BIOPHILIC BEAUTY
As luxury vinyl flooring continues to grow in demand across commercial and residential projects, Matthew Speck, Head of Commercial Sales at Karndean Designflooring, gives
an insight into the latest trend of ‘bringing the outside in’ using biophilic design principles, and, discusses what shapes and patterns are new in vinyl.
With health and wellbeing jumping up the list of priorities for end-users and designers, there has been much talk of human-centred design and biophilic design principles being at the heart of improving productivity in the workplace and retaining talent in competitive fields.
The new Human Spaces Report recently offered a global perspective on the effect that biophilic design has on happiness, productivity and creativity in the workplace. It found offices with nature-inspired design elements reported an impressive 13% higher level of wellbeing and demonstrated 8% greater productivity.
In response, architects and interior designers are looking for new ways of replicating nature to the highest degree and bringing the natural world inside via the materials they specify, and flooring can play a role in meeting biophilic requirements.
BRINGING THE
OUTDOORS IN Interior designers, SpaceInvader Design, recently demonstrated this with their successful ‘great outdoors in’ design concept for the Regatta Head Office in Manchester, featuring Karndean LooseLay. Bringing together The Regatta Group’s three international outdoor brands, Regatta, Dare2b and Craghoppers, alongside
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the Hawkshead retail business, Regatta looked to use the various wood hues as a way of integrating its employees and making them feel at ease, but at the same time creating individual neighbourhoods to represent each brand. Trees, plants and vegetation were added against authentic Karndean LooseLay wood designs to round off the great outdoors feel.
In order to add touches and references to nature, specifiers can look to realistic and authentic LVT designs with intricate knots, grains and textures of real wood and stone. Being inspired by nature, all our luxury vinyl wood and stone designs tell their own story and offer their own individual design. We work with designers and end users to introduce new laying patterns and design features, and they can be laid in a harmonised way for realism.
We’ve recently tapped into the trend for reclaimed and repurposed natural wood materials by adding 12 distinct new plank designs to our Van Gogh Wood collection. The designs replicate the unique look that comes from the transformation of wood over time, in addition to processes such as burning, liming and smoking. The four groups, French Oaks, American Redwood, Scottish Beech and Mexican Cypress
ensure a grain and colour palette to suit a wide variety of commercial and residential projects.
PATTERNS AND SHAPES In sharp contrast, shapes and patterns can add visual interest and offers the possibilities to create the floor of your choice. With geometric designs becoming popular, architects and interior designers are looking for greater flexibility when specifying a floor in order to create something out of the ordinary.
Designed to offer unparalleled flexibility, Karndean is introducing the new Kaleidoscope collection containing six designs as standard including Cubix, Pennon and Apex. The collection contains popular shapes and patterns, such as hexagons, chevrons and cubes to name but a few, that can be cut in a number of colour combinations across Karndean’s established wood and stone designs. Kaleidoscope also introduces block colourways, giving designers the ability to specify bright colours against wood and stone in commercial and residential spaces.
Kaleidoscope designs will push the boundaries of LVT floors, allowing complete freedom for unique shapes, sizes, colour combinations and patterns. The only limit is your imagination.
www.karndean.com
www.tomorrowscontractfloors.com
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