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Arts and Crafts Kitchen Floors

Arts and Crafts kitchen floors reflect the natural approach to home decor and design. The Arts and Crafts design uses simple, clean lines and natural materials like wood, stone and natural fibers. You can select a modified Arts and Crafts style in your home by just installing an Arts and Crafts kitchen flooring, like wide plank oak, stone tiles, or even painted or stenciled flooring.

Arts and crafts design is not just the furniture and accessories in the home. It also includes the flooring and design of a home. Relaxed and simple is the feel that Arts and Crafts design lends to your home. Materials used in Arts and Crafts style tend more toward the earthy and natural. The beauty of the natural look is stressed over the low cost of mass production. An Arts and Crafts home is described as a bungalow built between 1900 and 1930 with oak floors and beautiful woodwork. Arts and Crafts kitchen floors are an important aspect of any Arts and Crafts home.

First, let's talk a bit of history about the Arts and Crafts Movement. The Arts and Crafts design style was a move away from the mechanical production of furniture and other furnishings, the main goal of Arts and Crafts design was the moving away from the ornate into clean and simple lines. The goal of the early Arts and Crafts proponents was to merge beauty, craftsmanship, and functionality. It was believed that the furnishings in your home should come from a craftsman that designs and makes them rather than a factory where underpaid workers churn out item after mass produced item.

If you love this design style, then you will want to choose an Arts and Crafts kitchen floor. Arts and Crafts kitchen flooring is usually made of natural materials that give a kitchen a rustic and welcoming feel. Wood floors, mostly oak, are one of the major choices in Arts and Crafts design. The oak floors may be parquet or plank and are either polished or stained to a dark finish.

Natural stone tiles are also used frequently in Arts and Crafts style homes. Stress the natural and try to stay away from bold and bright colors. Choose colors for your stone tile that are found in nature and you will be on your way to having Arts and Crafts kitchen floors. Just keep in mind that you need for your flooring choice to be durable, easy to clean, and great to look at because your kitchen is one of the most used rooms in your home.

Stenciling is also common in the Arts and Crafts design style. Stencils should be simple, not ornate, and the colors should be muted and calm. Although stenciling was common, keep in mind that in the Arts and Crafts design style, simple is better. Soft, muted, simple design should help to add that touch of color without moving away from the Arts and Crafts design feel in your kitchen.

Arts and Crafts design is a very fun design style to embrace. The beauty of handmade design is something that is priceless. Your kitchen will feel more comfortable and welcoming to everyone who walks into it. The kitchen should be your sanctuary, a place where you and your family feel safe and at home. Implementing the Arts and Crafts design style will only help you to add warmth and beauty to your kitchen floors and the rest of your home.

Comments

I have an Arts and Crafts home, and needed even more information from you. Thanks for helping me with what you have. You've given me a feel for it.

Susan Clark at October 21, 2008 8:32 PM

IM LOOKING FOR A KITCHEN FLOOR FOR A 70'S CAPE. MY TASTE IS COUNTRY WITH A LARGE VICTORIAN CUPBOARD. IM EXPLORING RUBBER,CORK OR FLAGSTONE AND TREATED TILES

BARBARA KENNEDY at November 4, 2008 2:10 PM

Hi Barb! Sounds like you already have some good ideas for starters!

The Flooring Lady at November 4, 2008 5:04 PM

My house is arts and crafts style, built in 1920. I'm remodeling the kitchen and would love to incorporate a Mexican/Southwest or Tuscan decor. Is this in keeping with the rest of the house? I was thinking of terra cotta flooring but was told it will always look dirty. Can I do tiles or should I stick with wood?

Bonnie Steinbock at January 11, 2009 2:34 PM

Hi Bonnie,
I'm guessing that by terra cotta flooring you're thinking of something like Saltillo tiles? There's no need for any terra cotta, stone, etc. to always look dirty so long as it has been sealed well (before and after laying!). Be sure to read through the site to learn how to properly lay tile - there's much to learn! Best of luck!

The Flooring Lady at January 12, 2009 9:13 AM

I have nice orginial wood floors bordering my kitchen-if I put new wood in my kitchen will it flow or is it too much?? I'm leaning toward tile, but how large could the pieces be to keep with the bungalow feel?

thanks,

Francene at January 17, 2009 3:23 PM

Hi Francene, I think new wood would do ok - might even want to create a pattern to it. Tile would be good too - I don't think it will matter what size the tiles are.

The Flooring Lady at January 19, 2009 8:12 AM

Purchased mostly untouched 1916 Craftsman Bungalow last fall. Have a 113# English Mastiff with bearclaws! Yes I trim them. Bathroom is gutted. Clawfoot tub being redone, ordering pedestal sink w old look cabinet and a glass block shower to be built. Contractor needs to know what kind of floor I'm putting in 12 X 9.6 bathroom with a radiator in corner.
Trying to stay w era of home but have to watch finances. What do you think would look & wear best? Walls will have bead board up 5.5 feet or so. Thx much. Sherie in Iowa

Sherie at February 10, 2009 4:37 PM

Hi Sherie,
I would go with some sort of stone or ceramic tile.

The Flooring Lady at February 19, 2009 8:24 AM

Hey there-
I just bought a 1912 craftsman. The living room has a dark wood floor with a door connecting it to the kitchen. I love wood floors (not a huge lino fan, and heard vinyl is totally wrong for craftsman) and wanted to go with a light, bright wood. Im thinking bamboo or as you suggested oak- will this clash with the dark wood flooring of the living room? What do you recommend?

sasha at February 26, 2009 4:53 PM

Hi Sasha,
I'm not so sure I would think of it as 'clashing' as I would 'contrasting'. Having contrast isn't necessarily a bad idea and there's now law that says the flooring colors have to match. It's strictly a personal preference, in other words - it's up to you.

I don't know how experienced you are with computers or photo editing programs, but have you ever thought about taking pictures and then adjusting the colors/darkness of the kitchen floor to kinda give you an idea of how your floor would look dark and light? Just a thought....

The Flooring Lady at February 27, 2009 10:59 AM

Thanks so much for your response! I'm new to the house game (my first house!) so not sure what to put in there. I think I will go with a plank Oak as you have suggested, they come pre-stained these days and are pretty cheap. I like the custom lino cutouts but that might be even more expensive to design. Wood is classic and lasts, right?

Thats also a great idea with adjusting the levels to see how the floor would look!

sasha at March 3, 2009 4:32 AM

Hi Sasha,
Do your homework before you buy anything. Often, people are not happy with the pre-finished products (notice I wrote 'pre-finished', not 'pre-stained'). Often, the finish will easily get smudgy, show footprints, etc. You cannot just slap a new finish on these products as they are not water or oil based finishes - you'll wind up with a sticky mess. Only being pre-stained would be a good thing, so you can finish how you please.

The Flooring Lady at March 5, 2009 11:52 AM

So, I'm trying to decide on the flooring for our remodeled 1923 Craftsman. The kitchen is new and is off the dining/living room. Should I put oak in all three rooms or would that be too much wood? Maybe marmoleum in the kitchen and oak in the DR/LR? I need ideas. Any resources to look at? thanks.

Mary at August 6, 2009 8:53 PM

Mary,

You can search Google for Craftsman interiors. You can also search Google Images to find inspiration for your decorating needs.

The Flooring Lady at August 7, 2009 8:13 AM

I am doing a full kitchen remodel on my 1922 Craftsman to bring it back to it's period. The people before me killed and put in gross modern crap. It has terracotta tile in the kitchen right now. I want to do some sort of stone slate looking tile would that be appropriate?

Rawkmom at August 24, 2009 5:28 PM

Natural is the theme through the Craftsman movement. So slate, any stone really would be good. Linoleum, cork, wood -- all possible and good choices too. Have fun bringing that beauty back to life!

The Flooring Lady at August 25, 2009 11:08 AM