A new floor for Christmas!

We're skipping the presents this year, but decided to give the foyer a new floor. It's amazing what lurks under filthy dusty rose carpeting.

I'm still trying to figure out what exactly this is, but am pretty sure it is either inlaid linoleum or vinyl. (I can promise it is inlaid, at least.) It has little gold sparkles scattered throughout a random terazzo-like pattern. It shows as a pale creamy beige from afar, and the picture you see here is more of a closeup.

Perhaps a detail shot? Why yes, that is a Canadian penny.

The pattern is reminiscent of the flooring found over at Retro Renovation, so I'm hoping it's Inlaid Linoleum. According to some information found there, there's a chance it is Vinyl instead. In either case we're proceeding with caution... After a gentle washing, it will have its holes filled with wood putty or some such thing, and be sealed and polished. There doesn't seem to be a lot of wax buildup so I still have to test for that. I think I'd prefer to seal it under something really tough like polyurethane if possible. Yeah, and all the edges need a quarter round trim and new transition mouldings, so we have our work cut out for us! And if we're doing quarter round I guess we should re-do the horribly beaten-up, existing baseboard as well.... 

Here's a blurry cellcam shot which gives a truer sense of the colour from afar.

Notice the carpeting remains on the stairs, for now. It's also in the upstairs hall. One room at a time, please! We're fortunate to have hardwood under the carpet there. It's just the main level and lower level that have, uh, flooring issues.