I checked out cork for my kitchen floor and decided against it as it doesn't hold up well to water, apparently. Or dog claws, which was the deal breaker for us. Have you thought of using linoleum? Not vinyl, but the old fashioned linoleum? It's tough, looks good, lots of choices. I'm going with linoleum throughout my little 1100 sq ft. house...we're just too hard on hardwood, don't like tile/stone/etc. You could do a checkerboard pattern using something close in color to the rest of the floors in your house with a contrasting color... maybe darker?
Here's a link that might help...

Here is a link that might be useful: linoleum flooring

We went with the Marmoleum/linoleum and have had big issues with scratching and other marring and yet we have no dogs and wear nothing but soft soled shoes in there. I'd do cork before I'd ever consider Marmoleum. We paid a lot for our floor and it looked bad from day 2.

I think the mocha is a lovely color and not too dark. Our current floor has a pattern of a mottled black and 2 grays (basketweave) and it is easier to keep looking good than the white tile it replaced. Your mocha is really not so dark after all.

However, I am not a huge fan of either cork with the granites you are considering. They don't seem to tie in well with white and the orangey/brown tones of the cork. There would not be a flow with either choice.

Hi J. Welcome to the forum.

I think cork would be a nice choice. Your flooring will look like a different color because...well...because it IS different. I wouldn't worry about that.

That link didn't look too dark on my monitor, but I saw lots of orange. If your wood is orangey then it should be ok.

But, I don't think it would look good with your granite. Could you find a cork less orange? Like I said, trying to come close to the orange wood isn't necessary. Something that worked with the granites you like would be great.

Thank you for all your help!

Now.. I have to think about whether the flooring color worked with the granite color.... Ahhh! Things are too complicated for a person not very "interior-design-wise"... My artistically able friend shook her head right away when she saw the samples of the cork and told me - 'just go with tiles that go witht he rest of the kitchen and wear slippers if it gets too cold in the kitchen" - we don't wear shoes in the house so I told her that I want like warmer flooring.

What color wold those granites go well with?

Here is the colors that I was considering for what is worth... But I guess, I will have to concentrate what goes well with the granites

Here is a link that might be useful: my floor and cork samples

I have cork in my kitchen. It is from US Floors, it is a floating system. (Planks) Have had zero problems with it. If there is a gouge in it, simple stain pen works. The floor is naturally warm and it is so much more comfortable underfoot than hard tile. My dh always complained about heel pain, he has noticed that since we installed the cork flooring, (almost 2 years ago) he has had no problems.

I have hardwood in the foyer, and the cork meets up with it. I just made sure that the cork was darker, and yet had the same undertones as that floor and it all works.

Also, my cork is completed factory sealed (top, bottom, ends, tongues and grooves) to prevent issues with liquids.

My only issue is that a dark floor shows every little bit of fuzz. And now that we are selling the house I really realize how much shows. Last thing before I leave when there is a showing is the final swifter-ing as I head out the door. But of course, I love this dark color and yes, I would do it again.

Bee

Here's a picture:

Bee,

I LOVE your kitchen! That was the similar look what I was hoping with White Kashmere countertop if we were to go with that color.

I did worry about the "dark flooring showing everything" problem... Can't promise to myself that I will be cleaning the foor twice a day once the kitchen is done (and with two young kids..)

Can you tell me what color your cork floor is and where you got it? Thank you!

I always feel bad posting this after dianalo, but we have had such a different experience with our Marmoluem that sometimes I just can't believe she and I had the same product. Ous was installed three months ago and still looks perfect (as I would expect it to, but dinalo said hers started showing badly from the start). We NEVER cut our labs toenails. We should, but we don't. They get worn down naturally on our driveway, but she still has some nails. We have no scratches, or dents or tears or anything. I think the Marmoleum floors are one of the best purchases in our house. It doesn't collect ANYTHING, so it is a dream to clean, too. It is also very soft to walk on. We had tile in our old house, and I can't believe the difference. We got the sheet product, in the Caribbean color. It is a great color that blends with a lot of wood floors. Best of luck!

senator13, Thank you for the pictures. I really like the color. But I can't seem to be able to find Marmoleum flooring people near by! Argh!!!

Bought it online from a company called Quality Flooring4less dot com I just went and looked at their site. Enough to scare any consumer away...they haven't taken down their sale from the Spring...they were very easy to work with, just for the record.

It is USFloors, and there are a lot of words in the description:

New Dimensions Natural Cork, Narrow Plank, Corte

whew

Here is a link that might be useful: My cork

Thank you, Bee for the info. The darker cork sample I have is as dark as what your cork shows to be in the link... So it may show dirt easily....

Hard to find something that looks good and cheap and low maintenance... DH already told me that with the new kitchen things should be kept neater than how things are now... Humph... Maybe I should not renovate....

So I went to quality flooring4 less and they don't have USfloors cork tiles any more. SO I am looking beyond homedepot and lowes now for cork flooring source.

What I have to decide is... what sort of color goes well with either Ubatuba or Kashmere White countertop?

There are a few options at quality flooring4less. Since I am clueless at what color (light or dark) will go well with the countertops I am thinking of, I can't shop around...

Here is a link to quality flooring4 less APC cork flooring page for anyone who might be able to educate me...

Here is a link that might be useful: APC cork color selections