My '85 kitchen has good oak cabinets, medium stain. I thought about painting them but think I will keep the wood look and just give them a good cleaning and new hardware. BUT, I really like wood or wood laminate floors and don't know how to match wood on wood. Anything you tried or any ideas on how to go about picking the right floor? The cabinets have a lot of grain and as I stated they are a medium brown.
I think exact matching to the color of your cabinets can be difficult. I would go with a darker floor for contrast. It will update the look of your kitchen and make it look more modern yet still traditional. Good luck!
If the cabinets are medium, I'd go for a darker floor. Cherry, which has a very fine grain, wouldn't be in competition with the grain of your oak. You can go lighter, choose a maple or a birch. They are also minimally grained, I think the dark against the light looks best. It will really make your cabinets pop and give the space a brand new look.
I'm not an expert so this is an opinion, but the darker, reddish tone oak finish would be pretty with a cherry wood floor. Golden oak would look too yellow and clash. I have darker stained oak furniture in my dining room with a black walnut curio and and dark stained cherry tiered corner cabinet and the mixed woods are welcoming and make the room more interesting (or so I've been told!).
For the best overall results, your kitchen floor should be darker or lighter than your cabinetry. I, personally, would go with a lighter floor. This will make the room look larger and more spacious. Matching the cabinets and the floor would be a mistake as there will be no separation or contrast between the two. If you google 'Virtual Rooms' you can find several websites which will allow you to select a likeness of your kitchen. These web sties allow you to select colors for the cabinets, walls and floors so you can see for yourself what the room will look like prior to buying your flooring.
If you want wood flooring, then choose a lighter or darker wood colour. Do not worry about the grain. I would not suggest a dark cherry stained wood as the red in the cherry will limit your decor options. Before choosing dark or light stained flooring, you should consider adjacent floors..you might want to consider a tile or vinyl flooring instead, to give you a different texture in the room and other colour choices. What people do not realize is that if you prefer wood flooring, then you will have to choose the type of wood you like and then the colour of it ... all woods (ex. maple/birch/oak/hickory) can be stained medium, dark, left natural..whatever you want, so choose the wood you like then the colour of it you want.
