Small house, dark floors

10 years ago

Any experience / opinions on dark floors in a small space? We have 1200 square foot home that we are putting in either engineered hardwood or laminate hardwood in the kitchen, dining and living room which totals about 700 square feet. (I know, laminate is not recommended for kitchens but we can't afford the real stuff and tile won't work due to the home's layout) the cabinets are cherry and with medium toned wood it brings out the orange. The one we think matches the cabinets best is a dark stained maple. But in such a small space, would dark floors make it dark? Walls will be light, countertops white, furniture espresso with white cushions, couch is neutral, everything else but the floors and cabinets would be light.

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Design Intervention

10 years ago

Godolphin · More Info

Agree with @havingfun. Since you have already explained that your budget cannot accommodate the "real stuff" there is no need to belabor that point. A dark floor does not make a small space look dark or small. A room looking dark is a facility of lack of lighting. A dark floor will look great especially if you have the nice contrast of other things being lighter.

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Comments (12)

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JudyG Designs
10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago
You say engineered or laminate, but then say you can't afford the real stuff. Engineered is hardwood and often is more expensive than the "regular' hardwood, so you must mean your choice is only laminate.

How about a picture of the cherry cabinets? Have you any samples of the laminate you are considering?
Melissa Moad
Original Author
10 years ago
Thank you for your reply. The engineered I've been looking at has been drastically lower than solid wood floors. We also need click n lock as we can't rip out all existing oak /vinyl. We can't be more than $3.50 a square foot. Much of the engineered has been in that range wig laminate in the $2 range. All the solid wood has been spurns $5+. Here is the only photo I have available. It shows the old floors which we ripped out to find vinyl and linoleum underneath. Thank you
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Melissa Moad
Original Author
10 years ago
Oh and the name I remember was a laminate sample called "blackened maple" it's much darker in person than it appears in this online photo.
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JudyG Designs
10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago
I think you are still confused about "engineered' and "laminate". Engineered is a layered hardwood and is not cheap by any means. Laminate is a poor substitute for hardwood/engineered. "Laminate is a bargain product that can look good from a distance, but
does not hold up well to close examination. An image of wood is fused
to a fiberboard core. Resale is low to moderate; if the house is
high-end, laminate may drag down the home's value."

Don't do a laminate. What other floorings have you investigated? Bamboo; porcelain; cork?
havingfun
10 years ago
Ok, i will let you all straighten out the details. My important point is no, there is not a problem with dark floors in a small house particularly when you are going light with everything else. it sounds like it will be just lovely. Have fun!
Barbara Almandarz
10 years ago
Have you looked at wood-look tiles? The colors are quite varied, less expensive and much better choice for kitchens.
Melissa Moad
Original Author
10 years ago
We have looked into bamboo but haven't found a color we like. Plus they also are in the $5-$12 range. We are in a nice area but not high end. I'm afraid we'll have to do whatever lands us in the $3-$4 range. I will continue to look around. Thank you everyone for your very helpful responses!!
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JudyG Designs
10 years ago
Barbara, FYI, just installed an entire first floor in the porcelain wood look-alike. Fabulous and I love the floor, but the install is crazy expensive...I think mine was $7.00 a sq foot...just for labor. That did not include the mortar or the membrane.
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Patricia Colwell Consulting
10 years ago
The house in these pics was 600 sq. ft on the mainfloor I loved the dark floors and the person who bought the house said the floors and the kitchen sold the house by the way these are laminate and have been in the space for 15 yrs, now.
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Design Intervention
10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago
Agree with JudyG Designs about the expense of installation of porcelain wood. That was why we didn't suggest it since Melissa was clear about having a tight budget.
havingfun
10 years ago
do you have an Ollie's locally? We and several others have tried their close out floors and done very well with them.