Discover the latest collections and ideas from the likes of Bolon, Parador, Forbo, Amtico, Havwoods, Kardean and Karta. By Toby Maxwell
Words By ToBy MaxWell
Bolon
Bolon has added four new colours to its Elements range. Drawing inspiration from nature, the range aims to highlight natural tones inspired by tactile materials such as stone, wood, and textiles.
Lisa Jarhult, product developer at Bolon, says: ‘We have enhanced the tactile and textile characteristics in the new Elements collection, deepening the colours and making them comforting and pleasant. It’s a subtle blend of hues, neutral colours and chromatic accents. The collection ranges from rich, rustic, earthy tones to lighter, crisp and cool colours. They blend into the environment, almost as if they were taken directly from nature.’ www.bolon.com /uk
Parador
Parador has announced over 140 additions to its engineered wood, vinyl, laminate and eco-friendly Modular ONE ranges. The 2024 collection also sees the Modular ONE range expand to include 33 new styles, featuring a parquet selection as well as white, marble-look tiles with veining running throughout. www.parador.de /en
Milliken
An imaginative concept for a carpet tile design, by a textile design student and Milliken Design and Clerkenwell showroom intern, was made possible by Milliken’s patented colour and patterning Millitron technology.
Milliken has a longstanding relationship with the textile degree programme at Loughborough University, having collaborated on a competition to design carpet tile concepts for six years running. During 2023 and 2024, Loughborough textile design student Emily Hayes worked as an intern, based in Milliken’s Clerkenwell Showroom. For her placement project, Hayes was challenged to create a range of carpet tiles that would demonstrate the pattern and colour capabilities of Milliken’s Millitron patterning technology. The brief was to reflect the architecture, artwork and culture of the Clerkenwell area.
Hayes says: ‘I began the project by exploring the area and taking photographs of anything that stood out to me. Something that did capture my attention was the Dorothy Annan murals, which I stumbled across whilst I was incredibly lost in the Barbican. The murals were a celebration of new technology and optimism for the future in Britain. My designs explore this connection between the visual language of the murals and the Clerkenwell landscape.”
The colour palette consists of a bold red, yellow and green, combined with softer colours – pink and peach – which give the brights space to breathe. Millitron is a highresolution digital patterning technology developed by Milliken’s in-house R&D team. It enables complex pattern effects and colour combinations.
Hayes says of her time as an intern at Milliken: ‘Since beginning my placement year at Milliken in July of 2023, I have been given the opportunity to expand my creativity in a completely new way. I have never explored carpet tiles as an outcome before, so this project has been a big leap out of my comfort zone, and I have become quite passionate about flooring in the process.
‘I have also thoroughly enjoyed working in the London showroom as it has given me a chance to see all sides of the business and a better understanding of the journey from manufacturing of the product to sales. Working at Milliken has given me a sense of direction. It has affirmed my love for textile design and my interest in pursuing a career in interiors.’ www.millikencarpet.com
Karndean
Karndean DesignFlooring has expanded its Art Select range with the launch of 39 new designs. Woods including European oak and English ash, and stones such as marble, onyx, Ceppo di Gré and quartzite, are reimagined in a practical format designed for use in a wide range of settings, from workplace and retail to hospitality and co-living.
Art Select is available in contemporary colourways and sizes, including a new slimline plank, a large herringbone size and a basketweave. Fleur Carson, MD at Karndean DesignFlooring, says: ‘This collection has been two years in development and is an expression of our commitment to the craft of creating beautiful flooring that also meets the stringent technical requirements of today’s built environment.
‘The enhanced Art Select collection is our largest-ever launch and will build on our offering of timeless classic styles with a contemporary twist, including designs that are rarely available as flooring in their natural state. In addition to brand new wood and stone designs, our Art Select range will incorporate existing Da Vinci designs in compatible formats.’ www.karndeancommercial.com
Tarkett – EcoBase
DESSO by Tarkett has halved the use of petroleum-based material in its DESSO EcoBase carpet tile backing by replacing it with a by-product from the Scandinavian paper industry: biobased pine rosin. EcoBase backing is already 100% recyclable and Cradle to Cradle Gold-certified but now has a further reduced carbon footprint due to the replacement of 50% of its fossil-derived tackifier, instead using a rosin ester sourced from Swedish paper mills working with sustainably managed forests. The material is distilled from rosin (wood saps), which is left over from the wood pulping process. This 5% material adjustment in the backing results in an average 20% reduction in each tile’s circular carbon footprint. www.tarkett.co.uk
Karta
Sustainable wood flooring specialist Karta has launched a series of sustainable floors with 18 new, natural, toxin-free and plastic-free options. The Recycled Leather Series adds to Karta’s wood collection, aimed at design professionals, developers, and contractors who are seeking a balance of sustainability, aesthetics and cost-effectiveness.
Karta has developed the series from leather offcuts sourced from the shoe industry, with a further four layers, including, for example, biodegradable wood composed of 100% PEFC-certified natural fibres and resins, and a cork backing for comfort and durability.
The Recycled Leather Series is part of a click system installation process, available in 18 colours including natural French oak, reclaimed oak and old brown English oak, all available in a wide plank measuring 1,850x200x9mm.
Robert Walsh, founder at Karta, says: ‘Our new Recycled Leather Series… introduces innovative design elements that offer unique, sustainable flooring solutions at an affordable price point. Utilising waste materials to create new, longlasting products really is the future of product manufacturing.’ www.kartafloors.com
Tarkett – iQ Optima
Tarkett’s iQ Optima has been relaunched with a new range of colours across four palettes: Basalt, Argil, Lichen and Oxid. The idea of the new approach is to combine a directional effect in the design with a palette of colours that evoke movement and emotion. It features three different patterns, including Blend, Original and Mono, each selected for their understated, subtle nature, and intended for use across large general areas.
The new collection has been organised to reflect Tarkett’s wider range of iQ flooring, with each of the four colour palettes designed to be paired across the iQ Granit and iQ Eminent ranges. www.tarkett.co.uk
Forbo
Forbo Flooring Systems has reimagined its digitally printed Flotex textile range with the launch of new designs aimed at hospitality and leisure, education and offices. The organically inspired Flotex Advance range is split into Code and Latitude designs, with 39 contemporary patterns across a range of tones. Both are available in sheet and tile formats, with the sheet product benefitting from a new special ‘next’ backing, which means it can be installed adhesive-free or fully adhered.
Code is subtly flecked, featuring 26 colourways, from neutral greys to deep purples, while Latitude is formed of 13 organic patterns in light and dark shades, in a more neutral palette for workspaces and classroom environments. www.forbo-flooring.co.uk
Arcana Ceramica
Black & Cream from Arcana Ceramica offers six base tiles in the collection: Cream Dune (the only colour available in 120x120cm), Black Night, Cream Beach, Brown Wash, Black Space and Green Giada. The series offers a range of white-bodied wall tiles to combine with the porcelain tile range.
Arcana has also introduced its Les Bijoux Doinyo glazed porcelain tile range, which is available in a selection of marble-effect finishes. The Doinyo colourway is a light, misty blue-grey shade with veining and details in muted beiges and paler tones. The collection comes in a choice of six colourways and three sizes. www.arcanatiles.com
Amtico
Amtico has expanded its Form collection with new naturalistic Woods and Stones. Inspired by nature, the LVT collection has been designed to stand up to use in commercial settings.
Divided into four Wood palettes – Warm, Neutral, Cool and Saltus – the collection has been enhanced with 18 new oak designs that reflect evolving trends in the real wood market, with more sophisticated, high-grade aesthetics featuring distinctive knots and cracks. By studying the intricacies of natural wood and stone, Amtico’s in-house designers created Form’s tones and textures to reflect the patterns formed by grain and weathering. All 18 new oaks can be used with Form’s five wood laying patterns. Joining Form is Broad Weave, a new laying pattern with a larger scale design in 18x18in modules, which provides a wood pattern option for larger commercial spaces.
The two contemporary Stones additions are Ammonite and Char, both of which have a smooth surface texture, and can be specified in small or large parquet and the new pavestone laying pattern. www.amtico.com /commercia
Havwoods
New Bog Oak patterns are the latest additions to Havwoods’ Handgrade Premier collection. Ranging up to 4m in length and up to nearly 0.5m in width for the oversize board, Handgrade Premier are specialised planks that are produced to order. The boards are FSC-certified timber, with the range being suitable for underfloor heating. www.havwoods.com
Vives
Vives has launched its new Micra range. The base tile is available in 20x20cm porcelain, in white and graphite, with five designs. The matte CL1 finish comes in White, Cream, Siena, Umbra, Green, Indigo and Graphite, all also available in 80x80cm, 60x60cm and 59.3×59.3cm. A 51.9×59.9cm hexagon and 30x30cm mosaic complement the collection. www.vivesceramica.com
