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Since my married man and I moved into a 95 - year - old colonial one year ago , we ’ve been chipping away at the remodel to - do list . The inwardness of most of the action is the nitty-gritty of the pickle : the kitchen . We repaint the walls , refinish the oak storage locker in two tincture , even retrofit the cabinetry to install a dishwashing machine , and rounded out the French res publica storage vibes with a used hutch . The next thing stand between me and my visual modality is the existing vinyl radical floor .

Carpet, hardwood, vinyl, and tile flooring.

A Floor Straight Out of the ’70s

The current vinyl radical sheet take aback mimic a brick basket weave . Likely out of the ’ 70s , the rosy repetitious blueprint is more kitschy than the naturalistic sumptuousness vinyl board ( LVP ) blow out of the water options useable today . The furrow are peeling in some places and the paint drip leftover from my earlier projection are n’t helping . Suffice it to say , novel flooring is in our near future — something that can plow the invertebrate foot dealings from two entry ( internal and exterior ) and stick out some moisture .

I ’ve handled many of our projects , but there ’s a trade - off with all DIY . poise the work with a full - time task means most preparation , decision - making , and manual labor postponement until the weekends . A year in , I ’m ready to confer with master to take this kitchen across the finish agate line . My first call would be toEmpire Today , peculiarly after it madeBobVila.com ’s Home Improvement Heroeslist . The companionship ’s last - to - end flooring solvent are particularly attractive .

Visualizing My Dream Kitchen

I ’m only in the beginning stage of my journey , and Empire makes it easier to see the potential difference with the company ’s practical floor architect tool . With just a couple of angles of the in - procession kitchen , I can see nearly 100 new options . In moment , I uploaded photos from my phone to the web site where I filtered by coloration , shade , merchandise type ( specific flooring types , like “ porcelain and ceramic tile ” ) , or product melody ( the encompassing flooring category , like “ roofing tile flooring ” ) to preview Empire Today ’s selections . Truthfully , the digital tool encourage me to retrieve more broadly speaking about my floor choice .

My first thought was to encounter a porcelain or ceramic roofing tile rather than attempt to match the original flooring throughout the relaxation of the star sign . Not only would I fly the coop clashing wood tones , but I ’d acquire lastingness and water resistance by design . TheTundra Stonein Meadow arrive close . Its soft movement of marble - alike veining is a nod to a trendy marble . Meanwhile , the creamy ivory could be a complementary gloss for next kitchen design , should I make up one’s mind to repaint my storage locker or wall ( or both ) .

The Surprising Options That Caught My Eye

To my surprise , I found myself care a Sir Henry Wood - look vinyl radical board option : Astoriain Cafe . The Astoria planks outperform Ellen Price Wood in a meddling kitchen , thanks to 100 per centum waterproof and a thick - than - modal wear stratum . That means no worrying about the extra groundwork traffic ( or the plenty that comes with it ) near the exit out to the deck . Now , the 7.6 - inch planks are 3 inches all-encompassing than the original woodwind flooring throughout the house . The putz enabled me to see plank running parallel to the be wood plank as well as vertical , and rotating the planks in the kitchen makes the design dispute find more intentional .

I also bemock a version of my kitchen with LVP that comes close to the wood caryopsis and grunge . This dash is manufactured with AquaDefense technology , which think 100 percent protection from spills and plumbing leaks and the power to hold back up to routine mopping . An aluminum oxide overcoat guards against scratches and fading because of UV rays ( not an second thought with the big windows in my kitchen).Knoll Creekin Hilltop features a naturalistic woodwind metric grain that settle square between sluttish and dark Ellen Price Wood . This is a sample I ’d have intercourse to see in soul — and I can , when I take the next steps to set an appointment with my local Empire Today .

When choose between luminosity and obscure , I relied to a great extent on the tool ’s Compare function to view two favorites side by side on my screen . It ’s not only helpful for me to imagine but also to communicate restoration mind and pass on designing compromise with my husband . After a long design debate , we ’re nearing a favorite : Knoll Creek in its Hilltop colorway . you could bet that I ’ve already saved these kitchen photos and have added them to my humour boards .

Two-tone white and blue painted kitchen cabinets in a DIY renovation

Photo: Kathleen Corlett for Bob Vila

This Is the yr for a Kitchen Renovation

Whether you ’re selling or staying , everyone can get something out of a kitchen update . Learn why we consider this restoration the Most Valuable Project of 2025 and how to stay on budget .

Empire Today Flooring

Photo: Kathleen Corlett for Bob Vila

Paint swatches on a kitchen wall in a 1970s kitchen

Photo: Kathleen Corlett for Bob Vila

Oak kitchen cabinets prepped for painting in DIY renovation

Photo: Kathleen Corlett for Bob Vila

Vinyl kitchen floor in brick design near the oven

Photo: Kathleen Corlett for Bob Vila

Kitchen floor near oven reimagined with Tundra Stone flooring from Empire Today

Designed with Tundra Stone in Meadow from Empire Today

Kitchen floor near oven reimagined with Astoria flooring from Empire Today

Designed with Astoria in Cafe from Empire Today

Kitchen floor near oven reimagined with Knoll Creek flooring from Empire Today

Designed with Knoll Creek in Hilltop from Empire Today

Vinyl kitchen floor in brick design near the sink

Photo: Kathleen Corlett for Bob Vila

Kitchen floor near sink and dishwasher reimagined with Tundra Stone flooring from Empire Today

Designed with Tundra Stone in Meadow from Empire Today

Kitchen floor near sink and dishwasher reimagined with Astoria flooring from Empire Today

Designed with Astoria in Cafe from Empire Today

Kitchen floor near sink and dishwasher reimagined with Knoll Creek flooring from Empire Today

Designed with Knoll Creek in Hilltop from Empire Today

Kitchen floor previewed with a comparison to see before and after on EmpireToday.com

Photo: Kathleen Corlett for Bob Vila

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