Do dark wood floors make a room feel smaller?

drh

Hello -

My wife and I are undergoing a renovation and are nearing the state whereby we will be replacing our existing floor. We have an original oak floor (the light brown thin strips - circa 1940) which has seen its day.

We are currently debating whether to go with a lighter or darker hardwood. Both of us prefer the darker hardwood (chocolate brown) but are afraid it may make our space seem smaller.

Then again, we also feel the darker wood lends more of a sophisticated look to the space. If our furniture, window coverings and wall color are light, would this contrast the floors nicely and offset the feeling of a small space?

Thanks for any responses!
Dan in Canada

cdpage

I have dark floors in my place, as well as dark walls... but i have light walls and light furniture too.

dark floors don't really make the room smaller in my opinion, but what it does do is show off dust on the floor a lot more.
if you have a dusty house, due to carpet or what ever, you may not want to go dark, as you will be vacuuming all the time.

I have dark wood stairs and am cleaning them all the time... think i'll be getting rid of a beautiful carpet that we bought for the family room, as that is the source of 1/2 the dust.

if you have a cheap rug, one that you can pull the fibers out of with a pinch... you will not want dark wood.

However, if you are mostly ceramic and wood flooring, dark wood makes most furniture pop, and it looks great.

aaron.klimchuk

as CDpage got into. The floors themselves will not make your rooms feel small, its all about putting the whole room together. With chocolate floors go with lighter wall colors, beiges and tans. Look into recessed lighting and light window treatments which will allow additional light into the room.

Personally I love the look of dark hardwood when done correctly it can make a home quite elegant. You might want to meet with an interior designer to help you create warm rooms with your new floors

Allison1888

I think if you have other light wood in the room, you're fine. We had Brazilian cherry in our last house and loved it -- except it did show dirt more easily. I would shop around for wood. We just finished off our attic and were going to go with the big box wood just to save money. A local wood retailer matched the price and delivered samples until we found what we likes. Some are hurting for business, so it pays to shop around. Also, think about accent pieces. I've seen some cool medallions. Here's a link that shows one. Nice way to accent one part of the floor. Good luck!

http://www.oldhouseweb.com/how-to-ad...ght-wood.shtml

fbennett1125

i think the width of the wood really makes more of a difference in if the room feels bigger or smaller than the color. to me at least.

dcd22

I also agree that it will not and does not make the room look or feel any smaller. We have dark wood in our entire house (Braz. Walnut (IPE) and oak with a cherry stain). It really does make the house look "rich".

My biggest (and it is huge) issue with it is that it show's everything. We have 2 dog's and a 9 month old, and I feel as if the floor is never clean, so I am always cleaning it!!

If the dark look is what you both want, go for it!

gecica

It's probably not a good idea to have dark wood floor, strong wall color, like dark purple, and dark furniture all together in one room. The color-pick should also depend on the lighting of your room.