Inspiration
Before You Order: Flooring and Window Advice with Ben and Josh Abbott
A timber floor has to meet another surface somewhere. A curtain needs somewhere to gather when it is open. A motorised blind needs a practical way to power and control it.
These details can be easy to overlook while choosing colours and finishes. They are also the details that affect how the finished room works.
At Abbott’s Interiors in Bow, flooring and window furnishings are distinct specialities within one family business. Ben and Josh Abbott represent its fifth generation, with Ben’s experience rooted in flooring and interiors and Josh’s spanning blinds, curtains, shutters and exterior shading.
Here are some of the planning questions worth bringing to the showroom, illustrated by work from our own project history.
A family business that has kept developing
Abbott’s began on Roman Road in 1882. The original shop sold kitchen lino and household goods; today, our work includes specialist flooring, bespoke curtains and motorised shading.
Ben joined in 2001, followed by Josh in 2009. Window dressings became part of the range in 2003, expanding the business beyond its established flooring roots.
That history helps explain the combination of skills available today. Read more about the Abbott family and our Roman Road story.
Ben’s flooring detail: plan where the materials meet
One Abbott’s herringbone wood flooring project included a detail that deserves a closer look: the junction with large-format tiles. We created custom solid oak threshold bars to finish the meeting point between the two surfaces.
The herringbone was the main feature, but the threshold was part of making the floor feel properly resolved.
When planning a similar project, consider the finished levels on both sides of the doorway. The thickness of the floor covering alone does not establish the final height; the preparation and fitting build-up beneath it matter too.
Ask where the transition will sit, how it relates to the closed door and which profile will suit the materials. A bespoke timber threshold may be appropriate in one setting, while another junction needs a different solution. Any movement allowance required by the chosen flooring must remain part of the specification.
It is a useful conversation to have before adjoining floors are ordered, particularly if different trades are responsible for them. Agreeing the levels and junction early gives everyone the same detail to work towards.
Josh’s window speciality: decide what needs to happen at the glass
For blinds and curtains, begin with how you use the window. Do you need daytime privacy from the pavement? Is glare affecting a desk? Does an opening section need to remain accessible?
Those requirements can lead to different solutions, even when two windows look similar.
Our London apartment electric-blind project, involved nine Somfy electric blinds with screen fabric. It is an example of the technical window work within Abbott’s specialities.
Screen fabric, however, should not automatically be treated as an evening privacy solution. When the room is illuminated and it is darker outside, visibility through a fabric can change. If night-time privacy is essential, discuss that explicitly before choosing the cloth and whether an additional treatment is needed.
The useful starting point is the job the window covering needs to do throughout the day.
For motorised products, ask about access after fitting
Motorisation can make a difficult-to-reach blind more convenient, but the power and control arrangements still need planning.
For a wired system, discuss the required supply and cable route before decoration is complete. For a rechargeable system, establish how charging will be carried out safely once the blind is in place. The appropriate arrangement depends on the actual product and installation.
Controls deserve the same attention. A handset, wall control and app offer different ways to use a system, and availability depends on the specified equipment. Tell us who will operate the blinds and what they want to do during a normal day.
Also ask how the motor and other serviceable parts can be accessed later. A concealed installation still needs a workable approach to maintenance.
Large curtains need space as well as fabric
Our Saint Martin de Belleville chalet project, included an eight-metre-wide voile curtain arrangement with a Wave heading. It shows how far the curtain work can extend beyond a standard window.
Even on a smaller London window, the space occupied by open curtains deserves attention. The fabric needs somewhere to gather, and the track position must work with the heading, curtain weight and proposed fixings.
If a radiator, piece of furniture or opening window sits nearby, include it in the survey. A photograph showing the whole wall is more useful at the initial discussion than a tightly cropped picture of the glass.
This is particularly relevant when a room is being refurbished. Discussing the curtain arrangement before joinery, electrics and decoration are finished gives the project team more scope to accommodate it.
Bring us the awkward detail
The threshold between two floors, the high window and the restricted curtain space are all useful starting points for a conversation. They help us understand what the room needs before narrowing down products.
Visit Abbott’s Interiors at 470–480 Roman Road, Bow, London E3 5LU. Bring photographs, approximate dimensions and any plans for the work around the flooring or windows. We can discuss the options before a final measuring visit establishes the specification.
