I like the first one and the second from the last one on the first page. I prefer light in an office unless it's an English style and then I'd prefer dark. The light is cheerier and easier to maintain since it never shows dirt.

Honestly, I think any of them will work. It just depends on the "look" you want. :)

Thank you Yayagal for your opinion. I love all four and I think that is my problem. :)

Thank you Organic. I just wish I could see the wood in a much bigger sample to cover the area so I can decide. I am almost thinking the darker or lighter ones are all not too dark and maybe all of them would look nice.

Doing all this work did help me since despite liking the Makore, I just wish it had some red in it so now I am down to three that I love very much. I need to borrow some big samples from a store again of the three I love and put them next to each other and live with them for a day.

I am doing this with the Rialto Beige Tile bought from Lowes for my two foyer areas and I am thinking it is too dark in my middle foyer and I may exchange it for the Rialto White Porcelain Tiles. I will live with it for one more day and then decide since it does look like real stone.

I think they're all nice, my initial thought was they are the same color as your desk, so I think the desk will just blend into the floor.

But I don't know if that's what your trying to achieve - a uniform look. I always like my woods to be slightly different, but that's just another look. I'd either go lighter or a darker wood.

I agree with CaroleOh. I am not fond of all my wood blending and it never will exactly unless it is all from the same piece of wood, so I go the lightest or the darkest to get the effect. Having said that, I feel the same about the tile that meets the wood. I want the very closest color combination or the most contrast. I want to make it look as though I planned it, instead of it just accepting it as being close but not correct. Close? But it's not horseshoes, it's your home. Make it look as though you wanted it totally opposite or totally exact.

Let me say better what I said above.

Let's pretend that you have a table of pine wood in a medium tone and you want to hang a picture over that table. You will never be able to match the woods exactly so instead of trying to match the woods, you go totally opposite. In the case of picture frames, I usually opt to do something like chrome, antique gold or silver but if I have to go wood, then I would go to a very dark frame in a wood which striations are very different from the table.

Patricia, maybe this is what is bothering me about the tiles. They are so close in color to the file cabinets but are not quite a match with different undertones so I most likely need to go with the lighter tiles or much darker than having them so close in color? They really look nice in my front foyer area due to the light coming in that makes the variations in the tile go nicely in that spot but in the darker foyer, it looks like I did not get the match quite right. :)

About the woods, I tried going much lighter but my putty file cabinets seemed in my mind to clash. I tried going much darker but I do not want a dark office. The Amendoim has planks that are lighter than my desk but has a red tint that picks up the desk color. I know the other colors are close but I could not figure out what else I liked and I guess I love rich woods with some red in them. This decorating is overwhelming me and maybe that is why I choose safe beige colors.

But you are right about the framing not being able to match it just right. I guess that is what I will have to do with a picture above the couch that I still do not have after 10.5 years. Maybe instead of matching one of the woods, I will just go with chrome or silver since I have crystal lamps with chrome bases and to match the wood on the legs of the glass tables will be very difficult.

Thanks again for replying.

Yes, go much lighter or darker. You will NEVER be able to identically match woods even in nature, so you just do the best you can and don't sweat the small stuff.

Hi

I agree with caroleoh and particia in that if you want the desk to blend in with the floor than any of the colors should work. For me, I would want something that provides more of a contrast. To achieve that, you would go either lighter or darker depending on the look you want to achieve.

HTH
Mai Lynn

Mai Lynn,

I had at first wanted to go very light but everything seems to clash with the putty cabinets in my opinion so that is when I was trying to look for a warm floor that picked up some red in the desk. Thank you for your opinion.

Lynn, as others have commented it is probably wisest to just pick a flooring you like without trying to match or coordinate it with furnishings. Remember that stuff is temporary but a floor is relatively permanent. Especially a wood floor which is not only expensive but a real pain to install and/or change out when you are in residence!

I get the feeling sometimes you get a little overwhelmed with choices and analysis. It can work to just put everything away for a bit and let your mind percolate. At least that is a pattern I follow. I also get pretty fixated occasionally and then tend to get into a cycle of feeling like I need to make a decision RIGHTNOW. Just take a (mental) deep breath, stop focusing on the wood floors and give it a bit of time. As noted, this is a decision you will be living with for a long time and it doesn't have to nor should it be made in a desperate rush.

Good luck!
Ann

I just wanted to say give some serious thought to what above posters have said about contrast. My last kit the cabs and floor were almost identical (different wood but same stain) and it was my one big regret in the kit.

RunninginPlace, thank you for reminding me I have to like my floor and it is more of a permanent structure than my furnishings and wall color. I can always add area rugs to break up the color.

Thank you eandlh for letting me know that was your biggest regret that there was no contrast.

In the pics it may not show but there is a lot of constrast with my furniture with the Amendoim since it is a light wood with a slight red tint that looks nice in my room and I do like the various interesting wood grains and some variation.

So that is my first choice with a very close second being the Brazilian Cherry that I fear will get too dark but I just love the colors in it. I am going to see if I can bring a big sample home from the store of each color.

I LOVE the Santos Mahagony but I fear my room will get too dark when the wood darkens a bit with not enoug light boards for a constract.

I love the Makore so much being that it looks so real and I love the grain in it but it does not have the red I want in it that I envisioned.

Thank you everyone!