Remember when we “guested that nest” on Upper Kingston Road?
I’ve been thinking about those reclaimed brick floors in the hallway off their kitchen ever since!
The homeowner told us they were actually thin slices of salvaged brick, and that you install them just like you install regular tile flooring.
And now that the living and dining room floors are done…
…it’s almost time to rip out the ugly, stained old tile currently covering our kitchen floor and replace it with something we love.
So the question du jour: To brick, or not to brick?
Whaddya think?
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I say do it in a bedroom where you won’t have to worry about keeping it clean or being on your feet with it for long periods of time! Getting caught up around here . . . forever since we’ve chatted . . . so excited for you and the pilot episode! xo!
Go with the brick…it looks fantastic. I have friends who have it in the foyer of their beautiful home and I love it.
love,love the brick ….might do the same ,love to know what kind your using and where to get them….they would really look nice in my kitchen and dinning room….
I think the brick would look great!
BRICK!!! Just be sure to SEAL really well with a good tile & grout sealer. Then clean up is super easy: sweep or vacuum & damp mop, done!
Pretty to look at, yes, Hard on your feet, worse for your kids ( to come) if they fall on it. Guananteed death for any dishes that land there & really, really hard to keep clean.
I say go for it! I live vicariously through your beautiful rooms, and I’d love to see a brick-floored kitchen!
100% yes to brick!!
I absolutely love the brick. Go for it!
Yes, Yes, Yes to the brick!
Oh. My. Gosh. BRICK!
Sealed brick, a thousand times…brick! I’ve had many homes with brick or stained and sealed Mexican pavers. Seek expert advice for the mortar mix to accept seal or over wood subfloor. I love the wood I have now but loved everything about my brick. Swiffer it and/or mop with vinegar-water and spot clean spills. As long as it’s sealed, you will love it!!!! (You can lay a heater layer under for warming your tootsies, if need be.)
Hugs!
I LOVE it!! I would totally do it. I think the aged feel of brick for flooring would be amazing. It adds so much warmth and character to a room, and what better room than your kitchen! Go for it! Curious though if it really is as easy as tiling 🙂
Seems like it would be hard to stand on for very long AND hard to clean.
GO BRICK!!! I’ve had brick floors in my kitchen for 15 years now and I sooooo LOVE them…best floors ever (you can never tell if they are dirty…how awesome is that? I also wood floors in my den and dining room and both rooms led to the kitchen brick floors and it looks good.
Blessings,
Linda
Nothing could be cooler style wise-L-O-VE it-BUT…I spend waaay too much time in my kitchen to stand on something so unforgiving. 🙁 It makes me hurt just looking at it.
I love the brick but I love the old flooring as well…tell us how you would clean the brick? Might be tricky but it is beautiful…I love brick…
I say go for it. Now days they have many products available to seal and coat porous stones and bricks.
The greatest floor I have ever seen was at an old plantation in Mississippi that we stayed at one year for our anniversary. The floor was reclaimed brick, that was covered in beeswax and then rubbed over with burlap for texture. I still dream about that floor even years later. Brick would look so awesome in your cottage. You two rock!!!!
We have sealed brick in our kitchen and family room. We cannot keep them clean, no matter how much we mop it. Our feet are constantly black after we walk on it and we track the dirt throughout the house. I finally stripped the floors with a porous stripper and a scrub brush. There was literally sludge when I started scrubbing. It was a labor nightmare! I had to bring in the outside hose to wash the sludge off and use towels (at least 20 bath towels) to absorb all the water. I sealed it after I got it all clean and even after 4 coats, it still is dirty after I mop it. I’m seriously considering ripping it up and putting in hardwood floors, but I have to let the blisters heal on my hands before I tackle that.
defintily bricks. I love the kitchen from the first foto.
I love the brick! I think there needs to be some sort of sealer on there in case oil splatters or spills on them… or red wine. My friend did brick in their kitchen and put a clear sealer on it and it looks amazing.
I helped build a Cafe/Bistro from dirt and we had a heckuva debate about brick. We wound up having our bakery/coffee shop area and our walk way/entry covered in this type of brick. The other floors are wide plank reclaimed hardwood. The brick looks beautiful, is sturdy as all get out, but a MASSIVE PAIN IN THE REAR to clean. After trying about 100 different things ourselves, we finally had to outsource regular cleanings to a professional company that comes in overnight, waters, scrubs, and then puts a light finish on top. It’s pricey and ripping it back out has been discussed plenty.
In the beginning when we installed these, also, for some reason they shed. I can’t really think of a better way to put this, but they had gravely stuff (I made up that word too, gravely) stuff they’d give off.
They are also exceptionally HARD (duh, brick, right?) but boy, my dogs would BARK after working/standing on that floor like no other. I don’t think I’d ever put them in my kitchen for that reason alone, as you’d have to buy those rubber mats to stand on or you would just stop cooking. And cooking barefoot, forget it.
The other thing that comes up in a high traffic area is that people trip on them, in particular women in heels and old people because they are so uneven. Obviously, more of an issue in a restaurant as it’s a liability.
Sorry to rain on your parade but, entry way…maybe. Kitchen? Think twice!
Oh man. I love that look! My only concern would be with durability and cleanliness. Do they crack easily? Are they easy to clean or is there always gritty brick dust clinging to them? I guess you could seal them to eliminate that problem…
Love the brick!!
If you drop anything consider it smashed. Many people love slate and brick but I don’t think they are practical. And as many have stated – incredibly hard to clean. That’s why they work well outside – they get a constant scrubbing in the rain.
Love the brick! Looking at those pics, I wish I had a room that I could use brick in. One question – how do you clean it?
When we built our house 35 years ago, we used old brick for the kitchen floor… whole bricks laid on top of cement in a herringbone pattern. I have loved it. Compared to the hardwood floors in the rest of the house, the brick floor is warmer in winter since there’s no crawl space underneath. I raised three kids on it; they crawled on brick and if it was tough on their knees, maybe that motivated them to walk earlier. I’ve even dropped glasses and jars on the floor and they didn’t break. My husband is a farmer and tracks in dirt with the best of ’em; the floor doesn’t track or show dirt like vinyl flooring. I just vacuum and wet mop it as needed. I never waxed the brick floor. Over the years when it began to look dull, I added another coat of varnish. The only real issues we’ve had with it are installing additional HVAC vents; that required a jack hammer. Love it. I say go for it!
Definitely brick! 🙂
I LOOOOVE brick in kitchens. You can’t go wrong!
BRICK!!! Definitely brick. If anyone can pull it off, you can!! 🙂
Brick! Not that you needed my opinion. Hope things are going well…so excited for you guys! Muah!
Brick. definitely…
I LOVE THE BRICK IN A LIGHTER COLOR; TERRA ROSA OR BEIGE. HERRINGBONE PATTERN IS NICE, BUT THE RUNNING BOND IS TOO.
BEST…VICTORIA
Forgive me if this has already been mentioned, but I’ll weigh in as a Mom. A floor like that, lovely as it is, could be pretty tough on little people. A brick floor could be a stumble problem, would really hurt to fall on, and I just don’t know how you’d get a truck or doll stroller to go on it! I know your hoping to adopt a little one, so it just something to think about for down the road.
It’s beautiful but I wouldn’t touch it with s 10 foot pole….not for a kitchen anyway. I’m a neat freak and can imagine how hard that would be to clean.
How about somewhere else? Front porch floor and/or walkway? How about the back splash? Still could be messy but I’m pretty neat in the kitchen so it would work for me…..
I love love love brick floors and have always wanted some…so that’s my vote!
……follow that yellow brick road and brick the kitchen!!!!
Brick, brick, brick!
I like the brick!! It’s cool and different! Do it!
Well, I read your blog & have never posted a comment. I am inclined to post on this topic because I am serious on what I’m about to say. Dead serious. From experience, don’t do it unless you have all the time and energy to invest in cleaning and never being able to go barefoot without pain. If you want this old rustic, imperfect, lived-in look, you will never be able to mop and get it done in manner you’re normally used to. You could seal it to make cleaning easier, but then it won’t look rustic anymore…and you will have to keep re-sealing more than you probably realize.
Seriously, if you are going to brick an interior floor, do an experimental entry or something that you can cover or rip out when you realize what a pain it is. Don’t jump into a kitchen without knowing what you’re dealing with. Trust me. They make for pretty pictures, but what you see in the rustic manner you’re loving is not exactly what you want t to live in. If it were that great of a product/application, it wouldn’t be such an interesting novelty.
Love the look of the brick. I don’t remember if you have a laundry room or entryway, but it could be great there! With 6 kids I hate to have to have a hard time with clean up, but if you are up for it and like it enough, go for the brick! Great inspiration photos by the way!
I too love the look but question the practacality? Not sure if that’s a real word or not. I got stung by putting waxed hardwood floor in my house cause I loved the look over varathaned hardwood. When you clean it it’s a really really big job and the house smells horrible for days after. I’d love to refinish it but I hear that if any of the wax remains the varanthane will not adhere. And it has bevelled edges. So now when I may a choice I question all those things I love the look of because I’d hate to go through this again. I love slate tile but i worry it will look dirty eventually.
Brick…..please! Love the pics!
I love the way it looks in the kitchen but I wonder if it would be a good idea with little ones? I could see many scuffed knees with a floor like this!
BRICK…luuuuuuuuuuuuv luv it!!
Hey, did I miss the reveal of what you did with the uneven part of your living room??
Hi Layla, I had “split-brick” floors put in my kitchen and breakfast room in Mobile, Alabama back in 1979. They were polyurethaned in a satin finish and were EASY to care for. Never did more than damp mop them.
BRICK!!!
my neighbor has that new but worn looking half brick that you can lay down like tile. every time i go over to her house, i drool over her bricked floor. so much detail!!!
Definitely brick…love the look…the kitchen is the place for brick!
LOVE the look of brick in a house, but for a hallway or entrance area, not an entire room.