Before and After: 3 Kitchens That Get Warmth From Wood Floors
See how wood floors add character and cohesion in these remodels
When remodeling a kitchen, there are many things to consider and many decisions to make. But as you weigh the pros and cons of the latest appliances, countertop materials and cabinet styles, don’t forget to look down. Flooring can have a dramatic effect on the overall look and feel of a kitchen.
Check out the before-and-after photos of these three kitchen remodels to see how designers used different types of wood floors to add warmth, character and a connection to the other materials in the spaces.
Check out the before-and-after photos of these three kitchen remodels to see how designers used different types of wood floors to add warmth, character and a connection to the other materials in the spaces.
After: Coleman and Kalinowski stripped the kitchen down by removing the old cabinetry, angled island, backsplash tile, brick flooring and pendant lights. But they incorporated the existing dishwasher, refrigerator and wall ovens into the new design. “With their budget in mind, we kept the refrigerator and other appliances, which allowed us to splurge on other areas of the kitchen,” Coleman says.
Among the splurges that make up the white portion of the white-and-wood palette are new Shaker-style cabinets, light quartzite countertops and handcrafted 4-by-4-inch clay zellige backsplash tiles.
For the wood portion of the palette, there’s new red oak flooring, a maple band on the range hood, maple open shelves and wood seats that add warmth and balance to the room.
Oversize dome pendants in a weathered zinc finish complement the scale of the room. “I feel like they add the contrast we lost with the island when we painted it white, in a style that represents what we were going for,” Coleman says. “They also have a natural, organic feel, and they’re unique.”
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Among the splurges that make up the white portion of the white-and-wood palette are new Shaker-style cabinets, light quartzite countertops and handcrafted 4-by-4-inch clay zellige backsplash tiles.
For the wood portion of the palette, there’s new red oak flooring, a maple band on the range hood, maple open shelves and wood seats that add warmth and balance to the room.
Oversize dome pendants in a weathered zinc finish complement the scale of the room. “I feel like they add the contrast we lost with the island when we painted it white, in a style that represents what we were going for,” Coleman says. “They also have a natural, organic feel, and they’re unique.”
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Coleman and Kalinowski took the cabinetry all the way to the ceiling to maximize storage and highlight the height of the room. A tall cabinet over the French door refrigerator features dividers for baking pans.
The new flooring extends through the open doorway seen here that leads to a powder room, utility room and guest bedroom.
Read more about this kitchen remodel
The new flooring extends through the open doorway seen here that leads to a powder room, utility room and guest bedroom.
Read more about this kitchen remodel
2. White Oak Warm-Up
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple with three young kids
Location: Boston
Size: 180 square feet (17 square meters)
Designer: Vani Sayeed Studios
Before: This Boston family challenged designer Vani Sayeed to transform a bland galley kitchen into a sleek, contemporary space that was also warm and inviting.
The previous kitchen had light tile floors with dark grout lines, white cabinets, black granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. A partial wall at the back of the kitchen separated an open pantry on the other side.
Sayeed devised a more streamlined layout for the kitchen with hidden appliances and sleek white quartz countertops. To make the space feel more warm and comforting, she added a mix of wood and taupe cabinets and gleaming white oak floors.
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple with three young kids
Location: Boston
Size: 180 square feet (17 square meters)
Designer: Vani Sayeed Studios
Before: This Boston family challenged designer Vani Sayeed to transform a bland galley kitchen into a sleek, contemporary space that was also warm and inviting.
The previous kitchen had light tile floors with dark grout lines, white cabinets, black granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. A partial wall at the back of the kitchen separated an open pantry on the other side.
Sayeed devised a more streamlined layout for the kitchen with hidden appliances and sleek white quartz countertops. To make the space feel more warm and comforting, she added a mix of wood and taupe cabinets and gleaming white oak floors.
After: At the beginning of the remodel, Sayeed encouraged the homeowners to create an ideabook on Houzz to share photos of the different materials and finishes they liked and disliked. “I sometimes learn more from photos of things clients dislike than what they love,” she says. “If I know what they don’t like from the start, I can save time and avoid going down the wrong design path.”
Sayeed gleaned from the photos that the homeowners were drawn to crisp, contemporary lines and warm, earthy materials. As a result, new white oak floors replaced the previous white floor tiles. English sycamore cabinets with a horizontal grain and MDF cabinets in a high-gloss taupe replaced the white cabinets.
Sayeed gleaned from the photos that the homeowners were drawn to crisp, contemporary lines and warm, earthy materials. As a result, new white oak floors replaced the previous white floor tiles. English sycamore cabinets with a horizontal grain and MDF cabinets in a high-gloss taupe replaced the white cabinets.
Sayeed removed the partial wall to make the kitchen feel more open. “It was already a pretty small space, so removing the half wall was an easy decision,” the designer says. “And by bringing the cabinets all the way up to the ceiling, we didn’t lose any storage space.”
The built-in bar along the back wall is made of wood painted in a silver finish to look like metal. Reeded glass cabinet doors let in light but add enough privacy so the glasses inside don’t have to be perfectly lined up.
Read more about this kitchen remodel
The built-in bar along the back wall is made of wood painted in a silver finish to look like metal. Reeded glass cabinet doors let in light but add enough privacy so the glasses inside don’t have to be perfectly lined up.
Read more about this kitchen remodel
3. Dark Hickory Delight
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A professional couple with two young sons
Location: Arlington, Virginia
Size: 285 square feet (26 square meters)
Designer: Asha Maxey of Asha Maía Design
Before: These Virginia homeowners felt their existing kitchen’s light oak cabinets, dark granite countertops and basic beige tile flooring didn’t fit with the coastal style they craved. The existing island was too small, took up valuable floor space and didn’t offer room for seating.
Designer Asha Maxey helped persuade the homeowners to ditch the island and establish a G-shaped layout with a peninsula. She also created a casual coastal style with white Shaker-style cabinets, brass accents, light blue walls and dark engineered hickory flooring.
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A professional couple with two young sons
Location: Arlington, Virginia
Size: 285 square feet (26 square meters)
Designer: Asha Maxey of Asha Maía Design
Before: These Virginia homeowners felt their existing kitchen’s light oak cabinets, dark granite countertops and basic beige tile flooring didn’t fit with the coastal style they craved. The existing island was too small, took up valuable floor space and didn’t offer room for seating.
Designer Asha Maxey helped persuade the homeowners to ditch the island and establish a G-shaped layout with a peninsula. She also created a casual coastal style with white Shaker-style cabinets, brass accents, light blue walls and dark engineered hickory flooring.
After: Maxey kept the location of the main components mostly the same but moved the microwave and oven elements to the left of the fridge and replaced the former slide-in range with a cooktop and stainless steel vent hood.
With the island gone, Maxey created an updated G-shaped layout with a peninsula that seats three. She took the white Shaker-style cabinets to the ceiling to maximize storage and make the kitchen appear taller.
“Many people think peninsulas are outdated or islands are the only way to go, but the peninsula makes this space more functional,” Maxey says.
With the island gone, Maxey created an updated G-shaped layout with a peninsula that seats three. She took the white Shaker-style cabinets to the ceiling to maximize storage and make the kitchen appear taller.
“Many people think peninsulas are outdated or islands are the only way to go, but the peninsula makes this space more functional,” Maxey says.
The brass peninsula pendants have a nautical style that pairs with the light blue walls, blue-gray stools and crisp white cabinetry for a breezy coastal look.
The dark flooring provides a rich, grounding counterpoint to the mostly white palette. “They wanted to go with something durable and not worry about the nuisances of pure hardwood,” Maxey says.
Flooring: Homestead Retreat Hickory TecWood in Stampede Hickory, Mohawk Flooring; wall paint: Rain, Sherwin-Williams
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The dark flooring provides a rich, grounding counterpoint to the mostly white palette. “They wanted to go with something durable and not worry about the nuisances of pure hardwood,” Maxey says.
Flooring: Homestead Retreat Hickory TecWood in Stampede Hickory, Mohawk Flooring; wall paint: Rain, Sherwin-Williams
Read more about this kitchen remodel
More on Houzz
Read more kitchen stories
Browse kitchen photos
Hire a kitchen remodeler
Shop for kitchen products
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple with three kids (two in college and one at home)
Location: Southlake, Texas
Size: 300 square feet (28 square meters)
Designer: Tonia Coleman of Le Belle Maison Interiors
Builder: Mariusz Kalinowski of Prada Interiors
Before: These Texas homeowners had grown tired of the dark and foreboding look of their kitchen, so they reached out to designer Tonia Coleman and builder Mariusz Kalinowski to create a lighter and brighter space with a welcoming white-and-wood palette that includes new custom-stained red oak floors.
The existing kitchen had brick flooring, heavy brown cabinets and trim, dark gray backsplash tile and darkly mottled granite countertops. It felt like a dungeon, Coleman says.
Other things that needed to go included an angled island that created tight entry points into the cooking area and small pendant lights over the island that didn’t fit the scale of the space.
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