Surface Blog

Wide plank Birch and Pine floors a great fit for Rhode Island beach house

• Posted by
• Jane Eklund

Ray and Nancy Coulombe decided to replace their family’s aging summer cottage in Green Hill, R.I., with a year-round beach house that would accommodate extended family gatherings and have a traditional Rhode Island sensibility. They turned to Carlisle for their floors, working with Glen Ranagan of our Stoddard, N.H., sales and design team.

Azzinaro & Larson Architects of Westerly, R.I., designed the ocean-side house, and Stephen Sullivan Inc. of Peacedale, R.I., was the builder.

The wide-plank floors are Birch and Eastern White Pine.

The Coulombe house is highlighted in Rhode Island Monthly’s 2011 Home Design issue, including a terrific feature story and lots of great photographs. Click here to read the feature. Scroll to page 90; the story is titled “Sea Life.”

We love this house and the story it has to tell. We should also note, for the many interested people who ask us whether wide plank floors are workable when they’re installed near water, that the Coulombe’s house is just one of many seaside, lakeside, and riverside residences that feature beautiful Carlisle floors. Read the story and see for yourself!

Posted on May 30, 2011 AT 04:24 AM in Home Building & Contracting • (2) Comments

Carlisle Wide Plank Floors opens New York City showroom

• Posted by
• Jane Eklund

Here’s the official press release about our grand opening in the Big Apple! Can you tell we’re really excited about our newest showroom?

Grand Opening Draws Large Designer Crowd to Help the Company Celebrate

NEW YORK – Carlisle Wide Plank Floors held its New York City showroom grand opening on May 16, 2011 in coordination with the A&D Building’s Opening Night. The celebratory event was open to architects and designers, and featured a book signing by celebrity designer and author Robin Wilson.

“As we continue to grow the Carlisle brand, it became important that we were able to directly interact with the New York design community,” said Michael Stanek, CEO of Carlisle Wide Plank Floors. “The A&D Building, with its renowned reputation and relationship with the design community, has allowed us this opportunity.”

The expansive 2,086-square-foot showroom, located on the 5th floor of the A&D Building in New York City, features rotating panels of Carlisle’s handcrafted wood flooring. These panels, along with various installed floors consisting of different textures, species, patterns, and finishes, created an interactive experience for attendees. Guests enjoyed live music, drinks, and hors d’oeuvres while waiting in line to meet Robin Wilson and to receive a complimentary autographed copy of her book,  Kennedy Green House.

“As an eco-friendly and healthy space interior designer, I find Carlisle’s flooring to be aligned with my mission to provide homeowners with room designs that have minimal impact on the environment,” said Robin Wilson. “Not only are Carlisle’s floors sustainably harvested, but their wide planks create a beautiful statement in any home.”
Carlisle’s new showroom in the A&D Building provides a new brand contact platform for the company, which has more than 40 years not only selling, but also crafting the finest wood floors. With showrooms currently located in Stoddard, N.H., Denver, Chicago, West Hollywood, Calif., and Washington. D.C., Carlisle will now be able to reach a pivotal design market showcasing its handcrafted flooring.

About Carlisle Wide Plank Floors
For more than 40 years, Carlisle Wide Plank Floors has produced the finest restored and reproduced premium wood floors, available nationwide in a vast selection of lengths, widths and finishes that rival the flooring industry. Every Carlisle floor is custom-made, created one board at a time and tailored for the customer by skilled New England craftsmen. Specializing in wider planks, Carlisle uses only the sturdiest center from the best-grown trees to ensure customers receive a floor that is treasured for generations. Nationally recognized by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), the Carlisle team is proud to

give a deserved second life to a cherished resource, and reduce the stress on American forests. Put simply, Carlisle believes that the surface inside the home or commercial establishment should reflect and respect the living surface nature created outside of it. For more information or to find the nearest Carlisle showroom location, call 1.800.595.9663 or visit www.wideplankflooring.com.

About the A&D Building
The Architects & Designers Building is home to the New York metro area’s largest collection of luxury showrooms for kitchen & bath, appliances, tile & stone and home furnishings. The A&D Building offers entree to 40 showrooms and thousands of distinctive products in one accessible yet private place. Open to the trade and the public, Monday-Friday, 9 am – 5 pm, it is often described as “New York’s ultimate showroom resource.”  Visit www.adbuilding.com for a complete list of showrooms and information on upcoming events.

Posted on May 28, 2011 AT 05:02 AM in News & Events • (0) Comments

Spectacular Antique Oak floor the highlight of Tahoe home

• Posted by
• Jane Eklund

Wow! Follow this link to the website of Sunco Homes Inc. in Truckee, California. You’ll find an array of photographs of a spectacular home in Tahoe finished with Carlisle Wide Plank Antique Oak in widths ranging from 3 to 10 inches. The planks were prefinished with Sturbridge Brown stain, and installed over radiant heat. As our Denver Sales and Design Consultant Sarah Bergren says, “Beautiful!”

Here’s one picture to whet your appetite. Click here to see more.

Posted on May 24, 2011 AT 10:56 PM in Green Building • Hardwood Flooring • Wide Plank Specialists • Sarah Bergren • (2) Comments

Carlisle makes a splash in New York City

• Posted by
• Jane Eklund

Hundreds of architects, designers, and media members attended the grand opening of Carlisle Wide Plank Floors’ showroom in Manhattan’s A&D Building.  Featured celebrity guest Robin Wilson autographed copies of Kennedy Green House, which chronicles her eco-friendly design for the private residence of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.  Carlisle CEO Michael Stanek answered questions regarding that American brand’s unique and fashionable offerings.

So writes Jordan Barkin on the Furniture and Home Fashion blog. He’s referring, of course, to last week’s festivities in New York City, where we opened the newest of our Design Centers with a huge splash.

Check out the entire blog post — including lots of great photos of the showroom and our floors in hardwood, pine, and reclaimed woods — here.

Posted on May 23, 2011 AT 10:03 PM in News & Events • (0) Comments

More on eco-designer and Carlisle fan Robin Wilson

• Posted by
• Jane Eklund

Here at Carlisle Wide Plank Floors, we love Robin Wilson. Not only did the eco-designer, known nationally for her firm Robin Wilson Home, sign 200 copies of her book Kennedy Green House at the Opening Night for our newest Design Showroom, located in the Architects & Design Building in New York City, but her work also reflects all of our values about sustainability, green living, and making appropriate use of reclaimed materials.

Kennedy Green House, published by Greenleaf Book Group, chronicles the collaboration between Robin and Robert Kennedy Jr. on Kennedy’s Westchester County Home. Starting with the architectural plans, moving through the selection of the builder and of eco-friendly building materials, and ending with the installation of eco-innovations, custom cabinets and energy-efficient appliances, Robin uses the house as a stepping off point to help readers who’d like to build a “green” house or make their current house more eco-friendly. 

The idea is to ensure that information is available to integrate readers into their own personal eco-systems, so their homes, furnishings, lifestyle choices and health will be improved and in sync.

Based in New York City, Robin Wilson Home focuses on residential and commercial interior design, consulting, licensing, and the online Nest Store. Her work has been featured in Good Housekeeping’s LEED-certified brownstone project, Esquire’s Ultimate Bachelor Apartment terrace, Peninsula Hotel Spa salon, and President Bill Clinton’s Harlem office.

Read more about Robin at www.robinwilsonhome.com.

Read more about Carlisle’s commitment to sustainability here.

Posted on May 21, 2011 AT 12:01 AM in Green Building • News & Events • (0) Comments