Though it may not be quite as familiar as hardwood or luxury vinyl, cork is a wonderful floor material that’s becoming more popular with homeowners every day. Moisture-resistant, flexible, and eco-friendly, cork is a versatile material that offers a lot of value for some rooms and homes (especially those in humid areas).
And speaking of versatility, it’s important to note that cork is useful for a lot of things besides flooring. It makes a great underlayment for other floor coverings, and it can obviously be used to make wine bottle stoppers and bulletin boards. But there are a variety of other applications for which cork is ideally suited.
We’ll share 10 of our favorite things we’ve seen people do with cork below to help give you some ideas.
1. Wall Coverings
Cork can make for a very interesting wall cover. Its light weight means it is easy to attach to your walls, and its sound-absorbing qualities will help cut down on excess noise. To provide more visual interest, mount the cork in alternating rows, with one row featuring the “front” side and the next row featuring the “back” side of the cork.
2. Drawer Liners
Because cork is resistant to mold and moisture, and it possesses natural antibacterial properties, it is the ideal material for lining drawers (especially kitchen drawers). You don’t even have to attach it to the bottom of the drawer if you measure and cut carefully – its thickness will help it stay in place.
3. Crafts
You could likely use cork to make thousands of different kinds of arts and crafts projects. We’ve seen some people cut slots into small slabs and use them as photo holders, while others have glued small pieces of cork together to create large mosaics. You could even use cork to make a nice stand for all of your other art projects.
4. Carvings
Perhaps the most awe-inspiring use of cork is in carvings. Using small utility knives, talented artists have created remarkable carvings of intricate landscapes and other subjects. Of course, you don’t have to have that kind of skill level to carve simpler things; it wouldn’t be hard to carve your initials or perhaps your favorite sports team’s logo.
5. Protective Worktable Mat
Whether you use your worktable for arts and crafts, woodworking, or tinkering with auto parts, it probably suffers a fair bit of damage over time. But if you slap a piece of cork on top, you’ll be able to protect the table from damage while also giving yourself a softer, more comfortable working surface.
6. Yoga Mat
Cork is naturally soft and somewhat flexible, so it can serve as a great yoga mat. You will likely want to use a thick piece (or adhere two pieces together) to ensure it is comfortable enough and provides the support you need, but its naturally grippy texture will prevent it from sliding on a smooth floor the way traditional yoga mats may.
7. Pet Feeding Mat
Cork is actually a great flooring choice for pet owners, as it stands up well to their claws. But cork can also work well as a feeding mat. Simply cut an appropriately sized piece and stick it under Fido’s food and water bowls. This will not only protect your floors from dinner-time messes, but it will also prevent the bowls from sliding around.
8. Acoustic Insulation
Cork can be very useful for reducing noise and making your home quieter in general. You can place it directly on walls (or even ceilings) for this purpose, but it can also work in a number of other ways. For example, if you are mounting speakers on a wall, place a layer of cork between the speakers and the wall to help prevent some of the soundwaves from penetrating the wall.
9. Floor Protectors
Small pieces of cork work very well as floor protectors. Simply cut out small pieces and attach them to the feet of chairs, couches, and other heavy items using an adhesive. This will prevent the furniture from damaging your floors, and it will also prevent your furniture from sliding around on the floor.
10. Coasters
A lot of commercially manufactured coasters feature cork components, but there’s no reason you can’t just make your own cork coasters. And because you can cut it into just about any shape necessary, you can also use cork to protect your kitchen table and counters from hot pans.
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Cork is certainly a fantastic flooring material, but as you can see, it’s also remarkably versatile and useful for a variety of different purposes. Take a look at our selection of cork flooring options or schedule a consultation with one of our customer service representatives to find out if cork would be a good choice for your flooring needs.