Like hardwood, laminate flooring is available in an astounding range of colors and textures. Some laminate goes so far as to have the look and feel of tile or stone rather than wood. When you head to your local flooring store or start to browse for flooring online, you'll soon be overwhelmed with choices as to the different wood tones available. When trying to decide between the multitudes, bear some basic guidelines in mind.
Blonde Tones
The lighter colors of laminate resemble platinum blondes and are almost white. These choices are contemporary in feel as well as giving your room or home a bright, casual environment. Very light colors in the flooring will make an entire room brighter, but you must be sure that the blonde tone compliments your existing furnishings. If your cabinets or wood pieces are more traditional, an ultra light floor might be too casual to give your design the desired effect.
Honey Tones
Another option is to select your flooring in a slightly deeper shade of brown. A warm honey tone is more reminiscent of most natural wood floors. The brown shades of the honey tones complement the widest range of furniture and cabinets while also giving you a huge range of colors to choose from. Included in the middle tones are light browns with almost no texture as well as rich browns complete with almost black detailing to resemblance different stain and finishes that would appear naturally on hardwoods.
Dark Tones
A more contemporary tone for laminate flooring is the dark tone ranging from chocolate browns to blacks. These color choices can be casual or formal depending on the actual finish of the material. Laminate floors with a smooth dark finish give a room a rich feel while laminate with a distracted black finish can give you a perfect shabby chic style to work with.
If you use a dark tone for your flooring, be aware that dust and pet hair settles on the floor and is very visible if you do not sweep or damp mop the floor on a very regular basis. A dark floor with a high sheen shows more dust than a dark floor with grooves and texture, but any dark surface will highlight even the thinnest film of dust.
Other Textures
There are now many more selections in laminate flooring than wood designs. While wood is still the most popular of the available selections, you can also choose laminate that resembles stone tiles or even brick. These textures can look terrific in a home that has an eclectic or fun modern feel. Stone laminate flooring may even look perfect in a more traditional home. The best way to test a flooring sample is not to see it in the store, but to bring the sample home to view in your home in as much natural light as possible.