DIg THIS

t h e v i n ta g e W o o D f l o o r C o M pa n y

s
e x qu I S I T e f lO O R S a N D B e a M S C R a f T e D f RO M a N T I qu e ReClaIMeD M aT e R I a l S

WO R N B y T H e WIND TeMpeReD By TIMe

w r i tte n By: Q u i n n r o B e rtS

H I S T O Ry. CHaRaCTeR. a u T H e N T I C I T y.

growing up in the town of reeseville, wisconsin, a rural area about an hour and a half outside of milwaukee, Joe pfeiffer was constantly surrounded by wood barns. yet, it wasnt until he laid down wood flooring from an old local barn in his own home and got so many compliments from friends, that he decided to start the Vintage wood floor company with wife Vanessa. Since its inception six years ago in costa mesa, the company has tried to create oneof-a-kind floors from antique reclaimed materials. its three main collections include: the american Barn, the european estate and the Vinters collection. Scouring the country and even the world for wood worn by the wind and tempered by time, the Vintage wood floor company works with wood from 300-year-old european chateaus to 100-year-old railroad cars to amish homes from the 1800s. the company even creates natural flooring from 3,000 gallon oak barrels and civil war era cottages. the floor really tells a story, pfeiffer said. all the floors are unique in the way they look and where they come from. you own a piece of history. getting interest from Seattle to nantucket for such craftsmanship, pfeiffer said that many people and companies throughout the South Bay have purchased such custom floors, including the tin roof Bistro in manhattan Beach. the companys work also extends past wood flooring and into the realm of wall paneling, beams and bar and counter tops. and just like the wood flooring, most products have no stain and highlight the natural colors of the wood. im traveling throughout the year to find new sources of wood and to get new ideas for how we can use it, said pfeiffer. after selecting the type and style of their wood flooring, which can range in price from $13-$18 a square foot, customers can expect the one-of-a-kind, hand crafted floors to be finished and installed in about 12 weeks, according to pfeiffer. manufacturing one piece at a time in its costa mesa factory, the Vintage wood floor company takes its time with each commissioned floor, choosing not to use heavy duty machinery to complete the job. it may sound goofy, but each piece of wood had a life before being made into a floor, pfeiffer said. and you can really see that in each piece we put together. for more information go to: www.vintagewoodfloors.com

2.24.2012 | SouthBaydigS.com 51