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Tag: Reclaimed

Top 5 Interior Design Trends in 2023

Posted on by The Main Company

Interior design trends are constantly evolving, with each year bringing new ideas and styles to the forefront. In recent years, we’ve seen a shift towards more natural and organic elements, as well as a focus on sustainability and minimalism. Bold colours and patterns are also making a comeback, with designers incorporating bright statement pieces creating focal points in spaces.

As we bid farewell to the trends that defined 2023, we find ourselves at the threshold of a new era, ready to embrace the innovations and inspirations that 2024 holds. But before we dive into the future, let’s take a moment to reflect on the best trends that left an indelible mark on the year gone by.

 

Earthy Tones

earthy tones seating booth

 

Taking inspiration from rich terracotta, or the several hues of crisp fall leaves we have descended into the era of earthy tones. Earthy tones have become a popular choice for designers looking to create a warm and inviting atmosphere in their spaces. These colours are inspired by nature and evoke a sense of tranquility, calmness, and relaxation. This is one of our favourite interior design trends for the year, we have incorporated earthy tones in several projects recently and cant to wait to share them all soon!

Natural Stone

Rose pink Lacanche in the top trends of 2023

 

A striking statement piece in any space is undoubtedly a natural stone feature, whether it’s a countertop or backsplash it is sure to make a statement! From marble to slate, natural stone adds a sense of luxury and elegance to any space. Given natural stone’s durability, it is more a of timeless trend which has been around for decades now. 

Biophilic Design

Birch plywood kitchen island with solid concrete worktops

 

Biophilia is an emerging trend in the field of interior design that emphasises a connection to nature. It involves incorporating natural elements such as plants, water, and natural light into interior spaces to create a more calming, welcoming environment. Biophilic design also seeks to incorporate natural patterns and textures, such as wood grain and stone, into the design of buildings and furniture. Our wide range of reclaimed wood is the perfect start to a biophilic design project!

Statement Appliances

Blue kitchen island with bright orange classic range cooker

 

Statement appliances are becoming increasingly popular. Appliances that go beyond the typical stainless steel or white finishes and make a bold statement in kitchens. Statement appliances can range from bright and bold colours to unique shapes and designs that catch the eye. We love experimenting with bright classic ranges from Lacanche, they are a great way to create a focal point!

Minimal Shelving

minimal floating shelves in kitchen

 

Minimal shelving emphasises simplicity and functionality in interior design. The goal is to create an uncluttered and visually appealing space by using minimalistic shelving that blends seamlessly with its surrounding. This can be achieved through the use of simple and clean lines, neutral colours, and the absence of ornate details. Minimal shelving is also practical as it allows for easy access and organisation of items on the shelves. The shelves can be used to display decorative items, books, or everyday objects, a great way to personalise your home!

Reclaimed Flooring for our London Showroom

Posted on by The Main Company

There are two elements to consider when it comes to our flooring in our new London showroom: Which samples boards to present customers with and which flooring to lay?

Before we consider these two though, I thought it would be nice to take a quick look at how we actually obtain and then process our reclaimed timber for our engineered flooring.

Building ready for demolition

It all starts with the demolition of old mills and barns. Through our timber merchants, we manage to get some incredible wood from all over the world. You can be assured that when you purchase a reclaimed product it’s truly unique to you.

Reclaimed flooring cold pressed on to birch plywood sheets

Once the timber has been de-nailed, cleaned and re-sawn it’s ready to be cold pressed on to birch plywood. This makes an incredibly stable product which is easy to lay and is compatible with under floor heating systems.

Worker rolling top finish on our reclaimed floor boards

Once our reclaimed engineered flooring has been machined with tongue & groove and then end matched it’s time for the finish. Due to the natural undulation in many of the reclaimed timbers, the only way to get a high quality finish is to apply the lacquer by hand. As you can imagine this is a very time consuming and labour intensive process.

Whitewash reclaimed flooring in drying racks

As you can see above the final boards look amazing. From start to finish it takes days for a board to be processed.

Now we’ve had a look at how our reclaimed flooring is processed, let’s get back to where we started: Which samples boards should we present to customers in London? Which flooring products should we lay?

Which flooring to lay in the London Showroom?

Reclaimed engineered flooring blocks laid on the showroom floor with integrated disabled ramp

We’ve actually chosen two products! In the entrance we have a brand new product, Reclaimed Engineered Burnt Silver Barn Bricks (see above). These will be uploaded to our website very soon so watch this space. The rest of the showroom will have our Reclaimed Weathered Barn Oak. This flooring features in our Cornwall project and is a firm favourite. We can’t wait to share the pictures with you once has been laid!

Which samples boards to present customers?

3D visual of reclaimed sample floor boards for the new London showroom

There’s space for 32 sample boards in the London Showroom. This sounds a lot but once you break it up in to reclaimed flooring, new flooring, and cladding we have to make sure we select products people would like to see there!

We’re currently focusing on our most popular products like Reclaimed Douglas Fir Nordic White Flooring and Reclaimed Heritage Oak Distressed Charcoal Flooring while also manufacturing new ones with selected batches of reclaimed timber. If there’s something you would like to see there let us know! You can also explore our full range of flooring samples on our website.

 

The Deli Med Journey : Meat Me Wrap Me Bistro

Posted on by The Main Company

The Brief

Jamie Oliver in feel, rustic reclaimed, very rubbed back paint finishes, mixed materials, functional for staff movement and work processes, comfortable but not for too long for customers, and to stand out as completely different from anything or anyone else.

Rustic bar seating with red industrial stools

Our First Meeting

Toni from Deli Med, Toni Cakes and More and Meat Me Wrap Me, what a character.

You would think he is Italian, he is actually Swiss, so change your concept immediately of the Swiss apparent reserve after meeting him, absolutely not reserved, completely driven by passion, such passion for food and taste, image, pleasure for consumer experience,  motivated by being bigger, better and tastier than any competitor.

Toni normally has a stand at any given show in the UK, from Suffolk Show to the Great Yorkshire Show and that is where he literally tripped over us in 2015. We have a large stand on a prime location at The Great Yorkshire Show and Toni, rushed by on a mission, who was caught short by the ‘Bistro Table’ at the front of our stand, he actually stopped in his tracks. The rest is history. 

Square rustic bistro table with red metal industrial chairs
The Bistro Table that started everything!

The ensuing times we communicated were both in a variety of mediums and also locations. 

Take the napkin drawings at a motorway service station, unfortunately northbound and southbound not understood. The various meetings at Carluccio’s in the Milton Keynes Shopping Centre, spreading plans across the table for hours and only drinking one expresso. The meetings at our showrooms in North Yorkshire, more drawings on paper bags this time, but closer each time to the end goal.

Fresh coffee and note book in a cafe

In the interim we designed a unit at the bottom of an escalator, this included a real work of art for the Deli Med logo in steel. This did not proceed as the Shopping Centre management chose another company to have the location.

We created many CAD drawings and Sketch Up drawings to get to the end result, it was a long process, we absorb these costs as we believe our customers are loyal and also innocent to the amount of work created in the lead up to the end result, the finale and complete satisfaction of a job very well done.

CAD visuals of our commercial bistro stand
The final CAD drawing for the Meat Me Wrap Me Bistro in Milton Keynes

What was that end goal?

Sublime and sinking into a restful area in an otherwise hectic Shopping Centre delivering an excellent experience in take away gastronomy coupled with a space allowing communication, charging of phones and personal contact, a drink both alcoholic and not and sustaining food. 

Toni is both generous in his character as he is in his portions; this is where he stands out in any show. We needed to work with the companies he chose for the refrigeration units needed for the display of his amazing display. This was a complex process but we did achieve the end result.

Fitting the last unit in the Milton Keynes Centre was as interesting as the first, working overnight from 8pm to 8am was brutal, this lasted for 2 days. The fitters had jet lag for a long time after the fit, it is a really hard installation. 

Customers sat down eating at bistro with wine bottle lights

The Meat Me Wrap Me Bistro is located at Unit 4 Silbury Arcade, centre:mk, Milton Keynes.

Want to see further images of this project? Check out Commercial Project 16.

Do you have a commercial joinery project you would like us to help with? We’re always here – Get in touch today!

New or Reclaimed Flooring?

Posted on by The Main Company

And what’s the difference?

You’d be surprised at how many times we get asked this question. The easiest thing to do is look at the characteristics of each group. We’ve separated new and reclaimed flooring analysing their size, appearance, availability, durability, and price. 

Please bear in mind that we have based this comparison on engineered flooring.

Reclaimed Flooring

Size

Due to the nature of a reclaimed product, unless stated, all our reclaimed flooring have random widths. 

Reclaimed flooring usually has shorter lengths and narrower widths than new. They are approximately 1600mm long and 155mm wide (average widths range from 100mm – 240mm and lengths from 500mm to 2450mm).

Appearance

Reclaimed engineered pine floor boards

In general, reclaimed flooring has a rustic and unfinished look. Many of the boards have original features such as cracks, nail holes, and shakes emphasising this rustic appearance.

As our timber products have been sourced from various locations it means they age in their own unique way. There will be tonal differences both batch to batch and throughout the same product. This ensures you get an original look, with no two planks the same. 

Availability 

Reclaimed timber stacked up ready for process

Many of our reclaimed flooring products have very limited quantities. If there’s a product you like, our best advice is to act quickly. Once a product has sold out it cannot be reproduced.

Durability 

Many of the reclaimed materials we use to produce our flooring are from old mills and agricultural barns. Their original application was to last a lifetime, which is why reclaimed timber is often harder than new, like for like. Reclaimed flooring is already weathered, any additional marks and scuffs it gains over the years actually improves the look of the timber. This keeps reclaimed flooring relatively maintenance free.

Price 

Due to the complexity of manufacture in general reclaimed flooring is more expensive that new. 

New Flooring

Size

When selecting a new flooring product you have many options at your disposal. You are able to select the width of floor, or random width if you prefer or more original look. This flexibly in choice is great – If you love the look of a wide board, you can order the widest available. 

With new floor boards wider widths and lengths are available than reclaimed. You’re able to get 180mm – 280mm wide boards with lengths of 400mm – 2450mm (average above 2000mm). It is also possible to get extra long lengths of 2950mm (average being 2500mm) if your project requires it. 

Appearance

Natural white oak floorboards

New flooring in general has a more contemporary look. This is largely due to the timber having a consistent base colour with a less rustic appearance. We’re able to manufacture the same boards and finish differently to refine a certain look.

We also have the capacity to make bespoke finishes if you feel there’s something missing in our product range or you’re trying to match a previous board.

Availability

If you select new flooring to be the product for you it’s not only readily available, it’s also repeatable if future projects require more. 

Durability

Clean french oak flooring with leather barstools

The majority new flooring is French oak and sourced from managed forests where replanting and the environment impact are key to the operation. French oak has a beautiful depth of colour and character as well being very hardwearing. The top coat finish adds to the durability of any floor as long as this is cleaned and maintained the floor will  look as good as new for many years to come. 

Price

There’s a large price range with new flooring but in general it’s less expensive than reclaimed. It all depends on how the floor has been manufactured. In simple terms the more processes the floor has gone through, the more expensive it is.

Shadow cast on original pine dresser

We hope this has been useful to analyse which product is right for you. To make this process easier for our clients, we offer flooring samples that could help you in decision-making.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact the flooring department on flooring@maincompany.com or call 01423 330451.

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