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True Texture

True Texture

Todd Hewines
September 15, 2016

Texture can heavily affect the decision of the right floor for your design even before colour tone, shade, etc. There are a wide variety of surfaces in wide plank flooring to consider when selecting the ultimate floor to compliment your space.

Explained are the three main flooring surfaces you see in wide plank wood flooring today, plus the range of Northern's signature surface treatments.

1. Original Surface

Reclaimed Oak Original Surface Wide Plank Flooring Texture

This is the original texture, weathering and ageing that is left on the surface just as it was when it was once a part of the barn. During the manufacturing process, nothing is done to reproduce or mimic in any way the worn and distressed look. What you see and feel is the original patina from hundreds of years of use and weathering. These planks are lightly touched in the manufacturing process to keep as much of the original patina as possible and only lightly hand sanding the surface where there is need to remove splinters or extremely rough areas that are considered unacceptable. These floors usually have large variations in character and colour but produce an authentic look and feel that can be achieved no other way. There's nothing quite as intriguing as walking on the same planks that were once walked on by pioneers of our time.

The added benefit of these heavily textured surfaces is the ability to stand up and hide excessive wear and tear.

2. Brushed Surface

European Oak Brushed Surface Wide Plank Flooring Texture

A brushed surface refers to a variety of techniques used to texturize the grain. It creates an organic feel, bringing the wood alive with highlighted grain and creating a greater emphasis on the beauty of nature. Brushing is also used for different colour treatments (seen above) to inlay typically a white or grey finish to add more depth and highlights. Depending on your tastes or design different floors have different levels of brushing; light brushing for a subtle look or heavy brushing for a more rugged natural feel.

3. Smooth Surface

White Oak Wide Plank Flooring Smooth Surface

Probably the most traditional surface of hardwood flooring is a sanded or smooth surface. This type of surface tends to be more popular when achieving a look that's more clean and minimalist. While achieving the desired look with a beautifully smooth surface for a slick clean look, these types of floors are better suited for some applications more than others. For example, a hospitality space that experiences heavy foot traffic of all types every day is not an ideal placing for a floor of this kind.

As with all wood floors it should be taken into consideration what you expect out of it, because regardless any wood will dent, scratch, etc. It's about what will best suit your application.

NWP Signature Wide Plank Surfaces

Cobbled Surface
Northern's cobbled surface is another form of distressing accomplished through tumbling each plank with chains and stones. This creates a timeless look while the hand scraped edges add definition to each wide plank.

European Oak Cobbled Surface Wide Plank Flooring Texture

Foundry Surface
Similar in texture to the original surface, the saw marks are preserved on the boards from when they were sawn at the mill, creating an authentic industrial appeal.

Foundry Surface Distressed White Oak Wide Plank Flooring

Sawn Surface
A rugged yet refined look. The bandsawn surface adds great depth and texture to the plank while giving a sophisticated feel with the uniform saw marks.

Sawn Surface European Oak Wide Plank Flooring

Planed Surface
Delivers a stunning look with smoothed out surfaces that expose rough grain and knots, leaving a natural yet slightly distressed finish.

Planed Surface European Oak Wide Plank Flooring Texture

For more examples of these detailed textures, view The Plank Album a 128 - page inspiration book showcasing stunning projects and the entire collection range.

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