Oak Flooring - The Best Of British

I grew up in a large Victorian house in the country, somewhere between urban suburbia and the rural green fields of the outer county. It was my own room, my brothers had to share - the only advantage of being one girl among five boys! My room was located at the back end of the big white house, with its black eves and heavy sash windows. It over looked a grass tennis court, and an orchard that, come autumn, was filled with apples, greengages and wild loganberries. It was paradise to me. Every night I would sleep with the curtains open and watch the majestic oak tree just outside my window twinkle in the moonlight, its long branches extending and protecting. In summer, we would hang a long rope from a large bow, attach an old rubber tyre, and swing endlessly until deliriously dizzy, legs buckling and wobbling.

It instilled in me a life long passion for trees. Nowadays, with an increasing understanding of the importance of sustainability and preservation, forest farming has become a wonderful and affordable industry that protects and encourages the continued growth of one of our most valuable natural resources. Forests are carefully managed so that as trees are felled they are replaced with seedlings that eventually grow into mature trees over a thirty-year period. Managed forests are working environments that provide employment and pleasure; they enable the production of a wide range of natural products that we often take for granted in every day life: paper, furniture, construction. They also seek to preserve our natural ecosystems, providing shelter and safety for our sometimes, endangered wildlife. The craftsmanship associated with timber dates back for centuries.

When I set out to introduce wooden flooring to my home, it went without saying that my immediate inclination was to opt for the mighty oak. My best friend Google and I, set out on a journey of research leading me to online sites offering a wide range of oak flooring. Oak is a hardwood and visually very pleasing with grainy hues and knots that sing texture and warmth. Different qualities and finishes exist in varying board widths, allowing the user to create their desired look whether it be antique, distressed, or the more distinguished, modern elegance.

Equally, there are different grades of oak from Character Grade to the top end of the scale, Prime Grade, where colour variations are minimal. Kiln dried, long board lengths with wider widths are preferable being reminiscent of the great houses of our forefathers. Oak flooring also elongates and broadens a room to its maximum and in so doing, enhances the properties of light and airiness available in the given space.

Years later, when I was visiting my parents one day, I went for a walk in the garden where I discovered a small, baby oak tree, a cast off from the mother tree, that was now growing independently. My mother helped me to dig it up and re-pot it. I brought it home, and found a new spot for it to grow and thrive. Sadly, it will never reach any real towering heights in my lifetime but there is a child somewhere in the future who will look out on this great tree and form the same memories that accompanied me through my own childhood.