Flooring!

As my contractor puts the somewhat-finishing touches on my hardwood floors downstairs (and by that I mean that he is only a third of the way done as he is waiting for my kitchen installer who will be done at the end of next week instead of the beginning of last week, but that's another story...) I am doing my OWN flooring remodel upstairs.

Meet my TrafficMaster Allure Hickory Resilient Plank Flooring that I'm installing (with help from my mom and dad and Gordon -- none of whom have installed something like this ever before) in my second floor.

I was going to paint my upstairs for the year that it will take to get the money together for my second reno. Something short-term but reasonable to walk on. Then I took a good look at the so-called "sub-floor" up there. Yikes. Holes everywhere. And I can't have carpet due to allergies. So I saw some cheap laminate there at the Depot and thought, "well, maybe I can install this and reuse it in my basement someday..." But the cheapness of the product meant that it would likely splinter if I dissassembled it. The flooring specialist recommended this stuff.

I was sold.

It's pretty cheap. It'll go over my totally uneven floors. It's easy to install (ie: I don't need a saw like I would for laminate). I can later take it up when I want to reno my upstairs with REAL wood and use it in my basement where it will be waterproof and mildew/mould resistant. So it's not throw-away money.

And tonight I found out that it actually looks GOOD.

I would likely be fooled if I walked into a room with this stuff down. Unless I dropped down and scratched it with my fingernails, I might not be able to tell. So that means it's much like laminate, but easier to install (in my opinion) and more durable and reuseable.

Yay! New cute floors that might actually be done before I move in next week!