As 2017 is coming to an end, it’s time to look at the expected flooring trends for 2018. Everything from expected demand by flooring type, species, color and finish have been predicted. Peer into the crystal ball with us as we look at the 2018 flooring trends!
All data comes from the NWFA, http://bit.ly/2A26ZPC
Flooring Type
Expect to see a huge increase in demand for long boards, wide planks and engineered wood flooring in 2018. Imported species and solid flooring are predicted to see a decrease in demand next year.
The natural, rustic look is still going to be very popular in flooring. Continue looking for reclaimed flooring and other more sustainable flooring options that have an unfinished and distressed look.
Natural, engineered, wide plank random length flooring
Flooring Species
As the exotics wood species see less demand, many North American wood species such as White Oak and Hickory are expected to be in big demand.
Other non-wood species like bamboo and cork are expected to be less popular, despite the growing green building trend.
Flooring Colors
The popularity for dark colored floors are mostly expected to remain the same. 66% expect to see a consistent demand from 2017 continuing in 2018. Some believe that there is going to be more demand for the darker floors, while 11% say that there is going to be less of a demand.
Carrying over from this year, gray is still going to be an extremely popular color for home décor in 2018. Many (62%) expect to see more of a demand for gray colored flooring in 2018 compared to 2017. Only 5% predict a decrease in demand, and 33% expect the same demand for gray flooring.
Similar to the demand for dark colored floors, light colored floors are expected to remain the same. Just over 50% predict the same demand in 2018 for light floors. Light colored floors are expected to see the highest decrease in demand at 13%, while 33% say they predict an increase in demand next year.
Flooring Finishes
When it comes to flooring finishes, not much is changing for 2017 to 2018. Expect to keep seeing a very low demand for high gloss floors and a very high demand for low gloss floors. Tesoro Woods has shifted both the Great Northern Woods Collection and the Great Southern Woods Collection products from a satin, 35 gloss level to a new matte 15 gloss level.
Keeping with the rise of the healthier, green building trend, water-based finishes and natural hardwax oil finishes are expected to be more popular in 2018. UV finishes are still going to be popular, especially as manufacturers begin using healthier, low or no VOC materials and do not add urea formaldehyde to their finishes and glues.
