I'm no expert, but would go with what you love. I prefer a variation in wood tones. I think it looks more natural.

When we bought our house a few years ago, the first floor had wood floors. The second floor was carpeted. We put the same wood floor on the second floor. Both floors are the same color, but the first floor has more variations than the new floor. I prefer the first floor.

Hey ChelseyCooper! Always go with what you love if it won't kill you or your budget! Who cares if someone wants to buy your house in 10 years and wants to change the floors? Give them a floor allowance out of escrow! The other consideration is that you actually have no idea how long you'll live in that house due to the variations that life hands us, so get what you love while you can and be happy for as long as you have the house. And I hope that's a very long time!

Most natural floors have variation. Sand and seal, and there's a lot more than even the floor you're looking at.

https://flic.kr/p/zqqkwa

Absolutely get what you love. Wood floors tend to be a neutral element in a room, whether they are monolithic in color or whether it has more tonal variations. You can't worry about what someone may or may not like 10 years from now. For all we know, in 10 years, everyone will be insisting on putting in wall to wall carpet again.

Oh, my.

No doubt, go with that floor.

:-D

Thank you for the feedback everyone, I really appreciate it! We're definitely going to go with these floors. I'll post pictures once they're in sometime next month :)

The samples you show (Mannington Restoration) are laminate by the way. They come whatever color the manufacturer thinks looks pretty.

It's just a matter of what you want in the space. Even the traditional full thickness, finish in place you have some options. If you get the best grades things come out very uniform. Some people (as we did), used the lower grades mixed in to give some intentional variation in appearance.

I'd go with what you love. You're not flipping that house. You'll be living there. Variation can be quite eye catching anyway, and not everyone looking forward to buying in 10 years will want monotone anyway.

Ah, I see you will go with what you love. I await the photos!

"Do what you want"..."get what you love"..."it's your house"...this thread may be close to a record for these sorts of comments. If the OP knew what s/he wanted, s/he wouldn't have posted. S/he wanted constructive suggestions. "Love" and "what you want" aren't constructive (or even helpful) suggestions...:-)

And since the OP has apparently made up her/his mind, I'll just say that "trendy" wears off quickly, but "timeless" is forever. Make the floor a consistent color and texture which doesn't call attention to itself. Devote the attention to other aspects of the house.

Really!

As Ron mentioned above, the flooring you've picked out is not hardwood; it's laminate. Just want to make sure you're aware of that. :)

Virgil Carter Fine Art wrote:

If the OP knew what s/he wanted, s/he wouldn't have posted.

And yet, the OP wrote:

Is this something we should go with because we love it (and plan to be
in the house for at least 10+ years) or would it be better/smarter to
think of re-sale now and choose something with less character?

The OP knew exactly what s/he wanted, but worried that s/he was somehow "wrong." Thus, reassurance that one's own choices are what matters are directly on point!

I think it's interesting that people talk about replacing floors in ten years now. There are houses here that have floors that are 200 years old.

Consider not just the floor, but the floor as a part of the whole room. Once you've brought in a rug and furniture, will you still love the variations in color, or will they be "too much"?

My preference is for a single-tone floor because I personally think that's more "neutral", and the floor is not something I want to "stand out". However, my preferences have nothing to do with your house.

I do think a one-tone floor in a mid-tone will be the most popular for re-sale, but also 10 years is a long time, and you should enjoy what you're building.

How strongly do you feel about this flooring? If it's a slight preference, maybe go more neutral. If it's something you love-love-love, maybe go with the variations.

Good luck making your choice.

Personally, I prefer the look, feel, and sound of a real wood floor - over the PHOTO of wood in laminate flooring.

Okay everybody. Look, if the OP wants laminate, that's her choice, just like the tonal variations vs resale values, etc. What she wanted to know was should she do what she loves or worry about 10 years from now.

What the heck is wrong with encouraging someone to do what they love? I'm not the grasshopper that plays all summer, but...you have to recognize that life is subject to random shifts and foregoing what you love for the >possibility< that someone downstream won't like it is shortchanging yourself. Plan for the future, but understand that not one of us knows what will happen tomorrow.

Anyone, with sufficient resources, can do what they "love"!

But let's understand definitions: 1) Trendy: means something popular for the moment, but not for the long term; 2) Timeless: means something popular and appealing for a very long time.

If you want advice, be willing to accept it. If you don't want advice (or you want a pat on the back for your preconceived decision), don't bother posting.

If one "loves" something, then go for it. Just don't ask for advice from folks who have spent considerable time in the education and practice of design.

It wastes everyone's time...:-)

Dear Virgil Carter Fine Art. With practice I am sure you will find that people will respond more positively to advice given without condescension. In my 35 years in the design field, I've found that it is the rare person who reacts well to being talked down to. I'm not sure why you are reacting so harshly to this thread, but you might want to consider allowing others their opinions when they are asked for them. I've not found anyone on this thread who is condemning you for yours.

It isn’t what you love, it is what you install, if you are looking to sell sooner, rather than later. Laminate…a big no. Were you to choose a hardwood, then, in the future, the floors could be sanded, stained and refinished by the next owner.

As you can tell, I am not in favor of laminate, ever. And certainly not in a kitchen where it will be exposed to water…think washing it.

Look into pre finished hardwood or, preferably, engineered wood.

You have not mentioned what you are doing for floors in the rest of the house? That is important to know for those of us commenting.

To start, yes I know the flooring we're going with is a laminate wood. I know there are pros and cons to real wood, engineered, and laminate wood flooring; we have considered them all and decided that Mannington laminate fits our needs and budget the best. Living in AZ I have heard from multiple people that it's not the heat that kills real hard wood, but the lack of humidity...whether or not you know this to be true for yourself, the bottom line is we simply can't afford to splurge on real hardwoods.

I appreciate the reminder that we're building this home for us and not for people who may purchase it in the future...that is something that I needed to hear. And definitely provided some clarity.

I wasn't posting for a "pat on the back" but rather to hear other viewpoints that I may not have considered yet.

As for the flooring in the rest of the house, for now it'll be mostly carpet upstairs, with the other bathrooms and laundry room staying the builder grade laminate (yes, ew, but we only have so much money to throw at this right now). Our plan for the future is to eventually continue the wood laminate flooring upstairs through the hall and master and tile the bathrooms and laundry room when we can.

In your neck of the woods, doing a floating wood or bamboo floor, would be your best bet. The wood is able to move without restraint and fares better than glue or nail down. Engineered wood floors would be a close second, even in your dry climate. The cross sections of woods keeps it from twisting and turning easily.

try Kahrs floating wood floors. There are many dealers in and around the Phoenix area.

http://www.kahrs.com/en-US/consumer/image-gallery/

Have you compared prices? Some of the good laminate can cost almost the same as real wood. Since you're going to be there 10 years, look at it as a long term investment spread out over that time period. You wouldn't cheap out on your roof or plumbing, why do so on the flooring?

do you have a large square footage downstairs that you need to cover? Will there be tile going in anywhere?

As for future buyers,,who cares? you're the one living there now. 10 years from now who knows what will be trendy. The only sure bet on something that won't go out of style is real, hardwood flooring.

Just on the trendy vs timeless thing, I live in Australia, where wood floors, both genuine hardwood and engineered, are quite common. Our last house had a site- finished spotted gum floor, and it was extremely variegated because, well, that's the nature of the wood. We loved it. And here in Oz, it wasn't and won't be considered trendy at all, it's considered quite classic.

So, to my mind, the "trendy" vs "timeless" is arguable. It's all in the eye of the beholder.

Here's a floor very similar to the one we had:

Contemporary Living Room · More Info

Looked great with our oriental carpets.

OP: if you love it, go for it. I do prefer real wood to laminate, though.

JUst a word of caution, if you want to replace the upstairs and match the laminate you put downstairs be sure to buy enough now. When you you replace it's likely the floor you have will not be available. That's another downside to laminate.

Have you looked at luxury vinyl tile? I would sooner do that than laminate.

We have laminate in our rental and under the chairs they are getting "shredded" and look awful.

hsharrington, I'm sorry to have offended you. I wasn't being condescending or harsh, just expressing an opinion, which is what this forum is for. And I do not condemn anyone, even if I disagree with them. Perhaps you should lighten up? :-)

At first I liked all of the exotic woods and newest styles. Then I took up the thought of "Would I see that in a beautiful old home in Charleston or New Orleans?" (I'm near NOLA.) I ended up getting a medium brown color white oak, not yellowish, not reddish. Just a warm brown and I love it!! And it was not expensive!

Virgil Carter Fine Art, you didn't offend me at all. I simply described what I was seeing. I guess harsh as well beauty is in the eye of the writer. I would review your own comments before advising someone else to lighten up, though. Lecturing is not advising. Have a good day.

Hsharrington, apology accepted. Movin' on...

I would say it looks like an engineered product rather than a classic finished in place floor...really obviously. But I think that will be the new standard.

Oh you're good Virgil Carter. I had already moved on. Hope you will now.