The demand for renovation and construction services and products remains high. The topics of creating new homes or modernizing old ones draw dozens or even hundreds of residents daily to home finishing product showrooms. All these visitors aim to choose solutions that align with the latest trends and offer the best price-quality ratio. For this reason, home finishing product suppliers at "Žalioji galerija," located at Pramonės pr. 14 in Kaunas (within the Urmas Bazaar area), who receive a high flow of visitors and their questions daily, share their advice on how to avoid mistakes and select the best solutions for tiles, flooring, doors, and ceilings.
The most prominent trend is large-format tiles.
Skaistė, the marketing manager of the tile center "Varduva," located in the "Žalioji galerija" within the Urmo Bazaar area, notes that the most prominent trend in the tile market is large-format tiles.
"A few years ago, 60×60 cm tiles were considered large-format, but today we see tiles as large as 120×260 cm and even bigger. Marble-patterned tiles also remain popular. This is probably the most common choice among customers. Currently, the classic white marble patterns are being replaced by bold and contrasting marble veins in green, brown, and blue hues. However, perhaps the most striking trend of 2022 is large-format, red clay-colored terracotta tiles for walls and floors," says Skaistė.
When asked about the most common mistakes made by customers, the representative from the tile center highlights the lack of knowledge about tile cutting and installation.
"Often, customers buy cheaper, non-rectified (non-calibrated) tiles and ask the installers to maintain a minimal joint width of 1-1.5 mm. Unfortunately, this is not achievable with non-rectified tiles, which due to allowable deviations, can only be properly installed with a minimum joint width of 3-4 mm. So, if minimal joints are desired, customers should choose only rectified tiles. If the joint width is not a concern, then non-rectified tiles are suitable," explains the "Varduva" representative.
She also advises carefully evaluating the quantities of tiles being purchased.She also advises carefully evaluating the quantities of tiles being purchased.
"Customers often find themselves short of one or two tiles during installation, so we always recommend buying a slightly larger quantity. Usually, it is recommended to add 5-10% more tiles than the actual amount needed. Of course, this quantity depends greatly on the room being tiled and the installer. Additionally, if tiles run out, it's important to check the batch calibers and tones of the available tiles to ensure color consistency," the specialist advises.
With the sizes of tiles increasing, the "Varduva" representative advises those selecting tiles for their homes to choose large-format, rectified stoneware tiles, no smaller than 60×120 cm.
You can discover the assortment of the "Varduva" tile center and learn about the latest tile trends in Hall 7 of the "Žalioji galerija" (Urmo Bazaar area).
In the flooring market, herringbone patterns are trending
Šarūnas, the head of the flooring company "1000grindu.lt," states that there are three main alternatives in the flooring market: laminate, vinyl, and wood floors.
"Today, vinyl flooring is the most popular. It is an easy-to-maintain and install, practical choice. Those looking for more economical solutions often choose laminate flooring, while those seeking natural options go for wood. However, wood is the most expensive and least practical choice—it is easily damaged and requires maintenance. Economically, laminate floors are the cheapest, vinyl is twice as expensive as laminate, and wood is three times more expensive," says Šarūnas, head of "1000grindu.lt."
When looking for the most suitable flooring, the customer should consider what type of flooring they want and what they can afford—both financially and in terms of usage conditions.
"In terms of durability, laminate and vinyl floors are classified into resistance classes 31, 32, 33, and 34. All baseboards are suitable for residential areas, but for offices and commercial spaces, it is recommended to choose products from categories 33 or 34. Wood does not fall into this classification because it is inherently soft and quite easily damaged. Therefore, those looking for the most economical but durable option can choose laminate, those seeking resistance to impacts and scratches as well as moisture can choose vinyl, and those seeking naturalness and willing to allocate a larger budget can choose wood," says the flooring company representative.
In the current range of vinyl flooring, which is receiving the most attention from buyers, the dominant type is composite vinyl.
"The best vinyl floors today are composite vinyl, divided into two groups: SPC (Stone Plastic Composite) or WPC (Wood Plastic Composite). This type of flooring is favored by buyers for its durability and easy installation. As for patterns, the most popular today is the herringbone pattern," shares the flooring company representative.
However, the head of "1000grindu.lt" emphasizes that regardless of the chosen material, proper installation is crucial. The main mistake made by customers is rushing the installation process.
"The key rule before laying flooring is to measure its moisture content. Installing flooring on a wet substrate is a common mistake. Laminate or wood floors laid on a wet base will eventually swell, and mold can form under vinyl flooring. It is also very important to choose the right professionals for installing the flooring—do not entrust this task to general finishers. We recommend choosing specialists who work exclusively with flooring. They will have the necessary specialized tools and knowledge to achieve the best results," advises the "1000grindu.lt" representative.
Visitors can discover the range and latest trends in flooring at "1000grindu.lt" in Hall 2 of the "Žalioji galerija."
Doors – an important interior accent
Another highly popular category of home finishing products is doors. According to Irmantas, the manager of the interior and exterior door store "Kambariodurys.lt" located in "Žalioji galerija," this season, there are three prominent trends in interior doors: minimalism, practicality, and choosing doors as an interior detail. The most popular shades are cream, gray, and white.
"Currently, the most popular door color is probably white. The choice of materials depends on the customers' needs, but smooth enamel, natural oak veneer, or white-painted wooden doors dominate. Gray shades, concrete imitations, and natural wood textures are also popular. We notice that modern customers know exactly what they want and visit the store mainly to confirm that their online research was accurate," says Irmantas, the room door manager at "Kambariodurys.lt."
Irmantas notes that the modern door market offers more and more advanced solutions for customers.
"These include magnetic or soft-close locks, concealed hinges, door stops, or thresholds that can be installed in the door leaf instead of splitting the floor space. A very noticeable trend at global door exhibitions is contrast hardware. For example, a black handle on a white door. In interiors, there is also a lot of play with door heights, installation nuances, and the use of folding or sliding doors," explains the room door manager.
When asked about the main mistakes customers make, the representative from "Kambariodurys.lt" advises paying attention to details.
"The main mistake is ordering doors at the very beginning of the renovation. Once new floors are installed, the dimensions of the doors being installed or already ordered change. They no longer match the initial measurements. For this reason, it is ideal to choose doors and call the measurer when the floors are already in place, and the door openings are prepared for installation. Another common mistake is ordering doors without hardware. To save time, I recommend using the help of a competent manager and completing the entire order at once," says Irmantas.
When choosing doors, the "Kambariodurys.lt" representative advises considering the needs of the entire family and the space where the doors will be installed. As for exterior doors, the manager recommends evaluating whether they will be installed in a stairwell or a private house. Based on this, the desired safety and thermal conductivity parameters should be considered.
You can view the assortment of "Kambariodurys.lt" in Hall 6 of the "Žalioji galerija."
The trends in stretch ceilings are also changing.
Another important detail in home finishing is ceilings. Maksim, the manager of "Idealios lubos," a store located in Hall 6 of the "Žalioji galerija" within the Urmas Bazaar area, observes that several distinct ceiling installation trends have emerged over the past few years.
"For many years, the most popular choice was white matte stretch ceilings, which look like perfectly painted gypsum ceilings. Today, the 'EuroKraab' solution, which features a black shadow gap between the ceiling and the wall to emphasize the room's geometry, is becoming increasingly popular. Another popular solution is creating a niche for a hidden curtain rod, so neither the rod nor the curtain is visible. Regarding lighting, the 'Lumfer track' lighting system is gaining popularity, as is the more affordable but modern-looking 'Shining Lines' solution," reviews Maksim.
Speaking about the main mistakes, the specialist recommends not leaving ceiling installation as the final finishing task.
"When installing ceilings, a lot of drilling work is done, which can cause some wall damage due to human factors. Therefore, we always recommend installing ceilings after painting the walls once. If the floors are already installed, we advise covering them with paper or protective film," suggests the ceiling expert.
The specialist also recommends paying attention to the quality of materials.
"Customers who want beautiful, smooth, and durable ceilings should avoid the cheapest materials. It is often observed that choosing the cheapest options on the market leads to poor coverage and an unpleasant rubber smell that emerges later. We also recommend paying close attention to the selection of craftsmen—seek them out based on recommendations. It's no secret that experience and quality come with time and the number of completed projects," says Maksim.
Residents looking for more relevant home finishing advice are invited to visit "Žalioji galerija" at Pramonės pr. 14, Kaunas (within the Urmas Bazaar area). Dozens of different stores await visitors daily, where specialists in tiles, flooring, doors, ceilings, paints, and other home finishing products are ready to consult on all renovation and construction issues. The tile center "Varduva" is located in Hall 7, the "1000grindu.lt" store in Hall 2, and the door store "Kambariodurys.lt" and ceiling center "Idealios lubos" in Hall 6.
You can find the list of stores and the gallery's layout at www.zaliojigalerija.lt
