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Design Dilemma
andyboy1

Need help choosing color for hardwood floors

13 years ago
Hello,
Wife and I are planing on redoing our floors for our kitchen and family room. We can't really decide on what color to get. I've attached a picture of our kitchen. We want to go dark but can't decide on how dark to go that would match our cabinets and granite. We also plan on painting the walls later on as well (painting them in the gray family color scheme). Help!
Featured Answer
  • 13 years ago
    We moved into our newly built house 4 months ago. We went with a wood looking porcelain tile & I HIGHLY recommend it with pets & kids!! We used it through our entire house minus bedrooms & master bath. It doesn't show water spots like all the rest of the wood tiles I found (which was a lot lol). I attached some pics to show how realistic it looks. It is only found at Home Depot right now. It is Marrazzi Montagna Sadddle. Also if you are wanting a light grey we used Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter. For a dark grey I used Benjamin Moore Galveston Gray in my kitchen & breakfast area.

    Comments (37)

    • 13 years ago
      Also, while redoing the floors we will also be knocking down a wall that's in between the sunroom and family room
    • PRO
      13 years ago
      I like the dogs and cats. What kind of dog is the brown one? I think the floor should be very dark wood, or else it will clash with the cabinets.

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    • PRO
      13 years ago
      Absolutely a dark walnut or dark chestnut!
    • 13 years ago
      Lol. Only dogs in this house. The brown dog is a mutt of some sort, we are pet sitting.
      So dark walnut would look better than dark chocolate? My wife wants the dark chocolate but I don't think it will work with the cabinets.
    • PRO
      13 years ago
      You'll want to try a hardwood that is darker than the cabinetry. Perhaps a nice rich walnut. The wood floor will really open up your kitchen. Good luck!
    • 13 years ago
      Dark chocolate would be nice. Beautiful kitchen by the way.
    • PRO
      13 years ago
      According to your picture, I would like to suggest use backsplash and tile a part of the wall with the similar color tone as counter top.

      below design for your reference
    • 13 years ago
      Yes. Backsplash will be coming in the near future
    • 13 years ago
      Also, any recommendation on what type of floors to get. We currently have hardwood floors in the other half of the house but they are all scratched up from the dogs. The floors were brand new (high gloss) when we moved in 7 months ago but we will change those floors later on. Need a good recommendation for something that's scratch proof and kid proof (future kid). We know now that high gloss floors is not an option for sure.
    • 13 years ago
      Bump!
    • 13 years ago
      Definitely walnut not chocolate for the floor as this would be too much contrast against the colour of the cabinets. Gray is a cool colour and the colours in the kitchen are warm, do you have to use gray wall paint? I am in Australia so I cannot advise on what product to use for your floor, but good luck with it all. It's a lovely home.
    • PRO
      13 years ago
      I would say dont go with hardwood floor,I m not recommending this wooden tile since its new and you saw it every where but it might be good option on your case,as you go darker its nice but it shows cat and dog hair more than lighter color.I do believe design has to suit the life style.
    • 13 years ago
      A friend with large dogs replaced her hard woods with porcelain tile that looks like wood and loves it.
    • 13 years ago
      The counter tops have brown in them. The cabinets are in the brown family. There's tile on the floors now but it's too cold and we don't like tile
    • 13 years ago
      Is bamboo flooring popular in the US? It is widely used here and is very hard wearing, not cold underfoot and Eco-friendly, plus can be stained any colour. Check it out.
    • 13 years ago
      Yes. Bamboo is popular here but it's a little pricey
    • 13 years ago
      You can use the these type of color which suits according to your kitchen design. and if you more help for your kitchen designing help you can visit us at : http://www.bdpdl.co.uk/
    • PRO
      13 years ago
      I think that you need help from a wood flooring professional. The National Wood Flooring Association has a list of contractors in your area on their site. A flooring professional can show you samples & suggest products to you that will suit your needs. You can take home samples from their showroom to see what will compliment your other choices. They may even tell you to choose another product than wood. It is not for everyone.
    • PRO
      13 years ago
      Did somebody say Black Walnut??? Here is a recent floor we made for a client.
    • 13 years ago
      I have the original oak hardwood flooring in my house (1952ish) We matched them up when we did an extension. Natural, flat coating. We have dogs and kids. Shows little of dirt, dogs and kids. But personal choice. We had friends that went with a dark cherry, showed every piece of dust and scratch.
    • 13 years ago
      Your cabinets look similar in tone to mine. I LOVE dark wood flooring, but due to kids and a big dog, we decided to go with No. 3 maple in a natural finish. The maple has knots and lots of character, and as a result you can't see where I recently dropped a knife. :)

      Sorry this isn't a staged photo. We have dinner cooking, a giant bag of chips for my daughter to bring to a day camp cookout, and my lunch bag among other things. I'm also still looking for wall art.
    • 13 years ago
      ours is not staged either LOL. Very nice! I will have to post a newer picture with the finished kitchen. Cute dog.
    • 13 years ago
      @hme75 those cabinets look very similar as ours. Love the photobomb dog
    • 13 years ago
      @eutree those floors look great! Think those would look good in our house
    • 13 years ago
      @eutree how tall are the ceilings? We were thinking about doing the coffin ceiling as well
    • 13 years ago
      Or shall I say coffered ceiling
    • 13 years ago
      @deidrer saw those tiles at Home Depot as well. The only problem is that the tiles get cold.
    • 13 years ago
      It's a trade off we are willing to make. Wood floors were in our last house & it wasn't worth freaking out over with three young children. Accidents happen lol
    • 12 years ago
      deidrer, I found your post in an internet search. We have recently came across the Marazzi Montagna Saddle wood like tiles at Home Depot, and we purchased them. We have decided to have Home Depot install them in our entire house, except the bedrooms. I have a question. I love your photots, and I am wondering what size of grout line you went with, and what color of grout you choose? It would help us so much! Thanks in advance!!!!
    • 12 years ago
      Also, Home Depot has suggest that we do a 3/16 inch grout line, but another contractor suggested we do an 1/8 of an inch grout line. So, we are having a tough time deciding which way to go. Thanks!
    • 12 years ago
      last modified: 12 years ago
      dhmiller12, if you want your wood look tile to actually look as much like wood as possible, use the thinnest grout line possible and make sure the grout either matches the wood tile or is just a shade darker (which is what real wood floors look like between the boards). One of my complaints about the wood look tile is that it so rarely looks good in actual applications because the grout lines are too light and too thick, and thus much too visible.
    • 12 years ago
      feeny, I agree, the grout lines need to be a close as possible, and you need to have a really great coordinating grout to make it work. I think the pictures above that deidrer submitted look really great. We are wanting to go with a 1/8 of an inch grout line, but Home Depot is saying that for that specific tile and the way it's made, the manufacturer suggests nothing less than 3/16 of an inch grout line.
    • 12 years ago
      Call the manufacturer and ask why. I'd want a very good reason for choosing a wider grout line, and Home Depot may or may not be reliable on this issue.
    • PRO
      12 years ago
      Very good advice!
    • 12 years ago
      I think I will do that! Thanks for that suggestion!
    • 12 years ago
      @deidrer what size grout lines did you do, and what color grout?
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