Interior Wood Finishes Don’t Have to Match

The trend of matching your interior wood finishes is slowly fading, yet many people are still afraid to mix multiple wood finishes in the same room. Mixing wood finishes can give your home a unique and textured look as long as you follow some guidelines.

Become Familiar with Different Types of Wood

• Oak is a hardwood with a long, open, straight grain and a course texture.

• Maple, which is also a hardwood, has a fine and even texture with a close grain pattern. Maple is an easy complement to oak because it’s understated grain pattern doesn’t compete with oak’s busy grain pattern. Maple stains light to medium dark so finding a complementary color is a simple task.

• Bamboo, which is three times stronger than oak, is a fantastic building material because it grows fast and is self-renewing. The grain characteristic is compact and striated. Bamboo is the perfect choice for the homeowner who enjoys mixing stripes with pattern.

• Cherry is fine, textured, strong, and durable. It is reddish with a golden luster and gets darker in color with age.

• Birch has a more uniform appearance and the grain is slightly wavy with a fine, even texture.

• Alder is a hardwood and a member of the birch family. It is moderately light and slightly soft with a straight-grained smooth uniform texture.

• Walnut is exceptionally strong and durable. There are 20 species of walnut, each with its own individual characteristics. The grain is generally straight and the colors are typically warm and rich.

• Hickory is a strong, dense wood that is part of the walnut family. It has color variations from white to brown and tan. It has knots and unique pattern in its heart and sapwood. Its grain pattern is subtle and can take stain in a unique deviation.

Pair Complements

Wood finishes do not need to match; however, they should complement each other. Look at the color bias of each wood and make sure their undertones match regardless of their finish. Try keeping grain patterns similar to retain the mood of the room. Natural and unfinished woods can add an organic and rustic feeling. Incorporating too much of the same woods can prevent individual pieces from standing out.