Dare to go dark

Contrary to popular belief, lighter coloured floors don’t necessarily make a room appear larger. A deep tone of flooring can actually make a space look significantly bigger, but only if the walls, skirtings, and ceilings are finished in much lighter tones! A dark floor can really transform your home from a seemingly limited space into a boundless one.​

Break the mold and go diagonal
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Simple yet highly effective, when your flooring is laid on a diagonal, the eye focuses on the widest part of the pattern, thus interpreting the room much larger than it actually is. You can use this little trick with any type of flooring to instantly create the optical illusion of greater space.

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Big tiles = Big space
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The larger the tiles or planks you use in a cosy space, the bigger it will appear. The less detail crammed in or busy patterns, the better. Never clutter a small room with tiny tiles or slender planks, the eye interprets it as being even smaller than it is.

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Walk the plank

If you’re going with planking, any kind of planking, then ensure you install the boards parallel to the longest wall. This gives the immediate impression of a wider scope.

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Endurance is a major factor for commercial flooring, so yes, the pricier the product the more premium the product! If you decide on an inferior floor, you might find that your ground cracks or chips due to heavy foot traffic or dropped items. Not only will this cost you extra money in repairs, but it could also potentially cost you in a lawsuit should a customer or member of staff hurt themselves by tripping on a crevice.  ​

Are you sick of the sight of pastel donning the walls and floors of your home or business? Perhaps it’s time for a revamp, but all you can find is safe, neutral colours haunting the shelves in shops, fashion websites, and pages of style magazines. You want to upgrade your space with something different, something unique, but not sure what to go for - you’re not even sure of your options!

​Beiges and browns are in, as are natural wood looks and stone. But you want something else, something with a little shazam!

Bright colours and daring patterns may very well be your cup of tea, but what will others think? What if you want to sell in the future - do you really want to jeopardize your investment with a ‘marmite’ carpet that you will most probably have to replace?

​For those of you daring DIY designers out there, I have great news - Black & White is Back! That’s right, you can give your interiors a new lease on life with a floor covering that is eye-catching and unique, bold and beautiful, and which will certainly compliment your own individual style.

​Celebrate your space by choosing a floor that never goes out of fashion, yet one which makes an outrageously artist statement. Black and white is a classic combination that is timeless and looks decadent on any floor, but now, designers and manufacturers alike are experimenting with details, patterns, textures, and shapes to create a plethora of intricate and powerful floor motifs to tickle your fancy. 

​Whether you’re into the classic look, magnificent gothic tone, vintage shabby-chic or ultra-modern style, black and white will always sync to your specific design and taste. This simple yet effective scheme brought to you by Polyflor also flatters any other splash of colour you wish to introduce to your walls, ceiling, furniture, appliances or art! 

Are you inspired to go back to black & white? Or have you already taken the plunge into light and darkness? Let us know your thoughts, plans, ideas, and outcomes - we’d love you to share your black & white masterpieces!  

​We love our four-legged friends. Countless hours of cuddles and walks, playing games and training. They bring us so much joy, light, and laughter - but when it comes to flooring, our pets play an important role in choosing the right coverage as they have a tremendous impact on the wear and tear of your ground and a ‘good boy’ can very easily become a ‘bad boy’ when it comes to claws, dirt, fur, and accidents!
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To get the most out of your flooring in your animal-friendly home, we will guide you through the options to help you find the best type of flooring that will withstand the lifestyle and habits of your furry friends.

​​The four most important concerns for any pet owner looking to spruce up their floor should be;

• Is the new floor scratch resistant?
• Is the new floor durable?
• Is the new floor stain-resistant?
• Is the new floor safe for my pet to walk on?

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Any pet in the house with claws is inevitably going to cause some degree of marking. A dog may accidentally scratch a wooden floor with her claws, whereas a cat may claw at the carpet and cause tears. Some floors are more scratch-resistant than others, so it’s useful to keep this in mind when shopping around. Furthermore, a good, solid, durable floor will more likely stand the test of time with pets who are active around the house. All animals have the occasional accident, so consider ease of mopping up any urine, feces or vomit. Lastly, some floor types are difficult for animals to gain traction on and this can be stressful for our pets to move around. 

Let’s take a look at the various kinds of flooring available, and any pros and cons!

Hardwood
Hardwood flooring is stunning and is a possible option for pet owners because it is easy to sweep or vacuum up fur and dirt. However, real timber has many downsides - not only in general but in particular for homes with pets. Wood is prone to staining and water damage as well as being susceptible to sharp claws.

​If your heart is truly set on hardwood, your best bet is to go with an extremely hard hardwood like mahogany, oak or bamboo. Softer hardwoods such as pine, chestnut, and fir, are not recommended for homes with animals.  

​To keep your new hardwood floor looking beautiful, you will need to be fully committed to taking great care of it. Urine will stain very easily, and the odour can remain for years to come. It could be worth splashing out some extra cash on special coating for your boards if you do choose hardwood flooring.

Carpet and Carpet Tiles
Carpet is a luxury for both us humans and our pets. Soft and cushiony to walk and lay on, pets love this type of flooring! Contrary to belief, carpets aren’t such a big no-no anymore when it comes to pets. New fibre technologies mean that a lot of carpets are now highly stain and odour resistant - although you’d typically expect to spend a decent amount of money for a carpet that is highly pet proof! 

​Cut pile carpet is your best option of pile because fur and dirt can be hoovered up easily (and the cute pile will not rip due to busy claws). Carpet tiles are super handy - you can always replace an individual section if it gets ruined! However, no carpet is 100% immune to wear and tear so keep this in mind if considering this flooring option. 

Cork 
Cork flooring is water-resistant and requires little maintenance. This eco-friendly floor covering is warm underfoot and can withstand heavy foot and paw traffic. However, it is not impervious to sharp claws. Despite this, cork is one of the most naturally occurring and renewable resources that copes well with dog and cat inhabitants.  

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Laminate
You can get the look of hardwood but without the hassle. Laminate mimics a range of materials and offers a much easier cleanup ritual than the real thing, plus the scratches tend to be less noticeable. Choosing a textured laminate floor covering is best for pets as it allows them to gain traction, whereas high-gloss, polished surfaces can be slippery. 

Vinyl 
Vinyl flooring is the number 1 choice for the majority of pet owners. It is highly affordable compared with other flooring options and can be installed practically anywhere in the home. It provides excellent traction for your furry friend, is scratch and stain-resistant, durable, easy to clean and comes in a wide variety of designs and styles.

Of course, no floor covering is ever going to stay perfect forever, but there are some useful strategies to keep your floor looking flash for longer. 

​We hope that this article has been useful in deciding on the right floor for you and your pet! Feel free to contact us for more in depth and personal advise for for you, your pets and your flooring. Let us know in the comments about what you decide to go with and how you and your pet like your new floor! We’d love to see pictures too :) 

Wood flooring is certainly a bold statement in any home or public space, with endless possibilities of colours, unique patterns and brimming with character, it is a flooring option to be truly proud of. Stunning and timeless, wood is a popular choice for many and serves to suit any interior space promising to last a lifetime - but only if properly maintained. It is not only warm underfoot, but it can also stand the time of heavy traffic, spills, accidents, knocks, and scratches with a considerable amount of TLC in return.

​On the downside, however, natural wood flooring is very costly when compared to other flooring materials. It is also considerably more high-maintenance than other options on the flooring market. Despite being able to be repaired by sanding - scratches and dents can be a hassle to remove and if spills are not cleaned up quickly, staining will incur. 

Professional advice on termite prevention is highly recommended as well as serious consideration of the wood's tendency to expand and contract throughout the seasonal changes. Wood flooring is also not favourable in wet areas as it can become weak and rot over time when in contact with moisture.

If you like a quiet lifestyle, then wood may not be the greatest choice for you as walking on a wooden floor is noisy business and the sound travels far! Furthermore, wood is a huge fire-risk for all those safety-conscious folk out there and non-enviro friendly for our precious trees. 

​Have you got your heart set on the wood look but don’t want all that hassle of natural timber? Other alternatives such as laminate, vinyl plank, hybrid or engineered timbre may be the perfect compromise you are looking for. Let’s take a look at the Hard Flooring options available on the market.

​Laminate Flooring
Laminate floors are all the rage at the moment, available in a collection of outstanding and unique designs and colours, they look and feel just like real wood. Laminate flooring is the ultimate choice for heavy-traffic areas, sun-exposed spots, and wet spaces as they have a water-resistant surface that protects the photographic applique layer underneath, also preventing staining! Unlike wood, which can dent and chip, laminate flooring is almost impervious to scrapes and scratches. Moreover, laminate flooring is affordable, quick and fairly simple to install and is very low-maintenance, requiring no special polishing or cleaning processes. 

Vinyl Plank Flooring
Gracefully designed and skillfully constructed, the vinyl plank realistically mimics natural timber creating a spectacular focal point in any space. This type of floor covering is ideal for heavy traffic as it is hard-wearing, but it also is incredibly quiet for a hard floor option. If you’re looking for value for money, then vinyl plank flooring could be a nice match as it is one of the more pocket-friendly options for solid floor material. Not only does the vinyl plank boast water resistance, but it also has a textured surface giving you the sensation of real timber! Like laminate, vinyl is easy to vacuum, sweep and mop and is generally easy to maintain.​

Hybrid Flooring
This high performance, relatively new product is being praised for being 100% waterproof, meaning that it can be installed in any interior space both domestically and commercially. Easy to clean and maintain, Hybrid Flooring demands little time and energy, yet it looks exactly like real wood flooring! This is a truly exciting hard floor product as it has minimal expansion and contraction in our extreme New Zealand climate, resisting the rays of our penetrating sun and maintaining its colour as well as withstanding the heaviest foot traffic both at home and in commercial spaces. 

Engineered Timber
Natural and sustainable, engineered timber flooring is made from real oak meaning that every board is 100% unique. It is far more stable than solid timber flooring and much less likely to have issues such as shrinkage, cupping or warping. If you choose this type of floor covering then you can rest assured that you are being environmentally friendly; veneer is sliced instead of cut using a saw. This means that there’s no sawdust resulting in the entirety of the tree’s wood being used. When hardwood boards are created, a significant amount of the tree is wasted and this is detrimental to our environment as traditional trees grow much slower than the trees used to make engineered wood. 

So, which wood choice is the one for you? When it comes to deciding on the best hard flooring option, MeasureUp Flooring is here to help. We understand that choosing the right floor for your needs is important, so we can help you determine exactly what you need in terms of appearance, texture, durability, ease of maintenance and longevity. 

Cut & Loop Piles
Combining both types of pile, manufacturers are able to create beautiful designs from abstract to geometric patterns that generate a distinctive and unique style. Many different patterns can be achieved in a wide range of styles from shapes to patterns to carefully sculptured images.

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​The grotesque image of vinyl flooring in my grandparents' home when I was growing-up has always stayed with me; that cheap and tacky wipe-clean, asbestos harboring, sticky texture under your bare feet. Remember that? Well, those days are gone!

That’s right, vinyl has come a long way over the years in terms of quality and aesthetics and is becoming the number 1 choice for both homeowners and businesses alike. 

​Even though carpet remains the overall cheapest option for flooring, vinyl is growing more in popularity thanks to its durability, low-maintenance, and stylish design. The manufacturers of vinyl flooring keep coming up with new ideas and patterns, which now makes it easier than ever to get that real wood-look flooring without the hassle of real wood timber. 

Vinyl now mimics both wood and stone textures almost to perfection, as well as offering a variety of funky patterns and marvelous mosaics to choose from. Whether you are seeking that traditional cosy-home look or modern eye-popping commercial focal point, you’re sure to find a vinyl sample to tick all your boxes.

​Not only does vinyl flooring now talk-the-talk, but it also walks-the-walk too. For high-traffic areas and places where you’re prone to get spills and moisture – rooms such as kitchens, bathrooms, toilets or laundry rooms – then vinyl is perfect as it can handle almost anything you can throw on it!
With no fibres to consider, there are no pesky wine stain dilemmas to deal with or soaked in pet urine to scrub out - accidents on vinyl are easily wiped or mopped away quickly and efficiently with no strenuous drying methods needed! And for those of us with four-legged friends, gone are the days of fighting with ground in dirt, mud, and pet fur; simply sweep away any unwanted hair, fluff, dust or dropped food; hooray!

If you happen to scratch, rip or tear your new vinyl, then it’s merely a matter of replacing that particular section. This is abundantly cheaper than replacing a carpet or trying to match a new plank of wood, stone slab or tile. This also makes vinyl the ideal flooring for landlords as it is highly cost-effective as well as hard wearing, meaning that this type of flooring can last a multitude of tenants whilst also being easy to maintain.

​Further to the success of vinyl flooring is that it has now become a favourite amongst commercial and industrial properties. The functionality and longevity of this dependable product isn’t the only reason why high-street shops, supermarkets, rest-homes, hospitals, airports, schools, offices, gyms (and more!) are opting for vinyl. Vinyl flooring now comes in a catalogue of colours, looks, and styles that range from classic designs to contemporary eccentric fashions all of which create a jaw-dropping wow factor to any space.

​So, what’s not to love about vinyl flooring?

If you’re interested in installing vinyl flooring to your home or business then come and speak to a flooring specialist today to find out about the best brands at affordable prices!

​No matter your flooring preference, here at MeasureUp Flooring we promise to give you honest, reliable advice and work with you from the measure and quote stage, all the way through to the finished installation, ensuring that you are 100% satisfied with the end product. 

Choosing the perfect flooring for your home isn’t just about finding a visually pleasing product. Flooring comes in all kinds of different materials which each have their own pros and cons from cost to comfort, water-resilience to durability and more.

For a quick and easy guide to finding the perfect flooring for your home, follow these 5 simple steps to find the flooring that is right for you.

1. Is your flooring going to be installed in a high-moisture location, such as a bathroom, laundry room or basement?
If you answered no, and moisture is not a restricting factor in your chosen room then your options are fully open!


If you answered yes, then you require a flooring solution that is highly water-resistant and resilient to medium or high moisture such as concrete, ceramic or stone tiles, linoleum or vinyl. Some of the more expensive, upmarket laminate flooring may be suitable for wet areas, although personally, we would recommend vinyl.   

Vinyl holds up well in wet spaces, and although it is not 100% waterproof, it is highly durable and can last for many years with little maintenance. It is not only soft underfoot, but it's much quieter than many other hard floor surfaces. Vinyl has come a long way since its origins, and today you can choose from a plethora of designs that range from natural wood looks to funky patterns and everything in between to suit your individual taste.
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2. Do you have children, animals or a lot of foot traffic through your home or selected room?

If you answered yes, then you will need a durable flooring - unless you are prepared to replace your flooring in the short-term. Tough, wear-resilient flooring such as plank vinyl flooring, laminate flooring, cork or ceramics are highly dependable flooring options that are easy to sweep, wipe clean of spills and accidents, and can withstand a high volume of foot traffic. Nonetheless, no floor is indestructible and there is always the possibility of scratches, tears, and dents occurring if you’re not careful. Carpet can be another option as it is easy to vacuum any mess and provides comfort for you, your children and your fur babies. However, it is difficult to clean up spilled drinks, dropped food, animal urine, remove stains and can sometimes track when withstanding a lot of traffic.

Doesn’t everyone want stable, long-lasting flooring though? Yes and no, let’s take a lot at number 3.

3. Are you planning on staying in your home short-term?

Flooring is an investment and if you’re planning on staying in your home for the long-run then we highly recommend an up-market, luxury brand of flooring which will withstand all that life has to throw on it! However, if you are thinking of relocating in the not too distant future, have young children or young pets, or are installing flooring for a rental property, then a cheaper, easy to replace kind of flooring might be best for you.

Polypropylene is the cheapest carpet option which is often used in rentals as it’s easy to clean and does the job, but it can track easily from people coming and going. Nylon is also affordable, though slightly more expensive, though many owners of nylon carpet insist on its reliability. Other affordable materials on the market include cork, tile, vinyl, laminate, and linoleum. You can find bargain flooring which is not only inexpensive but is also low maintenance, durable, maintainable, attractive looking, easy to install and safe if you speak to a reputable flooring company.

4. Are you staying in your home for the long-run?

If so, then be prepared to spend a decent amount of money - after all, you get what you pay for! The more premium the flooring, the more luxurious, long-lasting, high-quality product you will own. Increasing your price range opens up possibilities to the most superior products on the market which are sure to last you a lifetime and truly prove to be an invaluable investment. But of course, not everyone has thousands of dollars in the bank to splash out on exceptional flooring. With the help of an experienced flooring expert, you can find your ideal flooring option at a price that suits you.

5. Do you require your flooring to be low maintenance?

If you do, then vinyl is your best bet as it’s easy to clean and doesn’t require any specific special care. Dark coloured carpets can also be low maintenance, depending on your particular choice of material. Synthetic or wool carpet are both comparatively more stain resistant than other carpets and hence easier to maintain. Laminate flooring is another option, however, it does require certain distinctive cleaning methods, so make sure you do your research first!

If beautiful flooring is more your cup of tea and you don’t mind putting in the hard work, solid hardwood may be the flooring for you. But be warned; high-heels, clawed paws and well-populated areas are high-risk to this stunning choice of wood flooring and you may find that your spectacular centrepiece has to be covered by rugs most of the time to prevent damage.

Whatever flooring you decide on for your home, it is essential that you install it correctly. Whilst it is possible to DIY-it yourself, and it is substantially cheaper, the ultimate finish can be tarnished if not fitted correctly. Choosing a reliable and recognized floor installer is paramount in getting that final, fantastic floor finish look you’ve always dreamed of.

Here at MeasureUp Flooring, our installers are specialised in carpet, vinyl, laminate, and cork flooring fitting and take pride in their work. We are a locally owned and run flooring and installation business in Kamo, serving both domestic and commercial customers not just here in Whangarei but across wider Northland. We are committed to providing an affordable, quick, easy, professional service which guarantees satisfaction. For more information or a free quote to find the perfect flooring for your home, contact us now!​