Painting it out in most of the house on the trim is the most efficient way to change it. The wall color certainly does not work well with the orange tone, so if this is your wall color preference then definitely paint. You might select a formal room or two to keep the wood and stain it dark, but the overall style of the house here reads as fairly modern (slab doors, casement windows) so I'm not sure you'll gain a lot in style points here to do a lot of extra work to keep the wood. I gather that the oak tone is not your favorite - though the entry door is not far off from the top on your dining table. Antiquing the entry door only and painting out all the other trim might be one way to retain some traditional elements.

You have several choices in the kitchen. You can reface, replace or repaint.

Do you have any plan for remodeling or updating any of your home? The wood can be dealt with during renovations and the color and style will be dependent upon what you plan to do. For instance, if you are going to put in new dark wood floors, then replace the mop board then. If not what kind of woodwork do you wish you had?

Katy Koth, what a huge undertaking if you do decide to paint. The baseboards, doors, door frames, and window frames. It certainly would modernize the look but I suppose it depends on whether or not you want all that work. Would cost a small fortune for a professional painter to do the job. Perhaps if you paint the walls and add new drapes that could help as well. Maybe other Houzzers will come to your aid much better than I.:)

Yes, I have plans to change all paint in the house and maybe now trim. I will be getting new furniture also. Would it make the oak look cheap if I painted all the kitchen cabinets. They are the same color. Any great ideas for wall color if I decide not to paint the oak. If I do, what color do you recommend for trim. AS you can tell I need so much help!

oh and I plan to put in wood floors. I love rustic looking floors so does that give anyone good ideas for me?

I don't think I would rush in and paint every scrap of wood. You can create a stylish home with the light wood trim and doors you have. Here are some examples. Maybe start looking at flooring samples and see if you can find one that looks good with that trim and doors. In these examples light oak was also used for the floor and a timeless modern look can be accomplished. If the floor that you truly love doesn't go with the trim then consider painting or replacing.

I am currently in the process of having all the honey oak in our house painted--so far we love it!! Even my wood loving husband has said he was surprised to like the fresh look of off-wht paint instead. If you are a wood fan, try a light sanding & use glaze over top to change the tone. You can take off one peice of wood (try one from a closet) to play with to see just how dark you want the glaze to be.

Like you, I cannot stand this color oak. I would have it painted ... would put off floors, furniture and anything else. Priority #1 for me: get rid of it!

Great photos, Dar Eckert! Wood is where it's at!

We just (FINALLY) painted all the oak white in our home, including kitchen cabinets, doors, trim, built in bookcases, and fireplace mantel. We also had wide plank hard wood flooring put in to replace our 5 different floorings on the main level. It looks SO much better! Very bright, and open. The house looks lots larger, too. We lived with the oak for 5 years, and I couldn't stand it any longer. My hubby told me not to paint it for fear of ruining our resale value (not that we plan to move any time soon), so I said if I got 10 real estate agents to tell me paint is the right choice, I would do it, and he agreed. I had an entire army of agents telling me that everyone wants white wood/painted oak (unless it's a historic home, which I agree needs to have the beautiful wood maintained). BTW, we hired a company that specializes in painting wood, and they used a special paint that is made to withstand everyday wear and tear (I have 4 young children, so this was a must). I've gotten tons of compliments already, and am so glad we had it done! People actually said my house before looked like it belonged to a little old lady (no offense to the little old ladies out there!) :)

Sorry, I must chime in about painting wood trim. First, trim such as yours is expensive, and once you paint it to look just like the cheap paint grade fake wood trims, there is no going back. I would decorate around it, and adopt this feature of the home as the precious value it had (and since fashion always repeats, will again soon).

Anyone else remember the rush to paint all that nasty mahogany trim from older homes? Today the homes that resisted the urge are precious and worth more for the lovely dark woodwork.

Personally, I love the cool charcoal next to the real wood in the photos posted by Dar Eckert. Very classy, and very livable.

Finally, If you have children, painted woodwork is more work to keep clean and maintain than stained and finished wood.

I am in the paint it group. You are not changing the quality of wood, you are just painting it.

It will take years off the perceived age of your home and make choosing wall paint colors easier.

As you paint each room, prime and paint the trim.

Must paint for sure. I have a 1986 home with oak mouldings and baseboards everywhere. Your house will always look dated if you leave it, sorry to say. We did ours with an off-white oil paint, and in 12 years it's in very good shape still.

If you like dark wood for the floor, I installed a walnut wood. It has all colors from very light heartwood to dark brown. It went with my 70's dark oak and works well with light maple cabinets in the kitchen. This may work for you too. I did adjust the color of the oak by applying a light coat of minwax gel stain over the original finish. It worked great and you may need to do that too but I would try to leave it the color it is to avoid the extra work.

Looks like they had a clear finish put on your wood and it may have yellowed over the years. Maybe you would want to try adjusting the color if needed.

The woodwork in your home looks well cared for and will be effortless in the future if you continue to care for it. Painted woodwork is also lovely but does take repainting periodically and can look cheap if not done well.

For a professional to paint all trim, kitchen & full wall buffet, family room, stairway, entry & hall....it is costing me aprox. $4000 (our home is 3400 sq ft.....the painter I use is neither cheap nor the highest out there--hope this helps). I figure for a completely different look in our home, that is a pretty darn good price. Easily will be recouped in updated value.

OK, as a " little old lady" , I want to chime in...the photo examples of wood trim that Dar Eckert posted are not showing the same type of oak that you have in your home. That varnish on the oak may be what prevents a good, lasting paint-over job.
You will need an excellent primer such as Zinsser 12 3 and as someone suggested, just paint as you go through the house.
As for the kitchen, there are excellent gel stains that look better than paint on that type of oak cabinet. Now I am going to go back to my rocker and knit.

By the way, Jennifer Burk, your room is terrific! Wow

Thanx khdebenham (aka Little Old Lady...hee hee). I wish I had a before pic...I'm sure we do around here somewhere. It really is drastically diff. Feels "happier" to me. BTW, I should add to all readers that I really like the pix Dar posted, but feel Kathy's house is more traditional as is her furnishings vs. mid century mod or a more non-traditional layout...I think we have to take that into consideration, but that's just me. :)

Rustic flooring -

great wall tones with oak - soft yellows, yellow undertone camel tans, soft mossy greens,
any of these with a rustic floor that pulled some ochre tones in could be terrific to leave some of the wood but eventually you would want to stain it to match the floor or paint it out.

The lavender undertone gray is about the worst color with the oak - makes it even more orange.

Since you are a rustic floor person - probably you want a warm off-white trim - sw dover white is a classic go-to.

good wall color for orange looking walnut wood cabinets, doors, baseboard and crown molding. Any ideas