Choosing the flooring for a new home involves a blend of practicality and your own personal style. The options are endless and depend on so many factors: the ease of maintenance, durability, look and feel, the technical particularities of the home and floor… When we started the design process of the Petite Maison Triangles one thing was clear: the look of the floor was very important. All spaces are connected and we want to emphasize the unity of the spaces by choosing one floor design for all rooms. Another detail that was clear from the beginning was that a concrete floor was not a good look for the house: as former garage we wanted to get rid of the industrial look. A hardwood floor didn’t appeal to us either: somehow it doesn’t match the vibe of the house. Even though wood flooring exudes timeless elegance and warmth, and add character to a space while providing a natural, inviting feel. For our sunny Ardèche maison we needed a more contemporary floor. The options were endless: a colorful floor, a pattern, a carpet… a more natural material like cork, or maybe linoleum?
When I think of linoleum, memories of primary school come to mind. The smell, the look, the pleasure of a sleek floor where we would play, bike and learn. When diving into the world of linoleum I realized that linoleum is actually crafted from natural materials which makes it a durable, eco-friendly and sustainable option. And thus: a good fit for the Petite Maison Triangles. The first brand that comes to mind when you think of linoleum or linoleum is Forbo. Forbo Flooring is a manufacturer of high quality linoleum floors, but they also produce types of floors like pvc, needlefelt, carpet tiles, vinyl…
When flipping through the heavy Forbo Flooring catalogue, I noticed an intriguing kind of linoleum called: Forbo Marmoleum Cocoa. It uses the cacao barks, a left-over product of the cacao industry in the same region in the Netherlands where their floors are produced. These cacao barks add little speckles in the linoleum floor which makes it classy with a twist. Forbo Marmoleum Cocoa comes in 11 different shades that are soft and pastel, like matcha, salted caramel, meringue, milk or white chocolate. Yummm!
From the early start of the design process, we also had a potential terrazzo floor in mind. A timeless but sophisticated option that perfectly matches the moodboard with warm and sunny colors. Of course Forbo Flooring has different terrazzo look options in their PVC range. The advantage of a PVC floor is that it is easy to install: one of their ranges, called Forbo Modul’up is a loose lay flooring that is installed without adhesives. We decided to order a few samples to see which floor would be best for us.
We choose the two Marmoleum (Cocoa 3584 white chocolate and 3590 meringue) and two Modul’Up Venezia (sépia 104 and terracotta 106) samples that arrived in large squares.
The linoleum floors have this characteristic smell, yet it’s more subtle than I remember. Both samples look really good: they make a nice uniform floor with a little twist.
The Modul’Up floors are brighter and reflect the light very well, and they have an intricate pattern.
Here they are in the (currently very dusty) living and dining space. You can clearly see the marks of my shoes on the floor.
The details are not the details: when we received the heavy catalogue and floor samples, there were a prepaid return shipping labels included in the packages. These samples are big and once you have picked your favorite you can send it back to Forbo and the next client can enjoy the sample floor. Nothing is going to waste.
Forbo Go Round: Circular flooring: Marmoleum, crafted from natural materials, offers eco-friendliness alongside durability, making it an appealing option for those prioritizing sustainability.
Work in progress: drywall walls and ceilings are finished for 90%:
So now you may wonder: Judith, which sample did you pick? Well, maybe you expected me to chose the pinkest floor? But actually we choose the Forbo Modul’Up Venezia sépia 104. The terrazzo pattern has a mix of yellows, beiges, browns, greys that you can see better in the image below. The Venezia terracotta floor is a bit too pink for our project: a little bit of contrast between the walls and furniture and flooring will look better.
The marmoleum options are beautiful and more sustainable than our final choice. But for this project the terrazzo look is the best option, and the advantage of this floor is that is will be quick and easy to install. Marmoleum requires specialized floor installers, where the Modul’Up can be installed by any handyman.
Once the drywall is finalized, the new screed poured and dried, the terrazzo floor will go in. I’m very excited because it will completely transform the space, reflect more light, and add a contemporary touch to the Petite Maison Triangles.
What do you think? Would you have picked the same floor? Or maybe go for one of the marmoleum options?
This blogpost was created in collaboration with Forbo Flooring. All images, opinions and words are my own, as always. – Thank you for your support!
