In this living room I had no problem painting the original brick fireplace white, along with the shelves, mantel and hearth. The walls, ceiling and trim throughout also got a fresh coat of paint. The other big (but subtle) change was having the floors redone. ...
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LIGHT OR DARK FLOORS?
When you're doing a new hardwood floor, a big decision can be the exact colour of stain on the floors. I've done homes with dark floors and light – either choice can be beautiful. When I was working on my own place (above) I felt I wanted a light colour floor to keep the space open, airy and casual. Sometimes I find a lighter floor has a more casual feel. The floors in the image above are Nova Scotia milled maple with a clear coat of finish, it does naturally get darker over time. But here is another with dark floors. This was a custom stain, in quite a matte finish and I also loved the colour of these floors. I find each house is different so the decision can depend on a number of factors.
Here is a good example of how they can look side by side.
FLOORS PAINTED WHITE
I've always found old floors painted white gives a fresh, clean look to a space. It's also a great to add rugs to white floors, they really pop off the white and can provide a burst of colour. I've always loved the spread in Elle Decor many years ago where American designer, Darryl Carter showed his summer place with painted white floors. Here are a few images from that. His book New Traditional, is still one of my favourites!
