With the right basement floors, décor, and furniture, a remodel of your lower level can add a whole new dynamic to your home. Whether you want to create a welcoming space for guests, a fun entertainment zone, or a super comfy gathering area for the big game, here are six basement remodel ideas worth considering.

Build A Home Theater

Some basements may not have much natural light, but that’s perfect for a home movie theater! For in-home cinema, many homeowners love a thick plush carpet to add the kind of comfort that you can’t find in actual movie theaters. Kick off your shoes, recline in that over-sized theater-style seat, and enjoy your favorite show.

Some ideas to consider for your basement home theater:

• Install an actual projector and screen for a true widescreen feel.
• Use floor lighting to help you navigate the space in the dark.
• If you’re a movie collector, build a display case to show off your collection.
• Decorate the walls with classic film posters.
• Don’t forget surround sound and easy-to-control, dimmable lighting.

Your Own Private Gym

When it comes to home gyms, some people prefer that clean, minimalist look with neutral grays, whites, and blacks. Go with luxury vinyl tile for some added comfort under foot, and mix in that corner TV to keep up with the latest scores. A simple combination of resistance training, cardio equipment, and free weights doesn’t need to take up a lot of space but can create an atmosphere that’s great for a mind-clearing calorie burn any time of day.

With a home gym, you can also keep it simple and go for an industrial look by taking advantage of already exposed concrete floors and walls. Add artwork from your favorite sports teams or action movies, and roll out a commercial grade carpet for free weight and stretching areas. Some homeowners even make their basement home gyms into a yoga or dance studio with wall-length mirrors, hardwood flooring, and plenty of open space.

The Ultimate Gathering Space

In larger basements, you can create a multi-faceted entertainment room. Incorporate a bar with vintage, iconic art on the walls for mixing up the latest cocktails. Add a widescreen TV and a large sectional nearby for an ideal spot with friends and family or to host a small party. Add to the inviting vibe with a durable wood-look vinyl plank floor in a rich red or white oak color that looks great and feels comfortable.

If there’s room for it, basements are also excellent places for a billiard table and darts. With a large space, you can create entertainment zones—where one group is immersed in a television show, another competes for bragging rights in a game of darts, and others chat at nearby bar stools.

Create a Loft-Style Apartment

Basements can also make for great guest rooms, a mother-in-law quarters, or spaces where friends can relax, hang out, and spend the night. We suggest modeling your space after a loft-style apartment with light-colored hardwood or wood laminate basement flooring.

Embrace open space with some contemporary or minimalist furniture. Consider adding in futons or sleek pull-out couches that use space efficiently and have multiple uses—during the day, the bright, airy space can double as a relaxing gathering area before your guests tuck in for the night. A cute corner kitchen and small dining table for two are also perfect welcoming touches for a loft-style guest space.

Go For a Cozy Cabin Look

With exposed wood in the ceiling, a basement can naturally offer some rustic elements. Some homeowners will add decorative wood beams overhead, along with wooden wall paneling for a cozy cabin look. Add to the cabin look and vibe with a low-maintenance wood laminate basement floor to offer more warmth and texture.

Big couches with puffy pillows and a TV are essentials in a space like this. And don’t forget a corner kitchen to brew up some coffee or tea! For flooring, consider going with more of a classic look by using thin hardwood slats.

Build a Creative Space or Art Studio

Sometimes you just want that getaway space where you can create something uniquely your own. Whether you paint, record music, write poetry, dance, or sing, a safe retreat to nurture your inner artist can be found with the perfect basement remodel.

Install blinds for a window well to shed light on your canvas in the early morning to get those creative juices flowing. You can also add sophistication with a vinyl tile or vinyl plank floor that has a wood look but offers the water resistance to handle that messy art project, too.

Throw in a workbench with years of creativity scars, add a separate couch and sitting space alongside your personal creative zone, or paint the ceiling stark white or a vibrant color. The best thing about making your basement into a creative space is that it truly starts and ends with your own imagination. You make the décor rules, and can choose to follow them or not.

Considering a basement remodel? Let a professional help you find the right type of floor for you. Schedule a FREE In-Home Estimate to see how easy the whole process can be!

The post 6 Ideas for An Epic Basement Remodel appeared first on Empire Today Blog.

These wood textures can add an even more authentic hardwood look, and—dare we say—can even add the “feel” of wood under your feet, too. Here’s a look at some of the wood floor textures out there and how they show up in different design styles.

The Smooth Wood Look

Let’s start the conversation with the least-textured example: smooth wood-look floors, which are most commonly seen in wood laminates. A natural hardwood can be sanded to the point where its surface is smooth, but you’ll always see or feel a bit of a grainy texture to it. A smooth texture on a wood-look floor is completely without waves or imperfections. Some laminate floors will have a slight graininess built into them, but they’re still considered a smooth texture.

Smooth textures preserve the wood grain look without the rigidity and subtle roughness of a piece of sanded wood. A smooth texture may feel almost tile-like when walking on it, but not quite as cold.

Smooth textures, especially in laminates, are more likely to have a glossy sheen, although you can also find them in a matte finish. If your smooth floor is glossy, you may consider using it for a room with plenty of natural lighting. A matte finish is a more muted tone and tends to be better for rooms with less overall lighting, giving it more of a relaxing, subdued feel.

Seams can also affect how a smooth texture influences design in a room. For example, floors with more pronounced seams designed into them in a medium to darker tone, such as a hickory or cherry wood, can give more of a polished, elegant look to a room, especially if there’s a glossy sheen.

The Hand-Scraped Wood Look

Some refer to hand-scraped floors as having a “wave” texture. Hand-scraped hardwood flooring actually looks like the floor was skimmed in sections during the wood milling process, giving it a wavy look that’s easy to see if you look at the surface at an angle with a light shining on it. Some hand-scraped textures also have natural scuffs designed into them for more of a vintage look.

Darker colors can add rustic charm—an almost log cabin look and feel—to a space. This texture looks great in front of a fireplace and in sitting areas. Some hand-scraped textured floors even come with varied plank widths for added sophistication. Hand-scraped hickory, white, or red oak wood-look floors look great and can warm up a study or den, offer a homey country touch to a dining room, or bring a welcoming feel to a living room or great room.

You may hear other terms such as “subtle scraped” or “heavy scraped” when talking about hand-scraped floors. These terms are often used to emphasize how much or how little of a scraped look you’re getting. Generally, heavy scraped is closer to a distressed look.

The Distressed Wood Look

This distressed texture is sometimes called “wire brushed” as well. A distressed floor looks as if the surface is aged; it embraces its imperfections and has a well-worn look. If you were to actually “distress” natural wood, you might use chemicals or tools to add imperfections to the surface. With a wire-brushed wood texture, no two pieces look alike.

A wire-brushed oak flooring is one of the most popular floors out there today. A white oak wood-look floor with a distressed texture and matte finish, it offers a subtle elegance and is great for transitional design that might merge vintage, industrial, classic, and contemporary styles.

You can even find the distressed white oak wood-look in porcelain tiles. With the natural wood look and grout lines, it adds sophistication with design flexibility. These floors work great just about anywhere. Install them in a home with a country theme, an urban loft, or anywhere in between.

Distressed looks in general are pretty design versatile. They can make a game room fun and lively while leaving the door open to different themes and wall coverings. They can absolutely set the tone for a great room space that flows to other areas of the home. Distressed floors are a go-to in minimalist design, and they look great in large, uncluttered areas where they can stand out.

Generally speaking, you can’t think small with a distressed texture. This statement-making flooring shouldn’t be contained to a small room. It’s best in large rooms and throughout a home.

Considering a wood-look floor for your home? Let a professional help you find the right floor for you. Schedule a FREE In-Home Estimate to see how easy the whole process can be—and in some cases, you can even have your new floors installed as soon as next day!

The post Understanding Wood-Look Flooring Textures appeared first on Empire Today Blog.

Flooring Type: Wood Laminate

Product/Color: Beach House/Asher Gray Oak

Rooms: Family Room, Kitchen, Dining Room

This Michigan family wanted to add some flare to their newly acquired home, wanting something durable yet timeless. They made a great choice in selecting 100% waterproof Beach House wood laminate flooring in the Asher Gray Oak color. Next, it was time for the installers to make it happen and bring these new floors to life.

Upon entering the home, the installer noticed the unique herringbone design of the cedar siding on the exterior of the home and went above and beyond by incorporating the herringbone pattern into the stairs leading into the sunken living room. The homeowners were shocked and amazed at the look and attention to detail the installer was able to provide. Another amazing job, and another happy homeowner!

If you’re ready for a flooring experience where you and your needs come first, schedule a FREE In-Home Estimate today with Empire®.

The post Waterproof Wood Flooring Completes This New MI Home appeared first on Empire Today Blog.

Flooring Type: Wood Laminate

Product/Color: Main Gate/Wheat Oak

Rooms: Bedroom, Hallway

This Florida homeowner met with an Empire® sales professional for an overhaul of their home, from old and stained carpet to wood laminate. Wanting something that was durable and budget-friendly, he chose Main Gate wood laminate in the Wheat Oak color, which completely transformed the look of his home.

We sent our installer of the month to complete the job, and once again they confirmed exactly why they have that title! The homeowner was very happy with the new floors. See for yourself how they turned out.

Liking what you see? To find out how Empire® can help you turn your old carpeting into beautiful new wood-look floors, schedule a FREE In-Home Estimate now!

The post Wood Laminate Flooring Gives This FL Home a Beautiful Look appeared first on Empire Today Blog.

Flooring Type: Wood Laminate

Product/Color: South Gate/Amber Walnut

Rooms: Kitchen, Dining Room, Hallway, Bathroom

This busy home needed a warm oak flooring look to bring several rooms together that was also a great value. So the homeowner chose the South Gate Amber laminate in the Amber Walnut color. The color meshed well with the green wall coatings and other natural wood accents in the home.

With embossed in register construction and 8 mm thickness, the moisture-resistant wood-look South Gate is manufactured in the U.S.A. and is free of harmful chemicals found in some imported products.

With this job, the install team also dealt with a height difference between the dining area and an adjacent room, which meant adding plywood before the installation. Even with the added prep work, the job was still completed in a day.

Are you considering wood laminate for your home? Schedule a FREE in-home estimate today!

The post Wood-Look Laminate Adds Warmth to Busy Cleveland Home appeared first on Empire Today Blog.

Flooring Type: Wood Laminate

Product/Color: South Gate—Antique Barn Oak

Rooms: Dining Room, Hallway, Staircase + Landing, Living Room

Looking to update the look of their home, these New York homeowners called on us to help them get beautiful new floors. An Empire flooring professional came to their home for a free in-home consultation and showed them several samples that would work for their home, explaining each choice, as well as the pros, cons, and factors they should consider when making their choice. They ultimately decided to go for the wood laminate South Gate in the Antique Barn Oak color and style.

With an extremely realistic wood look, this laminate is high quality and made in the USA, so it lacks lots of those harmful chemicals you’d find in an imported product. It’s also moisture-resistant, so can be used in pretty much any room. And if it’s installed in a high-traffic area, it’s easy-to-clean, so no worries about these beautiful new floors getting ruined or looking shabby.

Clearly these homeowners made a great choice, as these new floors look just flawless in their home!

Looking for floors like these in your own home? Schedule your FREE In-Home Estimate now to see what flooring types may work best in your home!

The post Wood Laminate Floors Beautifully Update this NY Home appeared first on Empire Today Blog.

Flooring Type: Laminate

Product/Color: Main Gate—Harvest Oak

Rooms: Dining Room, Living Room, Hallways

These homeowners wanted to replace their outdated hardwood flooring in lieu of a wood-look laminate option. After reviewing the samples our flooring professional brought to their home, they found their perfect fit with Main Gate laminate in the Harvest Oak color. It provided a beautiful, updated look that upgraded the whole look of their home.

The customer said that the installers were “great and easy to communicate with,” as well as impressive with their courtesy, work, time and friendliness. According to the customer, they did “a quick and awesome job”! Check it out for yourself how these updated laminate floors upgraded the whole look of this home.

Like what you see? Schedule a FREE In-Home Estimate with Empire Today to get your own wood-look floors.

The post Wood Laminate Flooring Gives this Home an Upgrade appeared first on Empire Today Blog.