What Goes With Dark Wood Floors?
Avoid a too-heavy look or losing your furniture in a sea of darkness with these ideas for decor pairings
Laura Gaskill
April 2, 2019
Houzz Contributor. I cover decorating ideas, Houzz tours & the monthly home maintenance checklist. My favorite pieces to write center around the emotional aspects of home and savoring life's simple pleasures. Decluttering course + discount for Houzzers: https://www.lauragaskill.com/welcome-houzzers
Houzz Contributor. I cover decorating ideas, Houzz tours & the monthly home maintenance... More
Dark wood floors can be incredibly chic and sophisticated, bringing richness and polish to a space. But when paired with the wrong furnishings and colors, those floors run the risk of making the space feel dark and heavy. If you’ve been wondering what to put with your dark floors to bring out their best features, try these ideas.
1. White Walls and Light Wood Furniture
For the most harmonious look, choose wood furniture that matches the warmth of your floors but is a few shades lighter. For instance, pair grayish or black wood floors with pale, weathered woods, and pair warm, rich floors (like the ones shown here) with warm medium- to light-toned woods like cherry or maple. The lighter wood furniture, fluffy white rugs and crisp white walls here provide contrast to the dark wood floors without appearing stark.
For the most harmonious look, choose wood furniture that matches the warmth of your floors but is a few shades lighter. For instance, pair grayish or black wood floors with pale, weathered woods, and pair warm, rich floors (like the ones shown here) with warm medium- to light-toned woods like cherry or maple. The lighter wood furniture, fluffy white rugs and crisp white walls here provide contrast to the dark wood floors without appearing stark.
2. Furniture Legs Matched to Floors
You don’t always need contrast where dark floors are concerned — matching wood furniture as closely as possible to the color of your floors is a simple way to make your space feel elegant and put together. If you are choosing to match furniture to the floors, go with a lighter color on the walls. It doesn’t need to be white, but the wall color should be significantly lighter than the floors and furniture to keep the space from feeling heavy.
Shop for dining chairs in the Houzz Shop
You don’t always need contrast where dark floors are concerned — matching wood furniture as closely as possible to the color of your floors is a simple way to make your space feel elegant and put together. If you are choosing to match furniture to the floors, go with a lighter color on the walls. It doesn’t need to be white, but the wall color should be significantly lighter than the floors and furniture to keep the space from feeling heavy.
Shop for dining chairs in the Houzz Shop
3. Mixed Woods and White
Echo the natural variety of trees in a forest with an organic look like this one. A dark wood table almost disappears against the dark floors, while the light wood chairs and pendant light stand out. Crisp white walls and plenty of greenery complete the look.
Echo the natural variety of trees in a forest with an organic look like this one. A dark wood table almost disappears against the dark floors, while the light wood chairs and pendant light stand out. Crisp white walls and plenty of greenery complete the look.
4. Rich Wall Color and Kilim Rug
If you crave color, choose a hue you love in a rich, pigmented shade and paint the walls or the back of a bookcase with it. Echo the color in a patterned kilim or other flat-weave rug. The combination of patterned textiles, rich color and dark floors creates a cozy and welcoming feel.
Add some texture with a new rug from the Houzz Shop
If you crave color, choose a hue you love in a rich, pigmented shade and paint the walls or the back of a bookcase with it. Echo the color in a patterned kilim or other flat-weave rug. The combination of patterned textiles, rich color and dark floors creates a cozy and welcoming feel.
Add some texture with a new rug from the Houzz Shop
5. Dark Rug, Light Walls
A patterned rug in a dark pattern will make your room look richer and more interesting without calling too much attention to itself. Give all of those dark hues a lift by painting the walls and ceilings crisp, clean white. If you prefer a bit of color, go with a whisper-light blue or lavender.
Houzz guides to every color (including black and white)
A patterned rug in a dark pattern will make your room look richer and more interesting without calling too much attention to itself. Give all of those dark hues a lift by painting the walls and ceilings crisp, clean white. If you prefer a bit of color, go with a whisper-light blue or lavender.
Houzz guides to every color (including black and white)
6. Marble, White, Bronze and Wood
Dark wood floors in the kitchen can be very chic. Keep the overall effect elegant and light by balancing the dark floors with white cabinetry and walls, warm bronze metals and wood accents just a few shades lighter than the floors.
Find a designer to help create your new kitchen
Dark wood floors in the kitchen can be very chic. Keep the overall effect elegant and light by balancing the dark floors with white cabinetry and walls, warm bronze metals and wood accents just a few shades lighter than the floors.
Find a designer to help create your new kitchen
7. Bright Hue Plus White
Celery green was used here, but nearly any bright hue would work. The key is to balance a big splash of color (like the accent wall and rug here) with plenty of white, and keep other colors to a minimum.
Work with a painter to get that pop of color
Celery green was used here, but nearly any bright hue would work. The key is to balance a big splash of color (like the accent wall and rug here) with plenty of white, and keep other colors to a minimum.
Work with a painter to get that pop of color
8. “Muddied” Hues and Layered Textures
For a sophisticated urban look, try mixing a range of textures like leather, hide and velvet in soft, muddied hues— think gray, ‘greige,’ taupe and sage. For furniture go with dark woods and natural steel.
For a sophisticated urban look, try mixing a range of textures like leather, hide and velvet in soft, muddied hues— think gray, ‘greige,’ taupe and sage. For furniture go with dark woods and natural steel.
9. Greige Walls and Moroccan Rug
Shaggy Moroccan rugs go with nearly everything but look especially great atop dark wood floors. Pair yours with warm greige walls and neutral furniture for a sumptuous look.
Find a new sofa for your space
Shaggy Moroccan rugs go with nearly everything but look especially great atop dark wood floors. Pair yours with warm greige walls and neutral furniture for a sumptuous look.
Find a new sofa for your space
10. Area Rugs to Define Zones or Cover Up
Flooring too dark but you don’t want to redo it? One lovely option is to paint the walls pale blue with white trim, hang warm bamboo shades, and roll out area rugs in soft colors to define zones.
Another way to work around too-dark flooring is by covering up as much as possible, using room-size area rugs. This works best in low-traffic areas like the bedroom.
Tell us: Do you have dark wood floors? How do you decorate around them? Share your photos and tips in the Comments!
More on Houzz
What to Know Before Refinishing Your Floors
Find a pro
Shop for products
Flooring too dark but you don’t want to redo it? One lovely option is to paint the walls pale blue with white trim, hang warm bamboo shades, and roll out area rugs in soft colors to define zones.
Another way to work around too-dark flooring is by covering up as much as possible, using room-size area rugs. This works best in low-traffic areas like the bedroom.
Tell us: Do you have dark wood floors? How do you decorate around them? Share your photos and tips in the Comments!
More on Houzz
What to Know Before Refinishing Your Floors
Find a pro
Shop for products
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We wanted to move away from just looks when choosing our flooring for our new build, and work out why light or dark will or will not work. We had chosen grey ironbark timber for living "wing" and bedroom "wing" - both of which were on stumps to follow the lie of the land. Now we wanted tiles on our concrete slab thermal mass in the centre.
We found a preferred light limestone beige tile, and a dark flow waterfall tile. Both were more consistant in colour but had some texture variant in the pattern. I collected about 150 photos from houzz with light floors, dark floors, light walls with dark floors, dark walls with light floors. We looked through them and learned things.
Here’s what we learned (about us as much as about tiles) -
So, after looking through all the photos to learn a pattern of how we felt, we then went through them again and deleted any that didn’t work for us. Our preference became very clear to us.
Here’s what we’ve decided.
Hopefully this works!
Thank you for helping me with my homework... lots to consider
Black ceiling light fixtures