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Introducing my new herringbone flooring...
I've lived in my house for three years now, slowly turning it from an empty and cold new build, into a cosy, warm home. One of the things that I've hated the most since moving in, was the dark grey vinyl in the kitchen. I also opted for a pretty cheap laminate for the living room, which over the years I had grown to dislike more and more. Overall, the downstairs just felt really dark with the dark wood laminate in the lounge and the dark grey vinyl in the kitchen area, and it didn't have the kind of cosy and warm vibe that I wanted it to have. I’ve always loved the look of Parquet Flooring and Herringbone flooring so that’s the style that I was desperate to have in here. Eventually I decided to rip out all of the downstairs flooring and replace it with a beautiful LVT herringbone flooring from Harvey Maria.
the before photos...
I've changed around my dining nook in the kitchen a fair bit. I have a small kitchen/diner and it's really hard trying to make it look nice whilst also being practical to live in. Kitchen cupboard and worktop space has always been extremely limited, so I tried to work around that by having an extra unit for my microwave, coffee machine and some other bits. I had a really lovely and cosy area going, but there was just barely any room to move and it wasn't working for us as a family.
I switched from a rectangular dining table to a round one to try and save some room which really helped, but the furniture I picked, the decor and the colours in there just weren't working and it felt so dark all the time. This room gets limited light during winter so that doesn't help! In the end, I got rid of the furniture, removed everything from the walls, and gave it a complete makeover. Along with the new flooring, this space had a complete transformation which you'll see further down this post.
The kitchen at the opposite side of the room had the same problem. I loved the green I picked for the cabinets, but it was just feeling so dark in here all of the time, with it being such a small kitchen. I'd already made a lot of changes to the kitchen area, the cabinets were panelled, painted and had the handles replaced. The black worktops were replaced with light ones, a wall unit was taken down and replaced with open shelving... but it still wasn't working. I decided to paint the cabinets a lighter colour instead, just in time for adding in the new flooring and this space was completely transformed too.
the herringbone flooring installation...
I ordered samples of the Harvey Maria Hurst Herringbone collection, which is an LVT flooring, in the shades Toasted Oak, a deep warm wood effect, and Old Bramble, a much lighter ash toned wood effect. I tested them both out in the kitchen and the lounge and decided that Old Bramble was going to make the biggest impact on both spaces, and would look beautiful running through the whole downstairs brightening it right up. And I was right! We completed the kitchen/diner space first as the floor was already screeded and levelled out, and it was easy enough to shift all the furniture into the lounge to do. We did the lounge a few weeks later as we had to screed over the concrete and couldn't move the sofa out of the room to do it, so it as a much bigger job having to be done in two halves. Jake fit this flooring himself, just so we could save the money on paying someone to do it. He hadn't done LVT flooring before but he's really handy and can do almost anything when it comes to DIY, and he did a great job. I'm so happy with how it looks!
the finished look...
I'm just so in love with the final look, I really can't tell you how much brighter it is, and how much nicer it feels to be sat in these rooms. On an evening or a dark cloudy day, it would just feel so glum and miserable in the kitchen sometimes, and now, although it's so much brighter in here, it's so much warmer and cosier. The flooring really can make or break a room. I've also wanted herringbone flooring for the longest time and it does not disappoint, it's beautiful!
I really love the Harvey Maria Hurst Herringbone LVT Flooring because it's durable, easy to maintain and it has the texture and appearance of a solid wood floor. Even with two young children, a hoover and mop cleans everything up in no time. I don't think you have to make interior sacrifices just because you have children either. They don't stay small for long, and it's easy enough to pop their play mat on top and simply remove it when they outgrow it. This flooring will last me years and years, so I wanted something hardwearing, easy to clean and adaptable for family life. Rugs are much easier to replace than an entire carpet too and I love that I can switch them up whenever I want to with ease.
What do you think to the Hurst Herringbone Flooring from Harvey Maria? Are you a fan?
Disclaimer: This flooring was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
