I am traveling for the next 10 days roughly so I am adding some pictures from Portugal just to keep things interesting.
This is a quick photo a of a map that shows the cork growing regions which are mostly all in the Mediterranean. This is authentic cork which produces cork wine stoppers, cork flooring, cork underlayment and bulletin boards and basically anything cork.
One of my favorite cork patterns. Basically when the veneer is sliced it has an appearance almost like wine stoppers. Makes for a very interesting flooring choice especially for a wine cellar.
Not alot of cork insight in this photo, but it was a beautiful evening on the beach in Portugal and as a wise man once told me, “Enjoy the journey…”
This is a pallet of virgin cork bark. This first harvest from the tree is not usable for cork stoppers therefore would otherwise be waste. This first harvest is completed about 25 years after the tree was planted. The next harvest following the virgin harvest is done about 9 years after that and STILL is not suitable for cork stoppers. Therefore another harvest that is basically waste. Of course both of these harvests are well suited to other uses beside cork stoppers most notably cork flooring! Yeah. An interesting side note is that when the cork bark is harvested from the cork oak tree the tree is carefully treated to make sure it will live on. And then nature steps in and the bark begins to regenerate. The tree actually steps up its intake of Carbon Dioxide to give it enough strength to regenerate. This renewal cycle is so positive in so many ways!
This is a cool automated line that moves some future cork flooring into place on the production line. It is really neat to watch these things work.
At first glance you may think that I am giving some insights about the production of cork, or asking an really in depth question about the intricacies of formaldehyde emissions or finish application, but no. I was asking where the bathroom was.
Wow, your blog is really informative. I love the photos of the cork creation process, and your info on trips to visit factories. Gives me a lot more confidence in your commitment to the environment as a company. Thanks!
Thanks for your comments. Maybe you can see that I love what I do? Flooring is fun!
Any chance you’ll be opening a store in Portland, Oregon anytime soon? I have no doubt you’d do a ton of business in our green city. You could open up near the new Ikea, pay less money for the building (as you’d be revitalizing NE) and probably get quite a bit of business from the throngs of people flocking to Ikea.
Great idea for a location Anne. No doubt Portland is one of our strongest Markets.
I will pass on your note to our Real estate team about the area near IKEA.
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Interesting, thanks! I got cork floors last year and am loving them!