Brazilian cherry hardwood, known for its rich reddish-brown hue and distinct grain, was once the pinnacle of luxury flooring. From the early 2000s to the mid-2010s, Brazilian cherry floors were a top choice for homeowners and designers alike, celebrated for their bold color and exotic appeal. But over the years, as trends have shifted towards lighter and more neutral tones, Brazilian cherry has seen a decline in popularity. Here, we’ll explore what made this hardwood so sought after, why it has fallen out of favor, and why it still might be the perfect choice for those looking for unique, enduring elegance.

The Allure of Brazilian Cherry: Why It Became Popular

Brazilian cherry, also known as Jatoba, gained popularity in part due to its striking appearance. Its color ranges from deep red to rich brown, and it darkens with age, developing a deeper, more complex color over time. The wood’s natural beauty, combined with its density and durability, made it ideal for high-traffic areas like living rooms, dining rooms, and hallways.

Key Features that Made Brazilian Cherry Stand Out:

• Distinctive Red-Brown Color: The color of Brazilian cherry is one of its most unique features, often adding a warm, inviting feel to a space.
• Incredible Hardness: With a high Janka hardness rating, Brazilian cherry is durable and resistant to wear, making it long-lasting.
• Grain Pattern: Brazilian cherry floors have a distinctive grain that adds visual interest and complexity to a room, offering a more exotic look than traditional North American hardwoods.

These features aligned well with the interior design trends of the 2000s, where rich, warm tones and dark woods were preferred, and Brazilian cherry was the perfect fit for these styles.

Shifts in Flooring Trends: Why Brazilian Cherry Lost Popularity

In recent years, design trends have shifted towards lighter, more neutral tones. Grays, light oaks, and neutral colors are now in high demand, as they create a more airy and spacious feel that suits contemporary, minimalist, and Scandinavian-inspired styles. Brazilian cherry’s dark, intense color and bold grain pattern can sometimes make a room feel smaller, and its strong red undertones don’t easily complement the cooler color palettes popular today.

Other Reasons for the Decline in Popularity:

• Difficulty Matching Decor: Brazilian cherry’s bold color can be challenging to match with furniture and decor, limiting versatility.
• Changing Tastes: Homeowners now often prefer flooring that won’t overpower the rest of the space and will adapt to various decor styles over time.
• Color Changes Over Time: Brazilian cherry darkens as it ages, which can be a drawback for homeowners who want a consistent look. This characteristic can make it challenging to match with new additions, like rugs or furniture, over the years.

The Benefits of Choosing Brazilian Cherry Floors Today

While Brazilian cherry may not be as trendy as it once was, it remains a fantastic option for those seeking something unique, rich in character, and enduring in quality. This hardwood flooring is still a go-to for homeowners who appreciate warm tones, love traditional or classic styles, and want a floor that stands out.

Reasons to Consider Brazilian Cherry Today:

• Exceptional Durability: Brazilian cherry is extremely hard and dense, making it an excellent choice for high-traffic areas.
• A Timeless, Rich Look: Though not trendy, the rich color and luxurious feel of Brazilian cherry can add warmth and elegance to any room.
• Investment Value: Due to its high-quality nature, Brazilian cherry can add a premium feel to a home, appealing to buyers looking for distinctive hardwood floors.
• Unique Aging Process: Over time, Brazilian cherry develops a deep, aged patina that enhances its character, becoming a centerpiece of the home.

How to Style Brazilian Cherry Floors in a Modern Way

For those who choose Brazilian cherry, there are ways to style it to fit more contemporary tastes while allowing the floor’s natural beauty to shine.

• Choose Neutral Walls: Pair Brazilian cherry floors with neutral wall colors like soft grays, beiges, or whites. This helps balance the richness of the wood and allows it to stand out without overwhelming the space.
• Mix in Modern Furniture: Select modern or minimalist furniture styles to contrast with the traditional feel of Brazilian cherry. Clean lines and lighter colors will create a balanced look that feels updated and fresh.
• Use Area Rugs to Soften the Space: Large area rugs in light, neutral tones can soften the bold look of Brazilian cherry floors and create visual breaks, helping the room feel more open.

Conclusion: Brazilian Cherry Floors—A Classic Choice with Enduring Appeal

Although Brazilian cherry may not be as popular as it once was, it remains a high-quality, beautiful hardwood with a unique character. For those who appreciate its distinctive color and lasting durability, Brazilian cherry is an excellent choice that brings warmth and richness to any space. And while it may not suit every design trend, Brazilian cherry floors have a timeless elegance that can be styled in many ways, offering a unique option for homeowners who value tradition and quality.

Whether you’re restoring an older space or adding a touch of elegance to a modern home, Brazilian cherry’s lasting appeal and unmatched quality make it a hardwood worth considering.

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Proper maintenance is essential to keep hardwood floors in tip-top shape! Individual maintenance schedules will slightly vary depending on daily use and wear and tear. To keep hardwood floors looking and performing well for the life expectancy, refer to our recommended guidelines.

CLEANING:

Protect your floor investment by setting up cleaning routines’.  Regular floor cleaning involves soft bristle sweeping, vacuuming or dust mopping. The dirt and dust particles are standard elements like clay and sand. Once the particles are scattered around with your or pat’s paw weight they will damage or scratch down the varnish layers that can only be removed by sanding and refinishing.  Eliminating airborne dust and dirt on daily basis will enhance the performance of the floor.

WASHING:

Care for each spill as small amounts of water can cause the hardwood floor to swell and cup over time. Avoid the use of wet or steam mops instead use a cleaner made specifically for the finish on hardwood floors. The steam can dull the finish and damage the hardwood floor. Bona Hardwood Floor Cleaner, for instance, cleans floors effectively; it’s residue free, removes dirt and grime to reveal the beauty of any hardwood floor. Spray the floor directly and go over it with a Microfiber Cleaning Pad- wash in between the rooms to release the captured dirt and reuse so it is only slightly damp.  Avoid using vinegar, soap-based cleaner or wax on hardwood floors.

PROTECTION:

Preserving hardwood floors with rugs and floor protectors on all furniture is important.  The adhesive felt furniture sliders absorb the dirt and tightly hold on the furniture feet for a long time to avoid scratching the floor. Placing a mat at the outdoor entrance traps the dirt and keeps it out of the house.  For the rugs placed inside the house, use in high trafficking areas (where the wood floor see more wear and tear) and with a non-skid pad that won’t discolor the hardwood floor. Some rug underlayment contains toxins that can eat away at hardwood when it reacts with the floor finish. Felt and rubber underlayment will not degrade the hardwood floors.Lastly, allow some air circulation and place stands for Christmas trees or plants, to avoid leaving a water stain.

SCREEN & RE-COAT:

Over time, hardwood floors will require a maintenance coat even when taken care of properly. Properly inspect the wood floor to make sure nothing wears through and when it starts to appear scratched or dull consider recoating the floor before it’s too late. It’s a process of removing a top varnish and applying a fresh layer, as mentioned in the previous blog about screening and re-coating. Follow the routine cleaning schedule and our simple guidelines so your hardwood floors can last a lifetime.

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More customers are looking for environmentally friendly flooring. In other words, they want to go green and save the earth. It’s important to look for material that can be renewed and recycled.

CORK

A great renewable material manufactured from the bark of the cork. Cork trees regrow their bark every 3 years (it’s a protective outer coating), no need for the tree to be cut down. Some of the amazing flooring is made from recycled wine bottle stoppers. Cork comes in variety of colors and textures that can work as a durable floor, yet earthy. Cork panels can be snapped together and laid over any subfloor, or even existing flooring.

BAMBOO

A popular grass flooring trend that shares similar characteristic as wood. Just like solid hardwood, bamboo is durable and available in variety of colors. It grows in warm climates and unlike hardwood, which can take 20 years to regrow; bamboo is a fast-growing plant that’s available in massive quantities. Like hardwood flooring, bamboo may be refinished depending on the thickness of the floor. It can also be installed using a nail-down, glue-down or click-and-lock method.

RECLAIMED WOOD

Wood that already served a purpose in a previous life can be reused- is one of the most eco-friendly options available. Typically, reclaimed wood s is rescued from old barns, factories, warehouses, boxcars and wine barrels.  The wood needs to be cleaned and free of nails before installed and finished onsite with low VOCs water-based polyurethane. Salvageable wood helps to reduce the need to plant and harvest more trees, as it doesn’t end up in a landfill or rot.

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Besides the holiday cheer winter can also mean harsh weather conditions that can cause issues for homeowners with hardwood flooring. It’s crucial to take every step necessary to make sure the floors stay in a good shape all year long.

In the winter, water melting from the snow and rock salt can pose a threat to your hardwood floors, as it can scratch and warp the floorboards. To help avoid the issue, use mats at the entranceways and use towels to dry off any spills and puddles.  Water that is left unattended might cause permanent damage that later required refinishing or even replacement. Warping caused by water damage can also dull the varnish and find it’s way to the wood. Dried salt leaves

Wood flooring loses some of its moisture during the winter, when homes are heated the air is dry. Relative humidity levels for the floors should be 35-55%. If it’s lower than recommended, the boards start to shrink creating thin gaps. Luckily, this change is only temporary, after the humidity level rise again the gaps will close up. Prevent the dryness problem by using a humidifier during the wintertime and keeping the temperatures stable.

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Advantages of Prefinished Flooring

Time

Prefinished flooring is almost ready for your room to be installed by our professional staff. It is pre-sanded, stained and coated with varnish done right at the factory. The installation is the only thing that the homeowner needs to think about. Whereas, the unfinished hardwood flooring comes raw, so it does need to be finished on site after the installation is done. There is no denying that prefinished flooring is a much faster process that doesn’t involve any sanding or coating. Once prefinished flooring is installed, furniture can be moved back in its place almost immediately, and the floor is ready to be walked over and enjoyed by you and your family in almost no time. On the flip side unfinished hardwood floors do need to be sanded, stained and coated, which can take a bit more time but with other advantages you will need to take into consideration before making your final choice. With all of this in mind, planning ahead is crucial!

Less Mess /No Smell

Prefinished flooring is almost dustless and there are no added chemical smells brought into your home during installation. The material has already been treated in the factory and once the stain is sealed at the factory, ventilation is not an important aspect needed to consider for the installation process. Before the need for staining and sealing, sanding unfinished floors does create dust even though there are vacuums hooked to the machines.

Cost

Prefinished hardwood flooring labor cost is cheaper than installing/refinishing unfinished wood. Although prefinished flooring material may cost more than unfinished, the labor costs are reduced.

Advantages of Unfinished Flooring

Appearance/ Options

Unfinished flooring happens to have more grain patterns, even though prefinished flooring is usually real wood.  Prefinished wood comes with a protective surface layer that makes it look less like the real thing. The beauty of unfinished wood is that it can be personalized to your preference. Our qualified professional craftsman rather than the factory will create unusual textures on different types of wood to your liking. In addition, the stains can be mixed (must be from the same manufacturer), varnished with oil-based or water-based finish and styled with sheen level: matte, satin, semi-gloss or glossy.  All of this is done by hand to make the floor exactly as you always wished for.

Matching Made Easy

Many of our customers decide to get their floors done for each room separately at different times. This is usually preferred either to have a space to store the furniture (during refinishing) or a particular material is more cost-effective at a given time of the year. The beauty of unfinished hardwood is that it can be added to your room to be matched with existing hardwood flooring at any time; even if a previously purchased option is no longer available.

Cleaning

The grooves of a prefinished floor create gaps that trap dirt easily, which makes it harder to clean. Rather than cleaning a finished onsite floor which is mostly flat.

Repairs/Refinishing

A finished hardwood onsite can be refinished to remove any dents or scratches, while prefinished damaged planks would need to be replaced by the factory making it hard to match on site. Therefore, it’s highly recommended to store the extra boxes of flooring, since the prefinished products are often custom ordered and can get discontinued. The daily use of flooring will result in normal wear and tear and also with anything; scratches. Un-finished wood can be fixed/restored onsite multiple times before the damaged material is actually seen as a problem. Prefinished floors can only be sanded once or twice over the span of their lifetime due to thicker polyurethane layers applied by the factory. This results in deep sanding, especially to match stain from the edges as well as doubled labor costs.

Our company works with both types of flooring, and it usually boils down to you to decide which option suits your situation best during renovation. We’re always here to help with that decision!

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Ever wondered how it’s done? This process is sometimes referred to as “buff and re-coat” since a buffer is used instead of a drum sander machine.  The crew-members use a buffer pad, to remove scuffs made on the finishing coat, by moving it slowly in a back and forth pattern across the surface. Once the first coat is screened, then it’s vacuumed thoroughly to smooth the surface. It’s crucial for the floor to be completely smooth and free of any contaminant, so the new coat of water-based or oil-based polyurethane can adhere to the old one that was just screened.

As mentioned in the previous blog, polyurethane are finishes that are meant to protect floors from everyday living.  Just because it’s meant to protect the hardwood floor, doesn’t mean it will last lifetime. Over time, the finish gets thinner and more scratches or dents become noticeable, especially when it’s deep enough to expose bare wood.  But before it gets to this damaging point (which often requires sanding), it’s recommended to screen and recoat the floor once it turns dull or light scratches start to show.  This will postpone a need to refinish (sand) the floors, which generates a higher cost for both labor and material as compared to screen and re-coat.

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