Hardwood Floors February/March 2019

RIFTSAWN is similar to quartersawn with an accentuated vertical grain, but with minimal fleck. The saw angle is adjusted so that fewer cuts are parallel to the wood rays. This cut produces more waste. The cut is made when you quarter the log, and the remaining cuts are made from the center face, working outward. The boards come from a smaller part of the wedge, producing more waste. In rift cut it is hard to produce only wide-width rift, which is why it is sold with quartered. The rift board face has a vertical grain pattern and contains minimal fleck.

LIVESAWN is a combination of plainsawn, quartersawn, and riftsawn where the first cut is made straight through the log at its center. All the remaining cuts are parallel to the first, and this yields very wide boards and produces very little waste. Livesawn allows for more fleck effect, and wider planks show more knot holes and other natural characteristics. It goes without saying that rustic looks come and go in popularity depending on how the rustic look is interpreted. Livesawn produces more knot holes and other character marks like cracks that are smoothed and filled. The result of rustic hardwood is that the natural beauty shows through.

value to the structure, provides excellent insulation, and is durable, long-lasting, hypoallergenic, beautiful, sustainable, and timeless, creating a sense of pride and enjoyment for a life well lived. Emily Morrow Finkell is an interior designer and CEO of EF Floors & Design LLC in Dalton, Georgia, a provider of hardwood floors and home furnishings, and NWFA design contributor. She can be reached at emily@emilymorrowhome.com.

can be a lifetime investment that adds not only beauty but also value to your home. It is the only flooring category that is known for adding to the value of the home rather than adding to the cost, and that’s because it’s the real thing, not a copy of a wood look. The bottom line and the sweetest part of this flooring material is that its advantages and benefits far outweigh any negatives. It adds stability and overall

The performance of hardwood floors always comes as a surprise to nonindustry persons. Hardwood is hygroscopic, meaning that it absorbs or loses moisture based on the surrounding environment, swelling when it gains moisture and shrinking when it loses moisture. Hardwood is a natural material and should be desired more for its natural imperfections than for its perfections. If cared for properly and in areas that aren’t exposed to moisture, hardwood flooring

Photo courtesy of Emily Morrow Finkell.

the magazine of the national wood flooring association

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