The debate of light wood floors vs. dark wood floors will always be circulating the internet. Which color is more in style? What’s easier to maintain? And what color will fit my style? These are the questions SO MANY people are asking. The truth is that there is no absolute answer that works perfectly in every home but when it comes to my preference, there is a clear winner in my book – light colored hardwoods are the way to go!
Over the past 5 years we have lived in 4 different homes; all of which had a variety of flooring. We’ve lived with both dark colored hardwoods as well as light colored hardwoods and we’ve been able to test the ease/difficulty of dark vs. light floors. Through our experience, we’re on team light wood floors and I’m about to get you on board too!
So without further ado, here are 4 reasons why you should install light colored wood floors in your home!
This is one of the biggest benefits to light wood floors. Of course all wood floors will dent and scratch but light wood is much more forgiving when it comes to the visibility of scratches. Scratches in dark floors penetrate through the dark stain and expose the natural wood color underneath. This is especially an issue if you have pets. Our dog has unfortunately been the source of a handful of scratches in our floors but because our floors are light, the scratches are virtually invisible unless you look closely. AKA, if you have pets or rambunctious kids, go with light wood.
Light wood floors are currently the color of choice in a lot of modern homes but it’s important to remember that light wood floors are also seen in traditional, industrial, farmhouse, and contemporary homes. Light wood floors are not a new concept, they’ve been around forever and they can look absolutely stunning with a variety of design styles. So if you happen to change your style (or sell your home to someone with a different style than yours) the floors can blend easily from one style to another.
Some people are excellent at cleaning their floors everyday….I am not one of those people. In fact, I’m not even sure if I’ve mopped our floors in the last month. Yikes! For those of you who aren’t great at cleaning your floors regularly, light wood floors are a must. Dust almost disappears on light floors whereas it’s quite apparent on dark floors.
If you want your home to feel bigger, you should incorporate light colors throughout. If you want the space to feel quaint, cozy, or intimate you should use dark colors. The same goes for flooring. In general, light wood floors tend to make a home feel brighter which ultimately make it feel bigger than it actually is. Dark wood floors tend to make a small space feel even smaller. It’s also important to note that if you ever plan on selling your home, people are more likely to be attracted to a home that feels spacious.
So have I convinced you yet? Of course everyone has their preference, and there will always be a time and place for dark wood floors too; but in our experience we have fallen in love with the look and ease of light wood floors. Are you on board?!
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Where behind the scenes, exclusive advice, and candid conversations are sent straight to your inbox every week.
Excellent blog post, light wood flooring is a great way to play into that natural luster. Keep posting such kind of info on your blog.
What’s your favorite light/mid tone engineered hardwood? Brand and name color? Not too yellow, orange and red of course!
Check out stugastudio.com! They have a bunch of beautiful neutral mid tone floors!
I’m in!
Yay! 🙂
I finally picked out my very light engineered hardwood floors. Can’t wait til they are installed!
Yay that’s exciting!!