from previous page Tile and Stone High sheen and transparent shine are hot this year, as well as tiles made from authentic crystal and semi-precious stones. Heat-slumped glass tiles impart a sculpted, embossed effect leading to slight variations in color, shade size and texture. New tile designs also give the illusion of raindrops, linen textures, crinkled fabric and sand and slate effects. Shapes range from octagonal to micro-size mosaics barely a quarter-inch wide. Handcrafted tiles are made of ceramic, porcelain, metal, and even cement. New porcelain products launched this year include a glazed porcelain tile with the appearance of slate, but with the easy maintenance of porcelain; ceramic stone looks found in the countryside of Tuscany; and timeworn porcelain reminiscent of ancient civilizations. Porcelain tiles are extremely hard and impermeable, which makes the tiles highly resistant to moisture, staining and wear. In producing this type of porcelain tile, a color pigment is mixed with the clay body powder, giving the finished tile a consistent color throughout the body of the tile. “Porcelain is considered a “through” product. If you chip porcelain, it’s not going to show as much damage because the color is the same throughout,” Davis said. Porcelain is usually less expensive than the product it is mimicking. Natural stones are not manufactured. They are cut and honed from large blocks of stone mined from large stone quarries. Natural stones come from all over the world, and include granite, travertine, marble, limestone and slate. One beautiful characteristic of natural stone is that there may be extreme variation in color and veining from tile to tile which is part of the inherent beauty of using a natural product in your home.. Quarry tile is an unglazed tile manufactured from natural clays and shale. It has a thick, dense body with a high-resistance to moisture and staining. Like porcelain tile, quarry tile has a consistent color throughout the body of the tile. The surface texture of the quarry tile provides a natural slip

resistance, and abrasives can be added to further enhance the slip resistance qualities of the tile. For this reason it is commonly used in commercial applications. Laminate Trends Wood look-alikes combine the classic styling of walnut and other wood varieties with the authentic look of hand-planed artisan finishes. Laminates can present the appearance of stone, tile and hardwoods and can be the perfect choice for families with young children or inside pets. “Laminate is kid-friendly. If you drop a glass on laminate, it will probably bounce. If you drop a glass on tile or stone, it will shatter. You can get the look of high end wood or stone without the drawbacks, ” Davis said. Going Green In a nod to the green movement, environmental responsibility is a part of nearly every major flooring manufacturer ’s new product launches. Shaw’s Anso nylon carpet products contain recycled content and can be recycled back into new carpet endlessly without the loss of beauty or durability. This recycling process will divert as much as 100 million pounds of carpet from landfills each year. One in every four plastic bottles recycled in North America becomes luxuriously soft Mohawk carpet. Mohawk ’s everSTRAND carpet fiber, made using PET (polyethylene terephthalate) resins, is superior to lower grades of synthetic fibers used in making other brands of carpet yarns. Since 1999, more than 17 billion bottles have been recycled by Mohawk, keeping  1 billion pounds of plastic out of landfills.  “Affordable and tasteful new products [introduced this year] guarantee that a beautiful new floor is now within everyone ’s reach,” said Davis. For more information about flooring, go to www.wfca.org. This article includes information from the World Floor Covering Association, Dal-Tile Corporation, Mohawk Industries, Teragren and Shaw.