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C M C M Hom e and Garden A dvertorial I House to home: a cheerful cottage floor CM I a ^ D e a r D e b b ie ; ' Do I pain t o r stain m y co a s ta l c o tta g e flo o rs? I a m no t afraid o f colour, in fact, I love it. I a m thinking a b o u t p a in tin g m y w ood floors a rich m e d iu m s h a d e o f b lu e that is o n e o f th e s trip e s in m y c o u c h c u s h io n s . B ut I'm s t u m p e d on d u rability. W hat d o y o u r e c o m m e n d ? M a rga ret DEBBIE TRAVIS here are the pros and cons o f us ing stain vs paint to renew wood floors. Dear Margaret; Thanks for the photos. You have a fairly large area to work on. The open plan shows th a t the wood floors move throughout the living and dining room into the kitchen. There is already lots of your blue present in the painted wood dining furniture and bench seat ^ cushion. Why not go with a sunny yel low on the floor to create a contrast? You could also keep the floors light and then paint a colourful pattern on the kitchen floor. But before you decide, You don't say w hether your floor boards are hardwood or lam inate. This is im portant to know if you are going to use stain. In H o u se to H o m e order to stain the old boards, they require a good sanding to open the w ood's pores so th a t the stain can sink in. Great if you have hardwood, not so good if lami nate as the veneer is too thin to take a sanding. If applied to properly prepared hardwood, then stain is more durable than paint. It com es in a variety of wood shades, there are even coloured stains available. You get rid o f unsightly scratches and stains, and the beauty of the original wood grain and knots will be refreshed. Always finish with a good sealer such as Minwax fa st dry polyure thane. You have a far larger variety o f co lours and designs if you choose to paint. Painted floors have a wonder ful, cottagey character th a t only grows when it shows signs o f wear. With today's excellent prim ers and paint produced specifically for floors, it is easier and less tim e-consum ing to paint than stain. However, be mind ful of the cons. Paint will chip, crack and peel over tim e, especially if not applied correctly. Not all homebuyers like painted floors if you are thinking of selling, and it is a major job to sand down and return to stain. Paint and stain create much differ ent finishes. It's im portant th a t you choose the one th a t not only suits your existing floor, but also a finish th a t will make you sm ile. I reinvented a cottage look for the floor shown here SAVE ON TUB & CERAMIC TILE REGLAZING th a t will inspire you to play with paint. Although th is floor was plywood, the pattern would work ju s t as well on your kitchen floor. The base coat is a creamy white. Leaving an 8-inch border around the floor, map out a diamond grid using a chalk line. Cover the lines with half-ofan-inch o f painter's tape, pressing down firm ly to keep paint from leaking. These lines will be the spaces between the diam onds. Fill in alternate diam onds with apricot paint. Once dry, com plete the design with aqua paint. I had great fun doing the border. With the help of a friend, I held down a piece o f chicken wire while my partner brushed over the surface with a small am ount of the aqua paint and a very dry brush. You could stencil a border design here too. D e b b ie Travis' H o u s e to H o m e co lu m n is p r o d u c e d by D e b b ie Travis a n d B a rb a ra D ingle. P le a s e em a il y o u r q u e s tio n s to h o u s e 2 h o m e @ d e b b ie t r a v is .c o m . You c a n follow D e b b ie on Twitter at www.twitt e r .c o m /d e b b ie _ t ra v is , a n d visit D eb b ie's n ew w eb site, w w w .d eb b ietra v is.co m . 1UB+HLE REGLAZING Discount ap p lie s to Residential only. 40 years in business 4 year warranty $ 1 0 0 00O F F Call fora free estimate! 905-625-6734 w w w .B A T H T U B K I N G .c O M CONCRETE trimmings Ltd. EXPOSED AGGREGATE (P ebble) Interlocking & Concrete Specialists ndscaping Ltd · · · · · · · Pebble Concrete Stamped Concrete Interlocking · Flagstone Walkways Garage Floors · Patios Driveways Curbs (French) . BAEUMLER DRIVEWAYS FR EN CH CURBS PATIO S S TEP S WALKWAYS GARAGE FLO O R S uality At Its Best! ^ Call Fernando FREE E S T IM A T E S ~ r ~ fa llo w f t © M / n e a m 9 0 5 -8 4 4 -5 5 1 8 1 -8 8 8 -9 4 4 -5 5 1 8 Call Mario 905.842.7171 s u n m a r la n d s c a p e .c o m