need some help choosing the flooring (hardwood)

13 years ago

hi,

we are getting new hardwood throughout our first floor, incl-uding the kitchen. Here is a picture of how the kitchen looked when we bought the home. The only change is now the walls are a soft-ish yellow. We are going to change the countertops but at this time we aren't going to change the cabinets. I have a designer friend who suggested we won't be able to go darker on the floors because of the cabinet color. That doesn't leave us a lot of options other than maple (we want something very hard) but several people told us maple is a 'country' styled wood and I absolutely don't want our style/decor to look country in any way.

So what I'm wondering is what other options you think may look good besides a natural maple. We are going to choose a site finished wood by the way.

here are a couple of pictures of the other areas that will have the same hardwood as the kitchen:

the room in the back there will also have the same flooring:

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Comments (8)

eastbaymom
13 years ago
Your cabinets are quite close to ours, and our floors are definitely darker (though not darker than the cabinets).

They are called Amendoim, made by BR-111. They have many other types of wood. The other possibility I could see for you is to go with a really dark mahogany or walnut (like the color of your stair banister, that I see peeking out in one of the photos). However, that can be pricey.

For what it's worth, I don't think of maple as a "country" style wood. I think of "country" as wide plank flooring, probably oak or pine. If you do a harder wood in narrower strips, and with a smooth finish rather than textured, I think you'll be happy.

Here is a link that might be useful: our cabinets and floors
riverspots
13 years ago
Wood flooring comes in different grades. Country grades have more distinct color variation. Rustic grades have knots and other blemishes. Clear, select grades are uniform in color and grain and generally more expensive. Select maple is light colored throughout. I've attached a link to examples of maple grades.

Here is a link that might be useful: Maple grades
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illinigirl
Original Author
13 years ago
eastbaymom- your cabs and floors look great, i think you are right, we could go darker but we would lose the contrast, so it just depends on the kind of look we are really going for

river spots- we did look at 3 different maple grades at the flooring showroom. we definitely ruled out the grade 3 maple, but liked some of the contrast that the second grade offered. I can see however that the cleanest grade of maple might be considered the most contemporary.

another possibility that i kind of like is white quarter sawn (or rift and quartered) oak. That would also fit in with some of the arts and crafts details we have in our home. and that leaves the option to leave it unstained for now and if we ever do remodel the cabinetry to have it refinished and stained darker in the future.

I had never before heard of maple being country styled either but no fewer than 3 individuals in 3 different conversations told me that it was.

i'd appreciate any other opinions as well as to what other woods/colors would look good with our cabinets. I originally had the flooring quote done in walnut, which i also love, but i'm afraid with my kids being the way they are that the scratches will look awful in a short time frame.
illinigirl
Original Author
13 years ago
eastbaymom- your cabs and floors look great, i think you are right, we could go darker but we would lose the contrast, so it just depends on the kind of look we are really going for

river spots- we did look at 3 different maple grades at the flooring showroom. we definitely ruled out the grade 3 maple, but liked some of the contrast that the second grade offered. I can see however that the cleanest grade of maple might be considered the most contemporary.

another possibility that i kind of like is white quarter sawn (or rift and quartered) oak. That would also fit in with some of the arts and crafts details we have in our home. and that leaves the option to leave it unstained for now and if we ever do remodel the cabinetry to have it refinished and stained darker in the future.

I had never before heard of maple being country styled either but no fewer than 3 individuals in 3 different conversations told me that it was.

i'd appreciate any other opinions as well as to what other woods/colors would look good with our cabinets. I originally had the flooring quote done in walnut, which i also love, but i'm afraid with my kids being the way they are that the scratches will look awful in a short time frame.
dazzlingdiamond
13 years ago
Grade 2 oak in 4" planks in ebony stain. Shows the grain but looks very contemporary. I think dings and dents happen no matter what you do but it gives character to your home:)
illinigirl
Original Author
13 years ago
bumping for further opinions please. much appreciated :) I am liking white oak as an option but still not sure if i want to keep it natural or stain it darker......
msekfe
13 years ago
I don't like country style either but for some reason we picked natural hickory for our remodel. I liked the contrast and will modernize it w/my decor. I can see how it could be in a log cabin or something too though. I don't have after pics yet bc we are just getting into the floor/cabinet install but I do have one pick. Also hickory is one of the hardest floors you can buy. I posted about this on the flooring forum. Link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Flooring
chocolatebunny
13 years ago
My sister has natural maple floors and they don't look country at all! She has a very light maple and her cabinets are lighter than yours. She also had it installed on an angle, and while it took more time for it to be installed (a bit more waste too), it looks sooo nice!

BTW - I went to Illinois myself. :)