Beautiful and long-lasting, hardwood floors make an elegant choice for nearly any room in your home. When choosing hardwood, the color, character, and construction type are the important factors to consider.

Color: The color of hardwood floors ranges from quite light to intensely dark—and everything in between. While, as a rule, lighter floors work well in contemporary settings and darker floors are elegantly at home in more traditional rooms, choosing is essentially a matter of preference.

Character: Naturally present in hardwood, grain variations help determine a wood’s “personality.” Dramatic grain suggests a rustic feeling. Historically, moderate grain variations are associated with the traditional. And hardwood with very little graining has a sleek, contemporary look.

Construction: There are two basic choices—solid or engineered. Solid planks are created from a single piece of wood and make a handsome floor that lasts for years. Engineered planks are made from several layers of wood (with a core of plywood or HDF) and are designed to withstand higher levels of humidity. This means they can go in some rooms solid floors can’t.

Note that there are many differences in finishes—gloss or luster level, scraping degree and technique, wire-brushing, etc. Ask our sales staff to show you samples!