Karly McMillanKarly McMillan is a former assistant editor at Hardwood Floors.ContractingReflecting on Reputation: A Day in the Life of Contractor Joe RobbinsWhen Joe Robbins started his wood flooring business at the age of 21, it was just him, his machines, and-only in the event of a difficult client-his dad. The business, Dallas-based Deep Reflections, now has 10 employees including Robbins' younger brother John, and it is one of the most highly rated and recommended wood flooring companies in northern Texas, having won the Angie's List Superior Service Award for the region every year since 2007. In April, Hardwood Floors got to ride along with Robbins to see what got him all of those rave reviews.November 15, 2023ReclaimedReduce, Reuse, Recycle: Design Firm Gives Wood Floors New LifeNot everyone truly appreciates great pieces of wood; even fewer will jump into a Dumpster to save them. Sharon and Ted Burdett, co-owners of Strand Design in Chicago, however, happen to be those kind of people. When the pair spotted a Dumpster full of old-growth fir floorboards that had been torn out of the building across the street, they rescued them and brought them back to their workshop. The boards were put to use in a variety of home decor designs, including the 36-inch-wide, chandelier-like Refold Lamp. Clad in 1/16-inch-thick old-growth fir veneers, the lamp's structure is made from light-colored post-consumer plastic for optimum illumination and sustainability. In the past, the pair furnished an entire office with desks made from castoff flooring, ensuring that gorgeous planks can live on. For more on the Burdetts' designs, visit www.stranddesign.org.-K.M.February 4, 2014DesignBeauty & Brains: The Kimbell Museum Wood Floor is Unlike Any OtherTo avoid breaking up the floor or ceiling of the Kimbell Museum with ugly air vents, designers decided to make the entire floor one giant vent—a breathing floor.February 4, 2014FinishingVintage Moments: Comic Relief from FabulonA circa 1959 advertisement from Fabulon shows that mentality to having a happy wife then was to coat her wood floors to make her housework easier.November 20, 2013Green IssuesGeneticists Plan to Create Glowing TreesTrees have plenty of uses beyond wood flooring, and now one company is working to add another: no-emission lighting. The crowd-funded Glowing Plant Project has spliced bioluminescent genes from fireflies into Arabidopsis plants-the first plant to have its entire genome sequenced-and project founder Antony Evans hopes one day to light streets with bioluminescent trees. For $50, contributors can receive seeds for a glowing Arabidopsis plant, and for $300, they can get a kit to genetically alter a plant at home. The Kickstarter campaign far exceeded its fundraising goal of $65,000, bringing in $484,013 from 8,433 backers. The big lingering question: Will the bioluminescent wood be compatible with wood floor finishes?November 20, 2013TroubleshootingHeel Accessories Prevent Dents in Wood FloorsFun fact that many wood flooring professionals are all-too-familiar with: A 125 pound woman in high heels exerts 2,000 pounds of force on a floor through an oh-so-chic pointy high heel. So what's a wood-floor-minded girl-or her wood floor guy-to do? Can fashion and wood floors co-exist? Solemates, based in Greenwich, Conn., has attempted to answer this question with the High Heeler, a flexible plastic cap that distributes that force over a larger area (a little less than an inch square), preventing dents in a wood floor as well as keeping stiletto and kitten heels from sinking into grass or slipping between deck boards. For $9.95 per pair at www.thesolemates.com, they're a small investment to keep floors free from dents after holiday parties.November 20, 2013InstallationPrivate Owner's 'Car Museum' Features Rotating Wood FloorNovember 20, 2013DesignWood Floors in Newfoundland Hotel Tie to CommunityIn a recent blog post entitled, "What Starbucks Gets that Architects Don't," Christine Outram accused her fellow architects of designing for the sake of design, not for the people using the space. "You rely on rules and pattern books, but you rarely do in-depth ethnographic research," she writes. "You don't connect with people anymore."Architect: Saunders Architecture (Bergen, Norway) General Contractor: Shorefast Foundation (Joe Batt's Arm, Newfoundland) Flooring Manufacturer: Forest Floors (Stephanville, Newfoundland) Finish Manufacturer: Osmo North America (Seattle)November 20, 2013Green IssuesWood Watch Maker Plants a Tree for Every SaleWood flooring brings style and class to homes, and now, with WeWood watches, it can add style to a wardrobe, too. WeWood Timepieces' redwing celtis watches are made from scraps of flooring too small for manufacturers to sell, putting the wood to good use rather than let it wind up in a landfill. Its other timepieces are also sustainably sourced or from fast-growing trees; its coffee tree timepieces are made from braches cut from ornamental municipal trees, which saves city and park employees from having to burn them. Also, for every watch sold, WeWood plants a tree in Asia, Africa or the Americas through American Forests and Trees for the Future. The watches are made without any preservatives, dyes or alcohol, cutting down on pollution and skin irritation, as well as letting the beauty and natural color of the wood shine through. The watches, which can be resized, sell for $120-$140. More information and the full catalog are available on the WeWood website: www.we-wood.us.September 25, 2013Green IssuesBiodegradable Urn Plants Tree with AshesEnd-of-life planning isn't the cheeriest of subjects, but Spanish designer Gerard Moline has created a simple and beautiful option for wood enthusiasts. The Bios Urn is a biodegradable container made from coconut shell, peat and cellulose with a pine tree seed inside. Cremated remains are added, the whole urn is planted and a tree rises from the ashes. The seed can be swapped out for any other plant, if you're partial. Now after you pass you have the potential to literally become wood flooring. Find more information at www.urnabios.com.September 25, 2013Page 1 of 3Next PageTop StoriesSubfloor PrepHow We Flatten Wood and Concrete SubfloorsWood floor pro Angelo DeSanto takes subfloor prep seriously; here he shows some actual jobs and how they handled making sure the subfloors were ready for the wood flooring.DesignExquisite Parquet for a Floridian ‘Italian Castle’InspectionsWhat I’ve Learned as an Inspector for ‘Luxury Vinyl’ FlooringTroubleshootingQ&A: What Are These Strange Raised Areas in this Wood Floor?TechniquesTop-Nail 5/16-Inch Strip: How We Did (and Still Do) These Floors
