Hardwoods In The Home: New Hardwood Guide Solves Decorating Dilemma For Homeowners

Design Pros Vote 'No' To Matching Wood Tones

(HIT) - To match, or to mix? That’s the toughest question, according to home decorators trying to decide which hardwoods and stain colors to choose for their floors, cabinets, furniture and trim.

The answer to the mix-or-match dilemma is … Don’t match. Blend! That word comes from top interior designers and kitchen designers around the country, who also tell why in a new 18-page brochure titled "American Hardwoods by Design" from the American Hardwood Information Center. Analyzing their own approach to the mix/match question, the pros explain:

• Why some hardwood floors should be much lighter than the cabinets in the same kitchen. ("The lighter the wood color on your floor, the more light bounce you get in your kitchen, where you need it most.")
• When floors should go darker. (To provide a "grounding" for the lighter cabinets, say a number of the design pros.)
• What contrasting wood trimming can do for a dull room. (They "create subtle shadows that add a sense of depth and trick the eye into seeing more space than exists," according to the brochure.)
• How to decide whether to stain or paint the hardwood mouldings on your walls and ceilings. ("What’s your style? How comfortable are you with energizing color?")

Designers offering their ‘Interior Insights’ are: Clodagh, New York; Eric Cohler, Eric Cohler Inc., New York; Jamie Drake, Drake Design Associates, New York; Thomas Jayne, Thomas Jayne Studio, Inc., New York; Celerie Kembel, Kembel Interiors, Palm Beach; Benjamin Noriega-Ortez, New York; Florence Perchuk, Designs by Florence Perchuk, New York; and Mary Jo Peterson, MJP Design, Inc., Brookfield, CT.

Illustrated with point-proving photos, "American Hardwoods by Design" is designed to take the fear out of color decisions, and to explain the many decorative options that come from America’s hardwood forests today.

The brochure also covers the important issues of American hardwoods’ sustainability and environmental friendliness, noting, for example, that forests in the U.S. produce about double the amount of hardwood that is used each year.

"American Hardwoods by Design" is available free of charge; visit www.hardwoodinfo.com and click on "Write and Request."

Courtesy: Home Improvement News and Information Center