Opinions wanted--Kitchen cabinet/flooring wood combinations

[lauraljp]

We are in the process of remodeling our kitchen. Almost ready to go with few details to remain.

We are going with maple cabinets with a wheat finish. We want to do hardwood floors and I did talk to a designer at Home Depot regarding good woods and colors. One she had recommended was a red oak. I had pretty much decided to go with this one.

Today I went to the flooring supply store to check out their red oak. The sales person I talked with did not recommend mixing the oak with the maple. He said the grain was too different.

What does everyone else think? I have seen lots of mixing of wood. I thought the oak added a nice texture to the room since the maple is quite simple. Is this a decorating no-no?

The maple is a beautiful floor, but it is very light and smooth. I think it would show alot of dirt.

My DH thinks I over analyze every decision--and I do. But I don't want to have too many regrets.

Thank for any input or advice.

Laura

 

[Linda/MA]

We recently remodeled our kitchen and also went with maple cabinets from Home Depot. Ours have a cider color finish. We also put in a hardwood floor and I love it. Ours is the Bruce Hardwood in natural and I think it looks great with the cabinets. I know how hard it is picking out all this stuff -- so many decisions -- and you're not sure how it's all going to look in the end. I'm very happy with my kitchen. If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me.

Good luck!

 

[FreshTressa]

I like the contrast.....I think it would look nicer than everything being the same. I totally disagree about mixing grains. Go with what you like and what you think would look good!

I have wood in my kitchen, and while I like how it looks, I don't like it as well as in the entryway and the rest of the house. It has dents where I have dropped plates. There is a patch where it warped where one of the kids spilled ice from the icemaker and never told me. There are spots missing finish where the dishwasher leaked, they look grimy in some of the spots where stuff has gotten in the grain and I can't scrub it out. It needed to be refinished about 3 years after we got it. (which we haven't gotten around to doing it)

It looks pristine in the family room, but they are kind of beat in my kitchen and they are about 4 years old. I would choose something else were I to do it again.

 

[RitaZ.]

One thing you may want to keep in mind... The maple wood will darken with age.

We had Maple cabinets (Kraftmaid) installed 6 years ago and they have gotten darker since then. We put in Pergo in the kitchen last April in Cherry Planked and the color is really close to the color of the cabinets.

Good luck with your choice!

 

[MickeyCrazed]

We have "whitewashed/pickled" maple cabinets w/light oak floors.
I also over analyze and worried for weeks that it wouldn't look right.
Bottom line is that we get a lot of compliments on our kitchen.
Over the years, I have learned to go with my first instinct. I usually find that I regret my decisions when I don't.
P.S. My DH works in the lumber industry. Years ago, people did not mix woods/grains. Today anything goes!

 

[RUDisney]

My interior designer friend suggested that we put in light maple cabinets around the walls and then a dark cherry island in the center of the kitchen with oak floors. There was to be granite on the countertops and a butcher block on the island.

Well, we couldn't do the island because I didn't have enough room when push came to shove.

So, we did quarter-sawn oak cabinets in mission style with hazlenut stain around the kitchen but with chestnut stain on the ones to the sides of the window over the sink. We did a zodiac countertop and backsplash. We have Bruce hw flooring, but I can't remember the color of it. If you pm me, I can send you pictures of it. I can't for the life of me figure out how to post a dang picture here and have it work.

When nay-sayers suggest that you shouldn't mix textures, isn't that what people have been doing for years with wooden cabinets and ceramic tile floors, or linoleum?

IMO, the more differences you have, the more designer the look will be. Do you really want your kitchen to look like everyone else's?

 

[RNMOM]

We remodeled our kitchen last spring and put in maple cabinets also. I wanted a floor that was similar in color and grain but not as plain as the maple. I chose laminate in a Venetian Walnut pattern. The boards are about 3-4 " wide and varied in color with light and medium tones. The lightest matched the cabinets and the mixing of the colors of boards make it look more real and also hide any spots.

The maker is Uniclic. It was very easy to instal for my contractor too. I use throw rugs in front of the icemaker fridge, the sink and the entry door.