2021/2022 Laminate Flooring Trends and Styles

Laminate flooring offers some fantastic 2021/2022 trends that can quickly upgrade and distinguish your home—and at a lower cost!

We all know that genuine wood and tile provide class and flair to a home, but contemporary laminate flooring may offer the same benefits without the cost or care of other materials.

So, without further ado, what exactly are these 2021/2022 trends we're talking about?

1. Realistic Wood-Look for Laminate

Laminate may be made to seem like various materials, including tile, marble, stone, and wood. However, the year 2021/2022 has shown that more homeowners favour the wood-look above anything else.

Unlike previous laminate styles, contemporary technology has produced this laminate type to offer an authentic wood look that may feel like natural wood, depending on the approach utilized.

There are three finishes available for wood-like laminate:

• High Gloss is a more contemporary option. It features a smoother finish than most laminate designs, mimicking polished woods, marble, or ceramic-style flooring. As a result, high Gloss has no grain texture. But take heed! If it's wet, it'll be slippery, so mop up any moisture or drips from wet shoes right away!
• The Hand-scraped pattern is intended to replicate the natural look of antiqued timber.
• Embossed. This is a textured laminate type. It has a simple, grooved wood look to it. When installed, standard embossed laminate does not perfectly match the picture of the printed grain seen in stores or online. On the other hand, an embossed-in-register, the second form of embossed laminate, precisely matches the printed grain and the plank grain.

A high gloss finish reigned supreme in the wood-look aesthetic for a long time, although it tends to seem artificial. To the naked eye, the spectator can tell that the floor is laminate; no one going into the room will believe he is stepping on wood.

However, homeowners are moving these days differently: the tendency is to have an embossed/reclaimed or hand-scraped wood-look pattern, which more closely resembles actual wood.

The laminate pattern simulates the randomized scratches, knots, and burns of genuine reclaimed wood with a reclaimed wood look. Embossed laminate even has a tactile feel that adds to its trustworthiness.

If you're looking to buy this laminate design, it's worth noting that the embossed/reclaimed effect is highly similar to the worn and distressed wood-like laminate that's also popular this year.

A hand-scraped pattern gives the flooring a natural wood appearance, with lengthy and entrenched scratches over the surface, as if it were a classic, pricey antique. Hand-scraped laminate might appear similar to embossed laminate at times, but it is typically unique, with a softer appearing surface than embossed laminate.

Something else to consider. While a typical wood look is the most popular print pattern, bamboo wood is quickly approaching a close second. Bamboo-style laminate has a more strand-based appearance than hardwood and is available in various finishes, including a worn effect.

2. Lighter Tones for Wood-Look Laminate

Softer and lighter tones for wood-look laminate were often considered outmoded, even cheap. But no more!

Since last year, light tones have ruled the market, offering homes a warmer, brighter environment. The latest whitewashed laminate version is much more appealing!

The whitewashed style developed on the west coast and gained popularity as it spread eastward. Whitewashed hues exude a calm, Californian atmosphere, imbuing a room with a natural and contemporary style.

Here is a list of light tone colours that are currently popular:

• Whitewashed: Sandcastle oak and white oak are examples of this style. Whitewashed is brighter than any of the colours mentioned below, yet specific whitewashed versions can exhibit evidence of "worn," allowing deeper hues to peek through from beneath. Whitewashed hues make a space appear more extensive and more comfortable.
• Gray: The hue river rock, which is on the lighter side of grey, is included in this trend. Gray has been on the rise for at least five years and is expected to remain so for the foreseeable future. Gray has a unique distinction from the other colours on this list in that it emits a colder environment. While darker hues seem harder, grey is a good compromise between bright and dark tones, capturing the best of both worlds.
• Blondes: These hues, mainly when used with broader laminate planks, help make a space feel more extensive and open. In addition, unlike a plain white floor, blondes have a colour variety that highlights the texture. With blonde laminate, homeowners may create almost any design for their rooms, including stylish, modern, and rustic.
• Honey: It has similar advantages as a blond laminate in that it makes the space appear more prominent and open. Because honey is a wonderfully balanced combination of light and dark tones, it stands out more than whiter hues.
• High Variation: Because of improved technology, wood-look laminate flooring may now have various hues. The goal is to make the flooring look more genuine and authentic to the nature of wood since two pieces of actual wood might differ in appearance and tone.

Lighter wood, by the way, is a 2021/2022 Hardwood Flooring Trend!

3. Wide Planks Preferred Over Thin

Thin planks were popular in the past, but homeowners are increasingly selecting broader planks, such as 5.5" and more comprehensive, for their flooring. Each board not only takes up more floor area, making DIY homeowners and experts' installations faster and easier, but they also make the room appear more extensive and more open than it is. Wider planks are also recognized for giving a place a contemporary feel.

While planks wider than 5.5" remain the popular 2021/2022 trend, narrower planks are making a comeback. Having a mixed-width flooring—that is, utilizing a combination of thin and broad planks for the floor—is part of the wide-plank trend. The idea is that mixing widths will give a space a distinct current character, further distinguishing it from previous types.

4. Herringbone Laminate Floors

Flooring designs have progressed a long way since the parquet patterns that were popular in the 1970s.

At the moment, three laminate designs are popular:

• Chevron
• Diagonal
• Herringbone

However, because it is the most cost-effective, homeowners choose a herringbone pattern in their property. What distinguishes it? On the other hand, a chevron design requires more time to align the laminate correctly, and a diagonal pattern, on the other hand, naturally costs more in both labour and materials.

Herringbone flooring is also made out of identically sized laminate boards for the whole arrangement, whereas a diagonal layout necessitates a variety of sizes. Using the complete length of a board eliminates the need for homeowners to discard unneeded or useless cutoffs, saving money on supplies.

Keep in mind that a lengthier herringbone pattern may not be the ideal choice for big rooms, but it creates a beautiful appearance in entryways, corridors, and bathrooms, quickly upgrading your house.

Fortunately for homeowners, herringbone-patterned flooring in the United States is not limited to a single laminate hue.

A "herringbone" design gained its name from its resemblance to the crosshatching-like skeleton of a herring.

5. Waterproof Wood-Look Laminate Flooring

Laminate may be challenging to maintain clean, especially when it comes into contact with water. The primary flaws of laminate are its seams and fiberboard core. If liquid or moisture gets into the seams, it causes the seams to create peaks and mould to grow between the planks.

If liquid or water gets into the core of the plank, it swells and causes the surface layer to delaminate. i.e., peel away.

Many homeowners have even complained about losing warranty coverage as their flooring sustain further water damage.

It's no surprise that waterproof laminate flooring will be in high demand in 2021/2022 .

Waterproof laminate is precisely what it sounds like: it is intended to keep liquids and moisture from staining the laminate or causing it to bulge and buckle. It's not as "watertight" as sheet vinyl or tile, but it's a step up from standard laminate.

Waterproof laminate, like standard laminate, is made up of four layers. These four layers, on the other hand, are built with a waterproof component:

• Water-resistant film overlay: The design layer of the plank is protected against liquid and moisture damage, as well as typical wear and tear.
• Design layer: Gives the appearance and texture of genuine wood.
• Water-resistant: The plank is made of compressed high-density fiberboard (HDF), which improves strength and water resistance. HDF makes the plank less prone to swelling caused by water.
• Balancing layer: A water-resistant underlayer improves plank stability while preventing fluids and moisture from penetrating below.

Because of the waterproof technology used, homeowners can gain the following benefits from owning the product:

1. It contains waterproof seams that prevent liquids or moisture from penetrating.
2. It won't fade and won't expand when exposed to direct sunlight.
3. It can resemble genuine wood more than conventional laminate. It may even appear more textured.
4. Scratch resistance that is up to eight times greater.
5. It is usually dent-resistant.

6. American-made Laminate

In the 1980s, laminate gained popularity, but its low pricing was partly due to its low manufacturing costs. As a result, the flooring frequently failed to replicate natural materials, such as hardwood or tile, sufficiently and did nothing to improve the residence.

As a result of these improvements, American-made laminate has become a modern trend that homeowners purchase only for the name.

Several European firms make and sell laminate flooring. Still, American-made laminate—of course, created in America—has unquestionable quality and style that has homeowners delighted about their new flooring.