Do you want retro-style, resilient flooring for your kitchen, bathroom, basement — maybe even your entire house? We tend to write about new designs one at time — when we, or readers, spot them. And we’ll continue doing that. But realistically, if you are in the market for new resilient flooring, I recommend that you prepare your eyeballs and start looking through all the styles available from every manufacturer. “Every manufacturer?” Yes — and to help, I’ve begun the following list.
“Resilient”: meaning not tile or concrete, but cushioned flooring stuff that kind of bounces back underfoot.
Shown above: Dave and Frances’ Marmoleum-brand linoleum floor.
Where to look for linoleum flooring — available in sheets or in tiles:
I know of two companies in the U.S. that make old-style linoleum:
- Forbo / Marmoleum
- Tarkett
Where to look for vinyl, luxury vinyl and vinyl composite flooring — sheet and tile:
In alphabetical order:
- American Bilt-Rite
- Armstrong
- Azrock
- Congoleum
- IVC
- Harvey Maria
- Johnsonite
- Karndean
- Lonseal
- Mannington
- Olympia Tile
- Tandus-Centiva
- Tarkett (seems to have bought Amtico)
- Vinylasa
Important research tip: When searching these companies’ websites, look at the Residential/Homeowner sections of these companies’ websites, of course. BUT, you may be most likely to find flooring that suits our midcentury sensibilities in the Commercial/Contract sections.
I started to try and bucket and sort particular lines by size and type… but immediately became frustrated because there are so many options. Perhaps I will do this someday — but it will need to be an X-Y chart. There IS a lot of cool stuff available.
Where to find glue-down cork flooring:
Re cork flooring, I don’t know anything about the new floating floor technologies, so for this list, I focused on companies that sell original style glue ’em down cork flooring, just like I have in my 1951 bedrooms and foyer. When and if I ever redo these floors (the foyer in particular has seen better days), I will likely be using glue-down tiles from companies such as these:
- Duro Design Cork Flooring
- Expanko
- Evora Cork
- Forna Cork Flooring
- Globus Cork Flooring
- Jelinek Cork Flooring
- Lisbon Cork Flooring
- Nova Cork Flooring
- U.S. Floors
- Wicanders
Note: I have no idea how to vet the quality of one manufacturer’s cork floor tile vs. another’s.
Note, Precautionary Pam reminds: Be sure you know what’s in the vintage layers of your house — they could contain vintage nastiness such as lead and asbestos …. consult with a professional to assess what you have so that you can make informed decisions. For more info and links see our Be Safe / Renovate Safe page here.
All of our flooring research
is filed in the category Kitchen Help / Flooring
Thank you, dear readers: I was turned on to a number of these companies — likely, most — by readers. Thank you a million times over!
toni says
I went with Marmoleum in my dog room/breezeway. It’s not as soft as vinyl but it will hold up to traffic better than vinyl. My 12×26 room was just over $2,000. Here’s the web site. Leave the dash in the address. It belongs there.
http://www.forbo.com/flooring/en-us/products/marmoleum/cfctp7
I sent for samples and got, I think, 7 nice 5×7 for free. The hard part was choosing just one. The guy who installed mine was not factory trained but has been installing floor covering since the 70’s so I took the chance. It turned out fine. You will need Forbo’s glue and I had the seams done which was extra. I don’t know how much your installer can/will charge. I am in rural Iowa which might mean I didn’t spend as much as you will have to.
Brooke says
Does anyone know where to find VCT (vinyl composite tile) in sizes smaller than 12″ x 12″?
pam kueber says
Brooke, I do not know of any. Some folks cut them down… I have heard of this being done with precision water cutting too…. Taking steps like this to get down to 9″ x 9″ or 6″ x 6″ (yes, that size existed — I have it in my bedroom hallway) in my kitchen was beyond my level of desire to do things The Hard Way
Amy Dietz says
I’ve seen true mosiac art made out of VCT. They scored the larger tile a few times with a utility knife (box knife) and it broke cleanly.
Sandra says
I went with Marmoleum for my mid-century kitchen. It mops nicely, but the mind-boggling thing was trying to pick just one color–there were so many. The colors lend themselves to mid-century designs, one great color after another, not limited to the neutral dull tones of any other flooring used today.
My installer had used it mainly for hospitals and commercial settings.
I cut up the trimmings to line all my kitchen cabinet drawers. It’s nice to work with, but I think an installer with experience is necessary for seaming two sheets together, and it does leave a visible line.
I’m considering using it as a backsplash, too, if I can find some remnants in the right color.
Katherine says
Hi- Roppe makes marbleized raised coin floor tiles and stair treads, like the flooring at our newer middle school. We chose marbleized Golden, an optimistic choice for our 1952 garage entrance/laundry hallway/mud room and stairs! Cleans up great, cheerful and “fits” the look of the home. Marbleized colors are streaked with white…..our preference. Gobs of color choices including classic black with white streaking . New option called Fiesta marbleized, looks more like the chips in home epoxy floor kits. Retrorrific!
pam kueber says
Thanks, Katherine, I’ll check it out!
meb says
Thank you for the heads up, Katherine.
Mary Elizabeth says
It’s interesting to read all the comments here about RetroCorning’s house and what is or is not likely to be noticed by homebuyers, having been through the selling/buying dilemma not too long ago. Although every buyer varies in taste, all of them notice things that are worn, dirty, or in need of repair. Kim the Realtor is right when she says buyers, unless they are handy and have done a lot of home repairs, often overestimate the cost of fixing or replacing things. I think sellers who spend money updating the essentials (new roof, new septic and plumbing, new heating system) rather than on decor items are on the right track. That’s basically what sold us on our new house, and that’s basically what buyers liked about the home we were selling. But also keep first impressions in mind. What attracted us to the house we ended up buying (after looking at hundreds of mid-century ranches on line and about 40 in person) was the overall style and the bright, clean kitchen with its original knotty pine cabinets, polished and warm, paired with a new floor, clean, waxed countertop and new plain white appliances. What went through my mind on that first viewing was, first, I can move into this kitchen (and the rest of the house) right away. My second thought was that I would eventually replace the floor, which didn’t fit the style of the kitchen, but that it would do for now. And the laminate kitchen counter was so clean that we didn’t notice it was shedding its glitter until we actually moved in.
I did really hesitate when I saw that the one bathroom was poorly lit, in bad repair, and without any outlets. Because my husband and I can do a lot of work ourselves, we accepted the fact we would have to fix some things in the bath right away to make it livable, and we knew approximately what it would cost to do so. It wasn’t until two years later that it became the resplendent restored pink bathroom featured on this site!
Therefore I think that if RetroCorning wants to sell the house, the new floor shouldn’t be fancy and expensive and very retro-stylish (inlaid borders, etc.). I agree with Kim the Realtor that the sellers should replace the floor with something that fits the style of the house and kitchen and is new and clean.
Finally, I want to say that I feel RetroCorning’s pain in having to move from a house he or she planned to stay in an retro-renovate more. I think the best advice my Realtor gave me about cleaning and staging my old home was to let go of it in advance and stop thinking about the things I would do to it if it were still mine. That’s very hard to do when you had planned so many projects for your house. I wish you the best of luck.
Lynne says
I am in the give a “flooring allowance” camp. Oh how I wish we had had that luxury when we bought our 1955 ranch 4 years ago. The sellers went along with the realtors advice and replaced with the cheapest, low grade options they could find. Pitiful, thoughtless choices.
When my father in law passed, the decision was made to replace the flooring as suggested by the realtor. I objected and said give an allowance and let the new owners choose. Needless to say, I lost that argument. Husband and his siblings put in the cheapest, most boring, off the roll carpet they could find. I saw the lady who bought it two weeks after the sale, and it was pulled up and it all went into the dumpster. What an incredible waste. Just wrong on so many levels.
Dyan says
I work in an architectural/design firm and I’ve recently come across a product from Patcraft that I think could be used in a Mid Century home. It’s a luxury vinyl tile that is mitered and can be used to form different patterns. I’ve order the Aged Brass, it seems to have a faint glimmering pattern to it. They currently make about 10 colors, including yellow, red, orange and blue.
http://www.patcraft.com/ProductSpecHS/Show/I315V/00760/random/0/False/False
pam kueber says
hmmmm… while I greatly appreciate the share… i cannot put this in the blog story proper …. no chevrons here! … i have a real thing against chevrons…. too 2011-2012-2013-2014 and enduring still… my personal prohibition is akin to no open toilet seat photos either! 🙂
Brenny says
I really like those color, Dyan. That company seems to be more for the architects or contractors, but I’m going to try to get some samples from them. Have you had any feedback from the Aged Brass? Was it good?
Robin, NV says
I’ve been on the hunt for a certain kind of flooring for a while now. I see it pretty commonly in public bathrooms (especially gas stations). It’s a sheet vinyl that looks sort of pebbled with little 1-2 cm rectangles. I see it A LOT in public bathrooms, so it must still be available? Really wish I could figure out what it’s called and who makes it.
Erin in Ohio says
I love a good mystery…have you taken a picture you could share? If it’s a flooring style that other retro-renovators might be interested in, maybe Pam and Kate would be willing to research it or pose your “what is this and where can I find it?” question. 🙂
Amy Dietz says
We recently remodeled our kitchen in our 1964 home. We used Armstrong’s Striations (VCT) for a modern look. It’s easy to clean (no grout!) and soft underfoot. Love it. I would never have thought of it if not for RetroRenovation, and the brave acquaintance who installed vinyl before I did.
RetroCorning says
Great timing on this article as usual. We are selling our 1955 Ranch here shortly and just need to do some work on the floors of a mud room and connected kitchen. I’m all in for maintenance free vinyl/linoleum flooring but our realtor is coming to give her opinion on what would be best for resale. Can’t wait to hear what she thinks and what the mass market is looking for now.
Roundhouse Sarah says
I hate to see resources wasted. Sometimes things get changed out to sell the house and then the new owner changes it again when they move in bc it wasn’t their style. How about leaving a flooring allowance for the buyer. Just put aside the money you would have spent and this way the buyer gets to chose exactly what they want and you don’t have to have the headache of trying to guess what they would want.
pam kueber says
I’m with you, Sarah.
Brian says
True there is a lot of different styles. Not everybody likes what you like.
However if you are dealing with a home that you have lovingly kept or taken back to period correct. The situation is quiet different from your everyday home.
Lots of people dont want to have to deal with the hassel of doing projects on the house the are buying. They want turnkey homes.
With a period correct house, finishing the floors and having the house finished is probably appealing to more people that leaving a project for them to complete.
Also many people can qualify for a mortgage but not a reno loan as well. So they are basicly buying the finished floor over the length of their mortgage verses having a mortgage payment which will be basicly the same and a reno loan payment as well. With the reno loan being over a much shorter length with a higher interest rate and therefore a rather high payment as compared to the very small increase in thiers mortgage payment with a finished floor.
pam kueber says
But if you give them an allowance for a new floor then that would not be in the mortgage…
Jay says
Cosmetic finishes do not directly correlate to the mortgage. The buyer is mortgaging the property – the land plus the dwelling. Interior finishes and their condition as well as fixtures are negotiable and determine the sales price as well as the comparable properties in the area.
pam kueber says
See this story – https://retrorenovation.com/2012/07/30/how-to-sell-a-midcentury-house-full-of-original-features-we-hear-from-three-real-estate-agents-who-specialize-in-midcentury-modern/
I do understand the goal to have all major parts of the home in good repair. Yes, it maybe likely that the majority of folks can see past worn surfaces and this will slow things down.
And yes, now that I think more about, I do think that consciously or consciously, anything visibly worn and needing replacement sends the worry up the spine asking “What else is worn and needing replace THAT I CANNOT SEE”
Jay says
I remember that great post very well. Of course it stands to reason that any house for sale should be clean, tidy and uncluttered with no visable interior issues. I have attended open houses that were badly worn, dirty and cluttered and you knew that they were probably full of defered maintainance items and watched people litteraly run out of the house. Wouldn’t want that realtor to sell for me!
RetroCorning says
Thanks for reposting that Pam, we totally missed it the first time around somehow. Some great information in there.
We also won’t be putting the cheapest, builder grade floors in if we do so no worry there. Everything on this house was done “the hard way”. All the woodwork was safely taken back to the original wood and either re-stained to natural or repainted. We manually stripped 59 years of paint off of the outside vertical cedar siding and returned it to original.
Sorry to hijack the comments with my floor post but a great discussion and different viewpoints.
Kim says
As a Realtor, I have to disagree with your suggestion to offer a credit. Although I agree that a buyer may come in and redo the work anyway, I know from experience that the seller will more than make up for replacing the flooring in purchase price. Many buyers simply lack imagination when viewing a home with components that need replacing. And, they are terrible at overestimating the cost of replacing said components. If the seller doesn’t replace the floor, the buyers will try to gouge him on a credit. I’d suggest replacing the flooring with something that is economical, looks nice, and is and consistent with the style of the home.
pam kueber says
Ok, yes, you are very likely right, for the majority of buyers….
Jay says
What Sara said! I think a modest credit for new kitchen flooring should make everyone happy. If you didn’t replace it for yourself why replace it for a total stranger who may or may not like the floor appearance and or quality. Seems like a waste. It seems anymore when a house sells in my area, the dumpster is immediately unloaded in the driveway and the reno begins. I guess that’s why I am sort of happy with vintage – could never afford to gut a house.
RetroCorning says
Thanks for the suggestions, this may be the way we go. We have the problem that we invested in the infrastructure of the home as we thought we were staying (furnace, central air, septic, roof, etc.) To get back any of our investment the house needs to be finished off. We moved back during the shale gas boom with housing prices inflated on top of it.
Our market is very tough right now, tons of houses for sale. Now that fracking is banned in NY and oil prices have fallen there are massive cut backs in the oil/gas industry. One of those live and learn, we going to lose some money we just need to temper how much.
Jay says
Well I think all your infrastructure improvements will put you at an advantage. They were all things I had to deal with after purchasing my house. The area where I live has some of the best school districts in the state so worn or outdated finishes don’t come into play unless the house is really really beat from top to bottom in which case a flipper steps in. Good Luck!