacey says
Oops, meant to say “took longer” and here’s a shot of the tired hubby lying on the completed floor: http://hodoeporicon.blogspot.com/2012/02/first-major-house-project-of-2012-done.html :)
YoungHouseLove says
Love it!
xo,
s
Candice says
Question – and sorry if it’s already been answered. Did you guys stain the parquet darker or was it already like that? I am planning on staining ours this summer…
YoungHouseLove says
It was like that but up close needs lots of work. We want to eventually stain all the existing wood floors the same rich mocha as the cork!
xo,
s
Annie says
Oh snap! Where’s the [jealous] button?
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, oh Annie, you’re funny. And sweet.
xo,
s
Amy @ Lovely Nest says
You guys are awesome! That is going to look lovely when it’s all finished! I hope you’re enjoying your vacation! You deserve it!
Patricia- from Maui says
Another great beach for little ones is baby beach in sprecklesville, Paia. Clara would love it.
Jill says
A well deserved vacation! I’m always so impressed by your business of blogging… very professional. I love knowing you will always have a daily post. Cheers to a break!
P.S. I saw this blog post (http://www.hitherandthither.net/2012/03/color-blocking-at-lax.html) today and thought, “that’s Sue the napkin as a tiled wall!” (especially the 3rd and 5th photo) haha! :)
YoungHouseLove says
No way! I love it!
xo,
s
Dannette Klein says
Haha, not sure I could leave my house half finished like that before going on a trip.. but more power to you! It actually doesn’t look THAT bad, and I do look forward to seeing the completed product.
Nina says
So proud of y’all for taking family time. Growing up, I never understood what a commitment it took to actually take a vacation. Enjoy!
Pip says
Way to pack it all in! I’m impressed that even in a half-done state those lovely floors still look geometric and cool. Love the pic of sea-baby Clara on the beach. Did I miss the b-day post? If so, hope you had a wonderful 30th!!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Pip! My b-day isn’t until March 19th and we did a b-day one for John (back in Nov when he turned the big 3-0).
xo,
s
jbhat says
Lookin’ good! Speaking of n’, I’m always calling you guys Young House Lovin’ in my head.
Enjoy your vacation!
jbhat
Anna says
you’re HERE, in HAWAII! are you doing any public appearances? or is it just family vaca? i’m such a big fan of your blog. i check it almost daily. please let me know if you’re making any public appearances as i would love to hear you guys speak. by the way, if you have time & want to shop, check out the store pacific home on ward avenue, somace on young street, and soha in kahala mall. and if you need a personal tour guide…
(p.s. i went to school at VCU)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks Anna! We’re here purely for family fun, but would definitely make a big announcement if we were speaking somewhere like we did in Portland! Thanks for all the HI suggestions!
xo,
s
Jess says
Cannot wait to see that floor in action!
That is the most gorgeous pic of Clara ever. Absolutely perfect!
Jenna says
I don’t understand why you keep saying it’s “crazy” to lay down cork floors before a vacation? What’s crazy about it?
YoungHouseLove says
Some folks just love coming home to a clean and orderly house so they might not start a big project and leave it half-done while they’re gone for 10 days on business/pleasure! Everyone told us we were crazy to not just relax, pack, and prep for our Portland presentation after three weeks of book shooting in our own house, but we were dying to get started!
xo,
s
Jae says
I love that floor!! The color is beautiful! I’ve never heard of that type of flooring before, definitely something I’m going to look into when I finally convince the boy to buy a house ;-)
Jamie says
Aww Clara looks sunburnt in that picture. Glad to see your getting the sun in Maui, since Oahu’s been cloudy / rainy all week . Did you check out the Maui ocean center yet? Lapperts ice cream? Island hop to Oahu? Oh snuck that one in… But I would have loved to run into your family, get all star struck and have other people look at me like I’m crazy haha.
Make sure you take home some lilikoi butter it’s soo good, oh and some Hawaiian rock salt. It’s good for everything, cooking, sore throat, runny nose ( mix it w/ warm water and syringe it up your nose) works better than saline. Aloha
YoungHouseLove says
Must just be your monitor! We slathered that gal with sunscreen and we’re proud to say that after a week here she still has no tan-lines at all! Whew. Oh and yes, we loved the Maui Ocean Center! And will definitely have to come over to Oahu next time! Thanks for all the fun HI suggestions everyone!
xo,
s
Jasanna says
adore the floors! You’ll have to tell us how easy they were to put together!
http://munchtalk.blogspot.com/
Tina says
MAUI alert!!! If you are near Kihei you MUST try the Kihei Cafe…totally cheap (for Hawaii) and delicious breakfasts and lunches….hope you travel safe!
Julie @ Freedom 48 says
Those floors are beautiful! It was smart to start them before you left – and so much easier to finish the project after a relaxing vacation =)
Rose :: Fine Craft Guild says
Seems like this cork is an IDEAL solution: easy to DIY install, soft & warm on feet, no need for under cover etc. Oh, and gorgeous. No wonder you like coming home to this!
kelly says
i had no idea you were in hawaii! we live on oahu, i would have flown you over here to look at our newly demo’d house to give us some pointers! hope you have a great time it’s been a little cool and rainy here!
judykr says
OMG, love the floor! I haven’t been that big a fan of the light cork floors but the dark…now that’s what I’m talking about! You guys keep me young…:)
Jen says
This is an unrelated comment, sorry!, but do you guys use a special WP plugin for your comments? I really like how your comments have a different color background and how they’re threaded, but only once under the main comment (the conversation doesn’t just keep getting smaller and smaller). I want to do the same thing on my blog and would love to know which plugin you guys use if you do use one. Thanks! Love your blog. :)
YoungHouseLove says
To make them threaded, it’s a built in function through WordPress (under “discussions” in settings, we just clicked a box to thread them). You can hard-code highlighted comments, but we never figured out how, so we use a plugin called Highlight Author Comments. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
PatC says
Please mention the cork and sealant manufacturers when the time comes! These looks so beautiful I’m tempted to install it in my small kitchen. But I love your recommendations that help me spend less time in my own research.’
Thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks! Will do!
xo,
s
Laura says
Isn’t it fun? I really enjoyed laying mine…I’m a geeky-nerd too. :)
Laura
Christy says
I love your style! Can’t wait to see the flooring finished! We have cork in our bathroom and it is oh so comfy!!
tearinguphouses says
aw. clara looks likes she’s having so much fun!
DavidW says
Hope you three are enjoying Hawaii!
I can’t wait to see the floor posts.. hooray!
So far they look brilliant…. you guys seem to make all the right choices. Sometimes I think my biggest impediment is just making the first choice.
Maggie says
I wish we can do the same to our home. The house needs a little make over especially the floor. Can’t wait to see the your cork floor when it’s all done :)
Kate says
BAH! Looks amazing! And giving me some great ideas for what we can do with our awful lino floor in the kitchen… and the carpet that sports all those festive stains from years of love (?)
Can not wait to see it finished!