Grey presently tops the list of popular interior colors. It is representative of a subtle, neutral background to use with a bold decorating scheme and furniture. Although grey paint works well with wood flooring, many don’t give a second thought to the shade of grey that’s being used or the type of wood – except for when it clashes.
If you are wanting to paint your walls grey, you’ll want to know a little about what wood coordinates well with it. By following a few suggestions, you’ll be able to put together a grey-walled room that flows and looks great.
Undertones Make A Difference
Grey is considered to be a cool color but being a neutral, it can actually be cool or war so it presents the opportunity to blend with many color schemes. Much depends on the undertone of the grey. Gray can have blue hues which is cool or red undertones which is warm. It’s important to keep warm colors with other warm colors as a rule, especially when it comes to the undertone of the wood flooring. This gives it consistency.
An amazing thing about grey wall paint, the hue can change when paired with light or dark wooden flooring. Grey brings an elegant and timeless charm to any room, and since it leans more toward cool than warm hues, it goes with most wooden floor colors. Knowing the right hue and darkness to go with is key though. You can easily find a room that is flashy, too dull, or that is uninviting.
Grey is a cool version of warm cream or beige. Cool sends out an elegant, contemporary message but isn’t naturally warm and inviting when it’s in some hues. To avoid making the room appear dull and gloomy and to add character to the space, you’ll want to introduce a warm shade of wood flooring color.
Red
Red tone hardwood invoke a feeling of warmth. Red is one of the most extreme of the warm tones, almost hot. While you do want to be cautious when going with a red hue, when done correctly, it can add an amazing touch. Examples of red toned hardwood flooring include mahogany, maple, and red oak.
Orange
Orange tone hardwood can give a nice highlight to grey flooring. When going with orange tones, you’ll want to pay attention to which shade of grey paint you use to ensure it doesn’t clash. Examples of orange hue hardwood flooring include cherry wood and Osage orange wood.
Yellow
Yellow hardwood tones add a more subtle warmth. When carefully applied, yellow hardwood flooring can go beautifully with grey painted walls. Examples include yellow pine and yellow birch.
Neutral
Neutral hardwood tones can work well with grey painted walls also. You will want to add pops of colors in other places to keep the room from being too dull such as in your rugs, wall decorations, decorative pillows, or even in your furniture. Examples of neutral colored wood flooring include hickory and ash.
Pairing Light And Dark
One of the best approaches to using grey paint is to couple light and dark. If you go with a light shade of grey, choosing a dark wood for your flooring will provide and interesting contrast. Or, if you use light flooring, go dark for the walls. When and where to do so must be considered to pull it off successfully.
Some of the wood choices that go well with grey walls are as follows:
White wood flooring can be used with dark grey wall paint to make a statement. White oak is one of the most popular choices.
Light brown wood flooring – like walnut and pine – typically work perfectly with grey walls. The darker grey you use for your walls, the better.
Medium brown wood flooring is nice if you aren’t too into light wood. It works well with both light and dark grey walls and hides dirt and dust in high-traffic rooms. Oak and birch are examples of medium brown hardwoods.
Dark brown wood flooring can easily be paired with light grey walls for an interesting contrast. Dark brown is the ideal color if it’s played right but the circumstances must be just right. Rooms with tall walls and high ceilings work well with dark woods.
Black wood flooring is awesome if you want to go bold. Light grey painted walls look beautiful with black wood, especially when going with beige or white furniture. Black wood includes Brazilian ebony and black walnut.
Traditional Vs. Modern
Deciding if you want your room to look traditional or modern is a good place to start. Wood flooring in general either have a cool or warm undertone. Cool tones, like taupe or grey, tend to complement modern themes when used with cool grey painted walls. Warm tone wood, like beech and hickory, bring a more casual or rustic feel when paired with warmer grey tones.
Sizing Your Room Up
The size of your room should help determine your choice in grey paint and your flooring too. If your room is very small, you won’t want to paint it a very dark shade of grey nor will you want to go extremely dark on the wood flooring. A lighter grey on the wall and a medium or light wood flooring would work best.
Furnishings Matter
How your wood flooring and grey walls play off will muchly be determined by what you have in the room with them. Brightly colored furniture will perk up a neutral floor with grey paint room white a more subtle approach on furniture is best when going with black flooring and light walls or dark walls and light flooring.
Summing It Up
In the long run, it all boils down to your personal preferences. You can make almost anything work with your grey walls when it comes to flooring choices because you can tone your furniture and decorating scheme up…or down. After all, that’s the joy of using grey paint – it’s flexible and timeless.
