Questions? Give us a call: 617-710-8783
Menu
Using different design elements in your home decor can help elevate your style to the next level. A lot of contemporary design melds together pieces with wood, metal, fabric, or color. Figuring out how to do it subtly takes practice, but it can be done effectively.
Decorating your home with wood furniture that matches completely is a thing of the past, but adding in wood elements can help make your decor more contemporary. Playing with different color palettes, textures, and patterns is a good way to add dimension and depth to your home.
Following a few easy decorating tips can help you decorate with ease and confidence. It may seem overwhelming trying to figure out how to create a cohesive look that combines different colors of wood and textures, so we’re here to help.
Read on for our 5 tips that will have you mixing wood tones like an experienced decorator in no time.
Choose wood pieces that have a similar undertone. That doesn’t mean they all have to be the same shade of wood or stain. Whatever colors you choose need to all be in either the warm or cool family.
Wood finished with waterbased finishes tend to have cooler look compared to woods finished with oil. Warm woods are maple (with oil), cherry, white oak (with oil), or walnut. If you’d like to go for more cool shades, explore bleached ash, maple with waterbased finish, or even oxidized maple. If all the wood pieces fall into the same group, it will help your room feel more connected.
Pick just a few wood finishes that you want to use in your space. Your decor should feel balanced, not overwhelming.
Now that you’ve got your color palette figured out for your wood, choose a piece that will anchor everything together. This can be a coffee table, hutch, or dining room table, but it needs to be a larger piece of furniture.
Once you have that figured out, mix in several wood tones that contrast around it. If you’re not ready to buy other pieces of furniture, start with wood accessories to see what you like before investing in other pieces.
Pick out paint colors that will complement the warm or cool wood tones you have selected. If you want to create a subtle effect in your decor, pair shades that have equal intensity. A dark walnut buffet that is against a deep blue-green wall can create a dynamic effect since both shades are of similar intensity.
If you’d like to create a more subtle type of drama in your decor, paint your walls with neutral warm tones, such as khaki or taupe. Those types of shades will help bring out the rich elements in medium colored wood.
Reddish-brown woods such as cherry and mahogany can sometimes be difficult to find coordinating paint colors to pair with. The undertones of cherry are darker pink or reddish, and it does tend to get darker over time. Vibrant green is a striking accent color to pair with cherry wood.
This doesn’t necessarily have to be a wall color either. You can use different tones as accessories such as pillows, blankets, or wall art. No matter what color combo you choose, look for what pairs well with the wood tones.
If you have hardwood flooring, don’t forget, that’s a tone too. Take that into consideration when planning out your room. You can decide whether you want to play up your floors or make them more subdued.
If you have a wood floor, add in an area rug to help break up the wood furniture and floor. A large rug will help tie the space together and help provide a transition between the furniture and floor. Your rug doesn’t have to match the same tones as the wood either. Add in a rug with cool tones if you have a warm color palette.
To add another layer of softness, add in some neutral tones for furniture and decor. White or grey colored items can help balance out all the various tones and shades you have in your space. It will also help add dimension and texture.
Grain pattern comes in a variety of sizes. The grain of the wood helps provide texture as well. Woodgrain is the swirls or stripe-like shapes that you see in the wood. Some of the woodgrain can be small and tightly put together, while others can have larger swirls of the pattern. Each species of tree has its own unique grain, figure and texture.
Just as you pair patterns that appear on fabric, do the same for wood. Use a lot of different types of the wood grain when selecting your furniture to add dimension. The larger the grain, the more rustic it will make your space feel. Smaller grains will have your room feeling polished and formal.
Mix and match grains if you want to, but if you’re going for the more rustic vibe, embrace that.
When laying out your room, be mindful of where you place your wood pieces of furniture. You don’t want all your dark pieces on one side of the room. That will just cause it to appear unbalanced. Place finishes throughout the room to balance it out.
Feel free to add other textures to the room, such as stainless steel, leather, or plastic. It can help add balance to the room and break up all the wood.
Following these decorating tips for wood mixing can elevate your game as an interior decorator. Finding a cohesive color scheme that doesn’t clash against itself is one of the first steps to mixing in various wood tones into your space.
Whether you’re wanting a casual feel or something more formal, there’s a way to accomplish that with strategic decorating.
Wilbur Davis Studios is all about creating elegant designs and it is reflected in our furniture. For more interior decorating inspiration, check out some of our other blogs.