I agree, espresso is a great wood color for the floor.

Get samples from a good hardwood floor dealer in your area. Make sure you walk on them. Sounds stupid but we found that dark showed footprints and dirt much more than a lighter color. We decided on hickory and hand selected the middle color area
(expensive practice but hickory can vary wildly in color).

you can do a multicolored floor using your rock as color palette inspiration or just pick a complimenting color from your rock

I think that you have two choices

1) Go for a very visually heavy floor. Otherwise, the medium-heavy floor will look insipid with a medium-heavy wall and medium-heavy ceiling. Do this with a very dark surface with or without heavy lines and texture.

2) Go with a floor with colours that are VERY VERY VERY carefully matched with the wall and floor so that you get a monochromatic scheme.

I think that 2 would be a bit too hard to pull off.

oldguy has good advice for you to find a good dealer and get lots of samples to try in the space. I like black walnut as long as it has a bit of the blonde from the ceiling in it. Would love to see a pic when it's all completed.

Susan Mills

I have a very dark wood floors and they are gorgeous, but it's a huge challenge to keep looking clean. As soon as I steam it, my kids walk on and you can immediately see foot prints. I highly recommend you take several dark samples home and see how they hold up. The matte finish and hand scraped tend to show the least......unfortunately I learned a little too late!

My favorite would be a medium gray that works with your fireplace. If budget is no object, I would do a herringbone pattern. That is my current love affair.

At least as dark as the darkest stone in the wall. Skip thr gloss to cut down on dust showing.

What flooring is in the rest of your house that is important too? It looks to me like the blonde pine on the ceiling and the mantel piece are staying as they are because your light fixtures are already up. Are you keeping the orange color on the ajoining space? I think it competes with the stone....if you go with a soft earth tone on those walls, and the ones in the living room (they should be the same or at least relate) then perhaps I would go with a light hickory color on the floor....it would keep the whole room airy and rather organic in feel. Then you could ground your seating areas with a darker rug and accents... really beautiful room!

I just have to laugh, as some of you may know I live in Hawaii and we take off our shoes before we enter the house. So when you said foot prints I am trying to figure out how or why? I say be careful with the lighter - mid-toned multicolored woods because you have a lot of busyness going on already with the multicolored mid tones of the fire place and the ceiling and to introduce another would just be too much of the same thing. Maybe take a custom from Hawaii and remove your shoes!

Dytecture hit it right on again. His sample picture is perfect for your space.

Have you considered cork? Comes in beautiful woodsy colors, and very durable.

I have to agree with oldguy . . . the dark wood will really show footprints. We used dark wood in three of our bedrooms and the hallway leading to them. The hallway is always covered with footprints. I have to run over the floor in the hall with a dry swiffer several times per day to keep the footprints at bay. We also opted for cork in our family room. The Cork looks fantastic, and since it is a renewable product I feel good about using it. However, it is also dark, and shows footprints.

I can do you one better than that photo okleannie, I had to have something very different so I opted for a porcelain that looks like metal. Oh it is so gorgeous!...and then I brought a puppy home. Thank God for the oriental rug. Ha!

What a great space! The arches seem a little out of place with the sharp angles of the ceiling line and windows, maybe square those openings off? As for wood flooring, wider boards such as 5", 6" or 7" that were stained a darker gray/brown (similar to driftwood) selected from the darkest gray/brown in the stone, would be appropriate in that large space grounding the room against the scale of stone fireplace wall and natural ceiling.

See the color on that rocking chair? That color. May not be a fashion statement but it tones with everything in the room, is warm and welcoming and very forgiving. Just laid it in my own house and it's beautiful.

We have a light pine whitewashed ceiling, stone vaulted fireplace and cherry trim throughout and went with a natural oak floor, a low grade so the knots and imperfections show. Ours is a mountain home, so it might be more rustic than you are going for... But the result is fabulous.

Your faced with a big decision...but there are some simple solutions. Let's reduce the challenge by providing you some flexibility down the road as your tastes may change over time. As much as I adore the look of dark wood floors their upkeep can be a tremendous challenge in high traffic areas as they show every spec of dust, pet hair, moisture and oils from bare feet, etc. Perhaps you might opt for a light wood flooring-similar to the (fabulous) ceiling-creating a neutral palette in your room. When selecting your furniture choose the dark rich ebony woods as your case goods. An area rug with rich deep browns, tans, and grey-green will GROUND the room and bring the outdoors in. Also, it is imperative that you consider your entry way to your room...not certain but it appears from your photo that you have a two story entry divided by a wall with arched openings-same lovely ceiling as the room we are discussing. Painting the wall of the entry would unify the two rooms as well considering they share the same pine ceiling color way. The entry wall should be painted in a color which blends with the soft grey/taupe of the fireplace wall. The beams above the wall with arches can be painted/treated to look like bleached wood found on the beach-economical option as well. Again, blending nicely with the fabulous brick wall. Following the above suggestions will economically and easily create a neutral room with loads of texture-brick wall, beams, wood, yet not feel cluttered. Best of luck!

Have you looked at Acacia, in the beautiful range of colors? Because it contains blone to darker browns, it is just heavenly! I also found a picture where someone was so clever to lay the floor very artistically at the hallways and doorways....but cannot get the picture to load here. Love your house!

I agree with Kiwiwins on the cork flooring. There is a great spectrum of colors and textures to choose from. The cork is very durable and softer than wood. Easy to maintain. As for the color pull one of the darker tones from the fireplace stone.

Kahrs Flooring has some very interesting selections in unexpected colors. They offer many prefinished hardwood engineered floors, good for concete subfloors.

I used red oak planks stained 50/50 early American and cherry
And a mid sheen polyurethane. It doesn't show dirt or footprints
I think the color will compement your stone

I also agree with Kiwiwins on the cork. You have a lot of wood in the ceiling and I think you will find the cork not only beautiful with tons of options, easier on the feet, easy to keep, it will also help to insulate the room from the bad accoustics you will have with the vaulted wood ceiling. It also has natural mold and mildew resistance. You can get cork which looks jut like wood and it can be laid in various patterns and widths just like wood. Here are some photos to give you ideas.

lots of great suggestions and direction. I will definitly not being doing the dark floor. After all the comments on the foot prints . . . we are already dealing with that in the basement with a dark stained cement floor. The swifter gets a good work out.
We'll have to look into the cork floor. That sounds great to walk on.
Thanks for all the comments!

I would go with a rustic gray to complement the wall in the adjoining room and to bring out the stones in the fireplace; not a drab gray but a rich, stunning plank gray.

My humble advice would be to do the steamed wild cherry, as I think of this color.
The space is wonderful.
However, the picture speaks 1000 words.

jarra would look great

I am a little concerned that the cork is going to be really orange and not have enough large scale texture for this room. Nothing beats wood in terms of beauty and resale appeal......you could pick a medium brown stain that would not show prints so much, or by avoiding a poly finish and going with a stain and oil finish, you would avoid that trap too. GO with wood you will not regret it..

jarra is a dark red australian hardwood very nice looking timber ill try and get a picture

The below "code" is for a picture of a beautiful gray wood plank floor that I think would be stunning - you could either dress it up or dress it down; it would go with just about everything and you wouldn't be limited to what other "woods" would conflict with your flooring. This "code" below is within the houzz website and shows a picture of this flooring.


Eclectic Wood Flooring design by Exquisite Surfaces

Just remodeled and used 5" hand scraped maple in a medium-dark brown. I am so happy with this floor. I didn't want a rustic look but also didn't want a shiny, formal floor. Also didn't want a heavy grain and the maple is perfect. I don't think you can go wrong with wood.

I would go with a honey colored maple floor. It will coordinate with your cherry trims and the warm colors found in your stone.

Take a look at koa (hawaian wood). I have it and love it. It's a mix of medium/dark woods and will look great in your room.

catdaley, have you had experience with cork flooring? 3 of the 4 above are identical in looks to wood; they come in any color so orange is not a problem. In addition they have a natural mold and mildew repellent, are insulating, and easy on the feet and legs. It is also sustainable and does not show dirt as readily as wood. Quality cork lasts for a century, like a quality slate roof. I know; The original cork flooring is in the Vizcaya mansion in Miami where it was subject to harsh weather and kitchen use and it is gorgeous. I use lots of hardwood in my designs, but I also use a lot of cork and everyone has loved it. I think if you take a closer look at it you will find it is a very viable alternative to wood..... :)

You might also look at bamboo flooring options. They come in a variety of colors and are often harder and more durable than traditional hardwoods. Perhaps a wide long-plank option to anchor the larger space, like in this photo.