You Asked: What "Wood" You Do?

Sometimes it feels like something works SO well, that you start to see it everywhere.  And it's extremely difficult to find answers, inspiration and ideas for your design challenges when you just can't change certain aspects of your living conditions.  For example, if you rent, you may not be able to paint, so now you have to find ideas that are focused on white walls.  And if you reside in Wisconsin {and Minnesota and I am guessing many other areas too}, you live with oak trim.  Oh the horror!!

But I have to say, it does seem that pretty white trim has because this gold standard in homes.  It nicely frames out a room and allows everything to pop.  It lightens and brightens.  It creates pretty crisp lines.  And everything seems to go with white.  I am on the white trim bandwagon, but that is definitely not the norm in our neck of the woods.

Around here, you don't see a lot of the pretty white trim {although, I do think it is finally becoming more and more popular!}.  For us, you see oak.  And it's not usually just within the trim, it's also the cabinets and the doors...and even the furniture.  Although I think oak has the potential to be beautiful, I also think you have to work with it a bit more to really achieve a happy, light and airy space.  I also believe there is such a thing as overdosing on oak.... I had to be resuscitated a few times within our own home... {only kidding of course}.

I am absolutely no expert on the subject of designing around wood trim and cabinets, but I have personally lived with it and have been getting quite a few questions lately.  Here is the most recent one now:

Jen,
I have been following your blog, along with other interior/DIY type blogs for about a year. The amount of inspiration and ideas I have gained over that time has been tremendous.
I will get to the point of my email, knowing you are über busy.  I cannot find pictures of spaces decorated around wood or natural oak trim. Every single pin on Pinterest as well as blogs, have white trim, which I adore, but am not in place where I can paint it. We just bought a 3,000 square foot house and it is everywhere. For example, I have been saving the picture of your dining room banquet piece forever, but now that I have a house with so much oak and beige, I'm at a loss on what color pieces I should bring in. Should I get white pieces, black pieces, shades of darker wood. I just wish I could look at photos for inspiration.
Do you have any suggestions or know of any blogs that have styled their home around the wood?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Best,
Jamie


My answer to her question about the furniture?  I say, bring in all tones!  A combo of white, deeper walnut and even some painted pieces.  My first tip when it comes to designing around oak is to make it blend by mixing and matching wood tones and finishes.

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At first glance, I fell head over heals in LOVE with this space!  Like, gaga galore in love.  If I could wrap up any room in a giant red bow and gift it to myself, it would be this one.  And when I fell so hard for it, I didn't even notice it had natural wood trim.  Not at first anyway.  After analyzing it, I think it's a key feature to the space, and it really works because.... ding ding ding.  There are so many finishes and tones in this room!  The coffee table, the media cabinet, the floors and the trim are all different tones.  Add in some brightly painted furniture and amazing patterns {hello, do you see the window panels and rug!?}, and you have yourself a super styled room.

The picture really combines many of my other tips in one happy place, but I will try and break some of those tips back out a bit, with some more inspirational photos.

The second tip I have is to paint the walls in a cool tone.  Wood trim is naturally so warm, that when you add in warm colors {oranges, reds and yellows}, the room can almost feel like a sauna in Arizona.  Hot.

 
Back when I worked with my pal Becky on her living and dining area, we were working with oak trim, cabinets and floors.  To balance all that oak, the walls were painted a pretty blue and furniture pieces in different finishes were added.  It was amazing the difference that was made in just those few updates alone.  It felt like a whole different home!

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Again, in the shot above, tons of wood trim but it doesn't feel overwhelming.  The cool wall color along with the eclectic mix of furniture and bold accessories still allow the room the feel nice and bright and all around happy.

Next tip?  Pair the oak with modern pieces.  Oak can sometimes come across as super traditional or even country, but when you pair it with a modern piece, it can totally rock!

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In the photo above, the cabinets are fairly basic, lots of oak paired with oak trim.  Some dramatic gray paint and a beautiful white table and BOOM!  Amazing.

When you have oak trim, painting it all white can be a really overwhelming thought.  But if you love the freshness that the white provides, why not paint something else white instead?  Like a larger piece of furniture or a built in!

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Same goes with cabinets?  You may not want to take on the task of painting all of your cabinets white, but half of the cabinets means half of the time, half the work but still an absolutely incredible impact!

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If painting trim and cabinets is not an option at all, it's all about the details.  Oil rubbed bronze finishes work well with oak, and so do bright and colorful accessories.

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Even something as simple as backspash can really really break up all that woodwork.  Next tip is to go bold or go home!

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Pairing wood cabinets with a bold and bright backsplash, really brings the cabinets into the current century, and makes them feel all shiny and new.

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My last tip is piggybacking off of going bold with color, but this time, with pattern!  That could mean a vibrant set of curtain panels, a graphic rug or an amazing wall treatment such as a stencil, stripes or wallpaper!

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The pattern will draw your eye away from all of the wood, and allow it to be nicely framed, but not feel overwhelming within the room.

When we built our home, I wanted white trim and doors right off the bat, but I was outvoted and looked at like I had antennas growing out of the top of my head.  And before I found my personal style, I went through a variety of trials and errors, such as painting our living room walls in various browns and even yellow and purchasing light colored maple furniture to match the light oak trim.  Once we started bringing in cooler colors, lots of patterns, white and walnut furniture pieces.... the oak trim slowly became less obvious to me.  Once I took the step of painting the kitchen cabinets, the fact we still had oak trim for years really wasn't all that big of a deal any longer.  Then, we added our white built in bookcases in our living room and it felt like a whole new home.  It seems as though each update we made, distracted me more and more from all the oak, and eventually it blended in the background vs. being the focal point of the abode.  We still have laminate oak like floors in our living room, and I surprisingly love them, but I also think it's because they are no longer paired with oak trim and doors.  In my opinion, to sum it all up, balance is the key.  If you can't change it, it's important to find a way to embrace it!

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What are your thoughts on the subject?  What other tips and tricks do you have to working with wood trim and cabinets?   Did you compromise on a finish in your home, that you have had to live with ever since?