Upcycled Wood Flooring Gets Character from Old Wine Barrels

Posted By Philip Proefrock On August 4, 2010 @ 6:00 pm In green Interiors,Green Products,Recycled Materials | 1 Comment

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If you are looking for a recycled floor with character for a bar or a wine cellar, what could be a more appealing than oak taken from used wine barrels (other than flooring made from wine corks ^[6])? Now, Fontenay Woods ^[7] offers flooring, as well as countertops and furniture made from oak originally used in wine barrels.

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It’s not unreasonable to think of this as upcycling ^[9], since the flooring is a higher-value product with a longer useful life. Oak is a desirable flooring material and is also preferred by vintners ^[10] for the benefits it imparts to the wine. However, vintners don’t like to reuse the oak barrels, so after they have been used once, there is not much use for them. Making flooring from this wood makes wonderful sense — the character gained from its use as a wine barrel is an advantage, not a liability.

Fontenay offers three different styles of wood for its range of products. The Cooperage collection is made using barrel ends and features printed numerals and other coopers marks, which add character to the wood. The Wine Infusion line is made from the interior of the barrels, with staining from the wine altering the coloration. The Stave line has marks from the metal banding which wrapped the barrels, giving the wood a distinctive patterning.

+ Fontenay ^[7]

Via 3Rings ^[11]

Article printed from Inhabitat – Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building: http://inhabitat.com

URL to article: http://inhabitat.com/upcycled-wood-flooring-gets-character-from-old-wine-barrels/

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[3] Email: mailto:?subject=http://inhabitat.com/upcycled-wood-flooring-gets-character-from-old-wine-barrels/

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[5]  : http://inhabitat.com/upcycled-wood-flooring-gets-character-from-old-wine-barrels/2-fontenay/?extend=1

[6] flooring made from wine corks: http://inhabitat.com/2010/05/13/recycled-wine-corks-make-stylish-penny-tile-flooring/

[7] Fontenay Woods: http://www.fontenay.us/retailers.cfm

[8] Image: http://inhabitat.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2010/08/3-Fontenay.jpg

[9] upcycling: http://inhabitat.com/index.php?s=upcycling

[10] preferred by vintners: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oak_%28wine%29

[11] 3Rings: http://3rings.designerpages.com/2010/07/21/vintage-wine-barrel-flooring-by-fontenay-wood/

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