12K
I am thinking long and hard at the moment … about painted floors, or rather about paintING floors, and to be more specific, about painting MY floors!
Our home is fairly traditional in and out; colouring the floors would give a more contemporary feel, but what happens when we bore of the look?
I have looked at many pictures, and sighed at the gentle sheen of a dark wooden floor, or the lift given by white boards, but it takes a certain amount of courage that I have yet to muster before I can reach for the paintbrush.
In our guest cottage I painted the kitchen floor, but have been disappointed by the low resistance to scratches. But that could be a question of paint quality. That will be redone in the spring which is fine as it’s not a big room to cover.
So, who better to turn to than YOU, dear readers. I know that between you there will be many who have painted floors at home, or who know other homes where it has been done.
Would you give me an outright thumbs up or shake your head and utter stern words of warning?
Many people have painted wooden floorboards, but has anyone painted on old tiles? Have you painted hallways or kitchen with heavy traffic, or only kept to the quieter parts of the house?
And what about stairs? How long is it before they start looking scruffy – please remember that mine is a country house, and the stairs are climbed by dogs and feet clad in riding boots!
Is there a paint you would recommend, and is there anyone out there – please – who has been able to compare a floor painted with special floor paint, and another covered in chalk paint? I used Annie Sloan paint on the floor of the showroom, and didn’t wax or varnish, and it looks good.
And finally, if you have used chalk paint, what protection did you add once the paint is dry.
So as you can see, my head is full of questions and with my guest season over, and a month before Christmas (and no Thanksgiving to celebrate, which of course I always regret, but that’s another story), with all of that I am itching to go ….. all I need is your permission !! 🙂 I look forward to reading your advice, and I may even promise a picture or two of the results!
PS, and if you would like to see the home of a friend of mine, who just painted her floor white, then take a look here, she is very clever and brave!![blank]
90 comments
Wow Sharon, what a hard decision you have to make !
as you live in a family country house. If it was me I'd only paint a bedroom floor first. & leave the rest, so that you won't regret it that the family are plodding in their riding boots all over you freshly painted white floor, & what about your lovely dogs running all over the place, who really don't care what has been done to the floor.My option would be 'leave a happy home, HAPPY ' Best wishes Barbara
It would be lovely but too scary for me. I would worry about everything from dog claw scratches to what if I got tired of it.
I painted the much-used staircase and the bedroom end of the house some years ago and am very pleased with the durability of the finish – I used a first coat of International Floor Paint followed by a top-coat of Farrow & Ball floorpaint. Am eager to see what your reader have to say about chalk paint on floors as I have more to do!
I know this is going to sound like sitting on the fence but … I think if the floorboards aren't in very good condition then they look better painted otherwise I'd leave them. I wish I'd used rubber in our kitchen rather than having the floorboards – it's hard wearing, easy to clean quieter and softer under foot when you're cooking for long periods of time and glasses don't break as easily when they're dropped on it!! Although I have a traditional looking kitchen I have a friend who did use rubber in hers and it looks and feels great and there's lots of colours. Sorry to throw another thought into the equation.
With a house as beautiful as yours I'm sure whatever you do will look fantastic. Have fun!
Joanna
One piece of advice I would give is that I painted the dining room with F&B; Strong White but then put a rug over the centre. Underneath this turned yellow and despite 6 coats over it I cannot get rid of the yellow and it looks awful. Unfortunately I had moved the rug so have a large patch larger than the rug so it shows. I have use International in other rooms and this seems better but I don't think they still do it in white.
Hello Sharon,
I was very pleased with Farrow and Ball floor paint in the past, but in the bedrooms (extra layer of matt varnish). Have also stained and waxed floors which I regretted (paint can be sanded off!). Our staircase (dark oak) was painted off white, a few years ago (a sea-grass runner with black edging) – I was hesitant but so, so pleased as it changed the whole space (we have very similar houses). Let more Normandy light in, go for it!!
Ivan
I'veyet to find a paint that does not chip and once the scratches start it looks grubby. Maybe it is the quality of the paint or the rough use but now we always seem to go for tiles. In a tropical climate that seems best.
Great comments – thank you all!! I'm not familiar with the International Paint, I'll check that one out. The special floor paint I used in the guest cottage was as horrifically expensive as it was fragile!!
keep thos suggestions coming
thank you, Sharon
Hi Sharon. I love the look of painted floorboards but have never had the courage to dip brush in paint! We have a very low windowsill which my nosy collie loves to put her front paws on to see what's going on outside. I have tried various paints on it but it always ends up scratched and scuffed, so repainting has become a regular job. I personally wouldn't enjoy painting a larger area on a regular basis. I do think the floors in your photos look fab though!
Hallo Sharon,
we also live in an 200 years old cottage. The renovation took a long time and still goes on. I also have painted the stairs white (Dulux), yes there are scratches and marks on the surface now not only because of the dogs, but it looks charming. My old oak floor I would never paint! It took weeks to get the old paint off. After the procedure we just waxed the surface. Now you can see so many details, natural beauty, history and I always remember, that the oak trees for this floor were planted when Louis XV or Johann Sebastian Bach were born. Isn´t that amazing?
Have a wonderful time, warmly Babsi
I have just the same ideas, but anxious as to how to carry out.. My daughter painted her front room white and it still looks amazing.. we also used a soft broom to do it, so it was done very quickly..I think I would do the bedroom first, and see how that goes, and then later the rest… painted and then varnished should make it last longer, but might make it harder to revert back to the wood.. will watch to see how you cope with the changes.. good luck, Janzi
Well, I had been living on painted floors most of my life and I would say NO to you. If you have poor quality boards in the first place, then temptation is big. But…
First of all, it's neverending fun of painting it again and again. In household of 2 children and two doga I need to paint the floors each year. There is some fast drying paints for floors, drying in 4-6 hours… Makes life easier, but these are not sturdy enough. Good sturdy floor paint as far as I know (or at least from my experience needs 24 hour drying time. So imagine your life when hallway, for example, is not available for 24 hours at all (and it would be one layer only). One way or another, I would say that 12 month painting cyrcle is something to think about. So moving all the furniture, sending family camping and the smell as well… a lot of hassle.
Plus these days are so many synthetic materials, laminates and vynil everywhere that a natural wooden floor (even with all the aging scraches and dents) is a treasure itself to expose and be proud of it.
If you want some changes, I would go for loose carpets. Different colours, different designs and prices are bearable – just choose! It will change the room without making serious, quite permanent changes.
The wooden floors tend to darken with age – why not give a sanding down (you can rent these sanding machines without buying one) and fresh layers of vanish? It will lighten the floor, and it will look as new for several years at least.
If your floors hasn't been painted, trust me, it's not a good idea to do so. Getting rid of paint later will be a big mess if you will decide that you do not like it anymore. If you do not have really outstanding oak boards, like sometimes in old houses you can find 3-4 inch thich boards, there is only small amout of sanding options – each time machine takes off few milimiters. Vanish needs way less sadning than paint which sneaks in any dent leaving very noticable marks.
There are also other minuses, so all in all I'm strongly against painting good wooden floorboards.
I have always appreciated wood floors for their color and character. Painting seems to cover that up.
Sharon,
We had our stairs painted and with 3 teens in the house, they took a beating. The look is great for a beach home or country setting, yet we resided in town and some just eyed the steps like I've neglected my house hold cleaning.
So we ran a rug runner up the stairs. Did a good job ourselves too. So big rooms, no kids. It would work.
Hugs
Cotton Peony
We used Farrow and Ball on the stairs in our last home. It lasted seven years without a scratch!
The only hesitation I have with dark floors is that they show absolutely EVERYTHING! I am a fan of grey, myself. We will be painting the stairs in our new home soon. The "wood" in our home was laid by the previous owner. It is that plastic-y looking orange that looks nothing like wood. I may paint all the floors when I figure out how to keep my kitties off of the whle they dry! At least we have two sets of stairs!
xo
Andie
Sharon,
I'm a stockist for Chalk Paint™ decorative paint in Texas. On my blog, ladybutterbug.blogspot.com, there are two floor posts on the right hand side of the blog. I have painted my master bedroom and hallway in Chalk Paint™, hallway a lime wash and master bedroom painted and stenciled. Both are sealed with Annie's floor lacquer. The hallway treatment is my favorite and wears well. My floors are oak…needed to be refinished when I moved in but I couldn't afford the process. The hallway lime wash process is very easy and fast. Just water down the Chalk Paint™ to make a lime wash, apply lime wash with a rag in circular motions allowing the wash to soak into the floor, wipe off wash to your desired look, let dry, and seal with two "thin" coats of Annie's lacquer. Since the paint is not sitting on top of the floor like painted on paint it wears well and I don't notice any scratches. Now the painted master bedroom floor is wearing well also, especially in the traffic areas, but I moved a piece of furniture yesterday and I scratched the floor in the process…just adds character! Please take a look at my blog…I love my painted floors in Chalk Paint™
One issue to consider is dogs .. they can scratch floors worse than shoes sometimes. I think the runner on the stairs is the best idea, with a painted floor or not. I keep falling in love with the old fashioned kitchens I see on all the blogs with everything white, floors included. But I dislike the idea of having to touch up the floor paint as well as the scuffed look they often have in the photos.. meaning it does happen.
The only thing I could guess that would totally ( maybe ) protect a painted floor would be to put a coat of polyurethane (plastificado) over the floors when done.
They did that to our natural wood floors here and they look brand new .. even though they are 100 years old 🙂
Hi Sharon
I have painted the floors at our former farmhouse and loved them.
Farrow & Ball have floor paint, which is an excellent quality and clients of mine have used it with success. In fact one has a store and the floor is painted in F & B "pointing" It is soft, warm and she is able to live with the scratches in a busy store which has winter traffic too. It is fairly easy to touch up the scratches if necessary
I say go for it.
Have a wonderful week
Helen xx
Have you considered tinted floor stains ?
Or perhaps have the wood sanded and bleached ( pickled ) ?
Love the look but its high maintenance, if you are a fanatic about scratches and normal wear and tear. Just my experience but I do love the look, gotta say.
Let us know what you decide, other option is a light ash colored stain? Have a wonderful day!
I live in a 75 yr old home & painted the bedroom floors in white floor paint to cover the brown wood floors. For cleanup I mop the floors with a mix of bleach & lestoil. I do get scratches on the floor but like that it adds to the worn out look. I would never do black floor paint as seen in the magazines as this would gather dust daily – white floors are more forgiving.
Enjoy – its bright in the winter & has a beach cottage look in the summer. I highy recommend.
ehat amounts of bleach, lestoil & water? Hot water?
Thanks!
I painted a floor white, once…. the wood was beyond any of the charm of being 'patinaed' – it was gross; so, I painted it. But, the white was SO hard to keep clean. It seemed to suffer greatly from dust bunnies – more than any other room and it was a seldom used back room kept closed. So, I think it was the white paint that showed everything up.
What I really think is that you should just go ahead and celebrate Thanksgiving!!! It is the most mellow, family-oriented holiday – really wonderful! =]
=]
I like the look of painted floors, but I'm wary of trying it myself. My sister painted the floor and stairs with paint designed for that purpose and it looked like crap after her two dogs had been running on it. Since I have a pretty energetic dog myself, I won't go for anything less than really hard re-sandable wood, in low traffic areas of the house… he's previously scratched up and made holes in laminate, which is what everyone says withstands dog claws.
I really do like the look, Sharon. It wouldn't be right in our home and I do love our dark natural wood floors, but I think in the right space it could look great and really bring lightness to a room. The upkeep would concern me, as would the question of what happens if it got tiresome. If you can answer those two questions, I say go for it! Let us know what you decide. XO
I vote yay.
I love painted floors, especially trompe l'oeil.
Growing up, my bedroom had a faux rug with animals, painted my artiste mother. It was so nice, instead of the boring hardwood.
My friend has a black and white faux parquet in her kitchen, and it's so wonderful! do it!
xo
Well, the comments are all over the map, Sharon, so I don't know if they will help you to make up your mind. I love the look, but natural wood floors are so classic.
It will be fun to see what you decide.
I love the look in magazines but on our heritage floors I shudder to think how difficult it would be to strip should we or someone else want them back to the original wood…I say no buy light coloured rugs!
It really depends on the quality of your paint and the traffic volume. We had painted stairs (floor paint) in our old house and they really took a beating with three young children, two adults, and a dog. It was very difficult, if not impossible to keep it looking good.
Sharon,
Alors oui c'est un vrai projet de vouloir peindre ses planchers !
Je pense que c'est préférable pour des pièces pas trop fréquentées, quoique j'ai des amis qui ont peint leur escalier avec de la bonne peinture à l'huile Farrow and Ball et ça résiste bien !
Pour la couleur je choisirais une nuance pas trop claire ni trop foncée.
Bon courage !
Moi c'est un plafond en poutres que je vais bientôt repeindre…
Céline.
Hi Sharon, We have done various different floors in the past, for lots of different reasons. The white, especially in the bathroom, showed every little hair, I was constantly dabbing at them with a wet piece of toilet paper. The dark showed all the dust bunnies, especially in a certain light. A soft taupie brown ended up being the most successful, it was boat paint and had a sealer on it as well. Dogs and kids tho' are a whole other problem. Ours had left by then, so they didn't get such heavy traffic.Have fun what ever you decide to do, a happy easy home creates the best memories in the end, not one you have to be careful living in.
manicure for dogs on the books?!
thank you Babsi, I don't think I'd paint oak floors, but ours are chestnut and not so precious
I can't say I would do paint on floors…all I can think about is the wear and tear, especially from dogs….our wood floors are pretty beat up, just from daily living. Paint seems like it would need to be redone, constantly.
Hope to see what you come up with.
Nancy
https://wildoakdesigns.blogspot.com
Oh, I say do it!!! I think any scuffs and scratches that result would only add to the charm and the "lived in" look of the floors! I follow a lot of Norwegian and Swedish blogs, seems really popular to do over there and they all seem to have dogs! Go for it!
Another one who votes yes! Last year I painted my daughter's bedroom floor, a horrid orangey pine, with diamond white floor paint. It is like a Scandinavian photo shoot in there now. At least it is once a week when I go in and collect all the dirty games kit and school uniform off the floor…
My cellar step are also Annie Sloan; the dog runs up them from the garden twice a day and they are, shall we say, a little lived in.
I have painted several floors and never looked back. But I did move…so…if you are going to stay in that home…then you really do have a decision to make because going back would be hard. I love painted floors with a big cowhide rug or a seagrass rug…and pretty easy to keep
I have painted floors until we can get hardwoods, they are MUCH better than carpet but if you have dogs and they can run in the yard I wouldn't go with white, I have to mop my floors a lot and the dirt sticks in the cracks, I don't mind it but just a FYI in case it would bother you. We used Behr porch paint on ours.
marsha.kern@yahoo.com
The second floor rooms and hallway in our 100 year old house had already been painted, so we have painted them. I like the look but if I did it again I'd use a different type of paint. We used a floor and deck paint (not sure of the brand) that had a lot of gloss to it, and instead of wearing away prettily it has just gotten a lot of chips taken out. Our kitchen floor was also painted and that was a disaster! Hard to get stains out of a painted floor, and we go in and out from the kitchen too so it was always a mess. And, having only one bathroom, and a husband who leaves a lot of water on the floor, the painted floor in there is a bit of a disaster, and pretty much impossible to repaint unless we go stay in a hotel! I wouldn't paint floors that are not already painted, knowing what I know now.
I just don't know what I would do if I were you. I also love the look of painted floor boards but would be afraid to even try it. (I'm not very adventurous, ha) We had engineered hard wood put in a small family room and down a long hallway. I kept a runner down the middle but our dog left scratches on it and it was a dark colored wood. Then, when we purchased a new house I had hardwood put in the entryway, and dining room and our dog left scratches everywhere there too. I would imagine that it would be even more noticeable if you had painted white floors. Still, I do love the look of white painted floors and might be willing to try it in a bedroom where there wasn't much traffic. Good luck in trying to made a decision, it would be a hard one to make. 🙂
Our previous home was an old farmhouse. The bedroom floors were just a soft pine so they looked much nicer painted than stained. I grew up with old beach cottage painted floors so it wasn't unusual for me. Other people were surprised but in a good way. It does lighten up the rooms…well I went with a light shade through out the entire second floor. When we moved to our new home I had new wood flooring installed on the second floor and again painted them with a semi gloss light off white. The flooring man thought I was insane to paint new wood floors. When he came back to check on things and saw the finished project he was a convert. He loved them and said it reminded him of cottages in the Key West. The paint holds up fine but it does get dirt and a bit banged up. That doesn't bother me. I rather have the light refreshing floors with the flaws than dark in the bedrooms. For some reason I love the dark wood floors on the first floor but prefer light crisp floors upstairs. Also I'm at the age that I now think OH who cares!!! I like it. You know the old- when I get old I'm going to wear a purple hat.
Good luck!!!
Kathy
My house is all stained wood. Stained wood floors throughout and stained wood trim. I just cannot bring myself to paint them white. In my old house I did paint all the attic floors white and liked that because of the brightness.
Maybe take a room that does not have such high traffic and can be closed off.
I have again and again debated the Chic White Look, but just can't bring myself to take hand polished items of furniture handed down to us and that my husband has lovingly re-finished or hand polished and paint them.
I'm not against paint and have painted some things, but!
Christy
Lil Bit Brit
Yes on the painted floors! Sometimes…depends on the floor. If one's in rough shape but that roughness is so much character, then I'd let it show.
Absolutely yes, and then you can use rugs to change the mood and feel of the rooms. I did have a link to a website that tells you how to do it well, if I can find it I'll comment with it…
My whole house has white polyurethane painted floors. Several thin coats allowed to dry before the next coat, rather than one thick application. Takes minutes to sweep the whole house clean and I love love love them.
oops.. ps…they don't get scratched as the polyurethane is very strong
I would not use chalk paint. I have painted floors before. One family member has a painted blue floor, that held up well, it went with the kitchen and the house. No pets, it lasted.
I painted a family members cottage floor, it worked with the cottage. The entire cottage was open so it helped bring it all together. Both were old homes, with flooring in good shape. One person living in them and no pets.
I think it is fine to do. I think it depends on the house. How the room is decorated and where it is in the house.
In some homes I would never do it. It is a personal decision, I enjoy following your blog.
You will make the right choice for you
Just go for it!!
I was afraid to, but started with my bedrooms upstairs. I just painted the old wooden floor white with normal paint I didn't even sand them because I like the vintage look. But I am a little dissapointed because all the paint is still perfect. But the light in our bedrooms is so nice. Then I even painted the floor in my antiques-shop white, there lots of people walking over it and also iver there it's so bright and light. Next project is my livingroom at home next spring it will be French Grey from Farrow and Ball. I can't wait to pick up my brush again! Good luck with your decision and please make lots of photo's when you will!!
Yes Lovelovelove painted white floors
we have them and the scratches just add to the charm
xxoo
Pam
Yes! Painted our parquet floors 6 years ago with porch paint—it has endured quite nicely. We have 2 schnauzers who romp through the house, but no kids. Prepping the floors with sanding & primer is key. Good luck on your decision!
Well, I'm glad to see that this is one of those times (I've just read the previous comments) when I don't have to worry that I'm entirely crazy, cranky, and curmudgeonly.
All I have to say about painted wooden floors is:
1. I'm longtime friends with two women (both of them very smart and endowed with great taste) and have known four other women (I'm counting these on my fingers right now)who've all, at one point or another, seen some magazine article about "Swedish" floor-painting and have subsequently spent a great deal of money or time or both to have their floors painted.
All have GREATLY regretted doing so, and they've made that clear many times since they first saw the business in some magazine. Each time, I've reminded them that the lovely, suddenly-light-filled room was photographed by a team that involved about ten assistants(let's not even get into the lighting crew holding umprellas up againt the outside windows so that the light can "flood" in) and wouldn't last for ten minutes in a house where folks actually had children,dogs, cooked, did REAL gardening, etcetera.
to my credit, I never once said "I TOLD you so…"
'm lucky..Ihave 220 year old, broad plank, oak flooring throughout this house. All I ever have to do is to make my mother-in-law oil them when she visits once per year. for some reason or another, she seems to enjoy the chore….which is a good thing, since the cleaning lady made it clear that she couldn't be expected to do the business, EVER……
Advisedly yours as ever,
David Terry
http://www.davidterryart.com
P.S…..I should add that I think painted floors (certainly the ones you've featured in this posting) are really lovely.
I just don't think they work for folks who have real lives that involve children, dogs, actual work, and (for lack of a more precise term, which might seem insulting to those who live comfortably with painted floors?) real lives that involve a bit more than flippery notions about interior decoration.
all of which is to saythat I'd have painted floors if I could….but that'll hve to wait until I'm shed of all the dogs, the spouse, children, garden dirt (and sand/grit), and other evidences-of-a-real-life that my current live comprises.
—-david terry
I think painted floors look lovely when fresh and new. Having said that I have polished boards and and after twenty years still look good even though they are well worn. I prefer the traditional look myself and less maintenance.
It looks like you've gotten lots of advice! The only thing I would say is don't paint tile floors in a bathroom! It was disastrous and we are still finding paint chips in old shoes almost 20 years later! Seriously…don't do it! I love the look of painted floors but know I would regret it and miss my pretty hardwoods! I know whatever you do will be beautiful, though!
Sharon
-On my oak living room floor, I wanted a lighter look, but not the upkeep of paint. I "stained" the floor by rubbing in a white oil paint and then rubbed it back off, so it is pretty light but you can still see the wood grain. Then put satin polyurethane on it. Sixteen years later it looks almost as perfect as the day I did it. Just a nice wash with vinegar water to clean.
Well, I really enjoyed all of this "free" advice from people in the know, as I've often wondered about painted floors for a cottagy look. My wood floors are 90 years old and can only be re-sanded about one more time, probaby not by me but by a subsequent home owner because, to do it with all my stuff and dogs and people in the house would be a bloody nightmare (we did it before when the house was empty, before we moved in). I have to add about real life…same floors, seven years later, with no fewer than three large dogs of the large nails, plus a husband who isn't careful going in and out of the yard and then, moi, who is not as fastidious when it comes to homekeeping as I should be…painted floors would probably not survive with us now that I've read here of other people's experiences. My poor old wood floors have taken such a beating. I wanted to "be" Rachel Ashwell when we renovated but ran out of money by the time we got to the kitchen so merely "floated" new, no-wax flooring over layers of only God-knows-what (not my preferred choice) and yes, mesmerized by Shabby Chic, I chose snow white, apparently when I was lost in the clouds and forgetting I did indeed have that "real" life. I cannot stand there all day long with mop in hand. So, you can imagine what my white kitchen floor looks like as I type. Does anybody else have a big, bounding dog who slops water out of his bowl, water dripping from large jowls across the floor while the other one walks past him with dusty paws from the dry grass? It takes a nanosecond for me to wind up with muddy prints. And even though three coats of good-quality white paint covers the old sage-green kitchen cupboards and drawers, we still chip them. White everywhere for me could only happen if I was a single girl in a girly apartment with no people and pets in it. A friend of a friend allows no one in her front door unless they take shoes off first, but I personally just can't live like that. I'd have to pick one off-limits room in my house for a light-colored painted floor; mine-all-mine and the rest of you KEEP OUT. I have a cousin who vaccuums her light-colored wood flooring four times per day; she has little ones at home. I just think pale-colored, painted floors aren't practical for a lot of people. Readers' comments here have proved it. We just have too much foot traffic.
I pulled the carpeting from my stairs and used
deck and porch white paint on them. That was
two years ago and they are just now looking
used and I rather like that…
As for the floor, choose your color and go
ahead, paint it!
Good luck and Happy Thanksgiving to you and
your family.
Sandy
Almost all of my home has painted wood floors. Only one bathroom and the kitchen have tile … the rest of the floors are painted and I love them. They're actually quite easy to paint, and if you get tired of them, you just change the color or put a new rug down. I've raised 3 kids and 2 dogs in this house and the floors hold up pretty well. If you get a scratch you just can't stand, take out your paint and touch up that area. What could be easier? I used porch and floor paint. Some of the rooms have oil paint, and some have latex. They both hold up equally. Oil paint takes a lot longer to dry so if I ever re-paint them, I'll go with the latex. The secret is to let the paint dry thoroughly!! Don't be too eager to put the furniture back in the room. Even though the paint is dry to the touch, wait a couple more days before putting furniture on it. I agree with some of the ladies who say to try one room first, maybe a bedroom. Live with it a little while and you'll know if you want to paint more of your flooring. 🙂
I'd take the plunge and try one room!!! Maybe a bedroom or laundry room and live with it for awhile!
I'm sure it will look gorgeous!!!
Hi Sharon, Have you thought about Whitewashing them? You get to keep the lovely look and warmth of the timber with just a hint of paint colour showing up. It would be less maintenance than a full painted finish but would still give you a nice clean, fresh feel.
Michelle 🙂
Personally I like the look and ease of my wood floors. They're not super shiny, just sorta rustic. They hide the " life" that runs thru the house … Dog, kids, sports stuff, dirt. I might go for a bedroom. I work in a school theatre where the brilliant architects put in a shiny yellow wood floor. We painted it black ( didn't ask, no one commented!). It gets a lot of wear and scratches, but we repaint every year. Does take a lot of sweeping as all the sawdust and foot prints show. But flat black is soon much better for the lighting!
Sharon
I think white painted floorboards look especially nice in a beach house where shoes would be kicked off at the door and sand sometimes brushed off the feet. The black painted floorboards look really classy but I'd only have them in a bedroom. I think painted floors in a bedroom would be easier to take care of and in general I prefer more traditional stained timber floors in living areas with rugs.
I don't think I could bring myself to paint a beautiful natural patina wood [or rare wood species] floor. But, under certain circumstances, if the wood floor was 'not so nice' or not worth saving, then by all means! I also like the early colonial floors with 'patterns' or the use of stencils to dress-up a plain wood floor! Best wishes on your project!
I painted our floors with porch paint. I love the way they look! I was able to use a stencil in one room, and a diamond pattern in another. I used 3 coats of polycrylic polyurethane on top and have had no discoloration. One of the rooms is our mudroom and even with 7 kids, it has held up great. If you want to see pictures, you can look here https://ourkenilworthhome.blogspot.com/2012/09/starting-point.html and here https://ourkenilworthhome.blogspot.com/2012/09/finished-floors.html
And to see how they look with furniture on them https://ourkenilworthhome.blogspot.com/2012/09/a-little-more-like-home-every-day.html Sorry to give you so many links!
I say go for it!
I love the idea of painted wood floors, but only if the wood can't be salvaged any other way. Once you paint, you'll never get back to the original beauty of the wood. Also, paint is going to wear through with traffic (sometimes that patina can be lovely) unless you top with a heavy sealer. It's a bold move. Why not try a "sample", and paint a wood plank entry mat. Place it in a heavy traffic area, like a mud room or on a covered porch, and see how it looks after a few months of wear. Personally, unless wood floors are damaged beyond what sanding, staining and refinishing can repair, I would never paint floors. It's a permanent choice, and one that changes natural wood forever.
Sharon, I suggest you use 'International' Boat paint if you want a really tough wearing paint – the only trouble is that the colours aren't unlimited.
If not you can use any product (and ratherlike my kitchen cupboards which were painted in Farrow and ball Emulsion(yes emulsion not wood paint) it is the varnish coat that makes the difference. I did my bathroom in Farrow and Ball oile eggshell with no varnish and it survived 2 years of a tenant without being too scratched, but would definitely benefit from a repaint (which with no varnish is easy). I did my dining room in normal paint but varnished with 6 costs of matt varnish. It has been amazing. However, the varnish was not from a supermarket/DIY which tends to yellow the base coat. I bought a special 2 part product from a company in Derbyshire. It had to be applied in a short timewindow (totally do-able – I did it whilst 7 months pregnant)but its finish was matt, true to the paint colour and 9 years on still looks amazing. If you want more details contact me.
If you're able to stay off the floors for some time (up to a month) to allow the paint to "cure," it will last longer. But painted floors will wear and animal lovers know what doggy feet can do to wood floors. Also, paint is slippery when wet. There is a silica additive that prevents that, but even though the silica is very tiny, you can see it as it "roughs up" the look of the surface. Even so, painted floors can be very charming and some of the most wonderful things happen when we step out of convention and take a risk. Will you always wonder if you didn't at least try it in one room?
Hi Sharon; we lime washed our floors in our kitchen dining as a softer option to block painted flooring. If you like i can send you a photo and instructions on how we achieved the finish. Hope to visit you next year . Cheers Amanda Skipper.xxx
I cringe every time I see beautiful wood furniture or wood floors painted.
One of the blogs I occasionally read, showed a beautiful, very old mahogany antique, in lovely condition – painted white. I was really distressed. Lovely old wood floors have the most wonderful patina. i can't imagine painting them and losing that. Maybe a lighter stain instead? The only time I ever painted a floor, was when we bought a fixer upper and could not afford flooring ; I sanded and put white enamel on the plywood sub floor until we could afford new floors. Even the enamel paint did not wear well in traffic areas.
Painted floors…not for me. The photos are lovely.
This comment has been removed by the author.
Sharon,
I have had painted floors for years and love them-and I have boy, dogs, cats and birds. I am even painting my kitchen and family room floors in the new renovation. I will be posting about it in a few days.
xo, Lissy Parker
I love it. I also checked out your friends and I love hers too. I have been wanting to paint the wood floors in one of my bedrooms and this sealed the deal. I will let you know how it goes.
It looks good, really good. But when it comes to wooden floors, I wouldn't go as far as choosing white for it. It's really hard to maintain, unless it's marble or something like that. But we all have our different tastes and opinions.
Here is my tip, paint in any paint and colour you like and finish with 2 coats of diamond varnish. Its roch hard, so hard even pulling wooden furniture over it doesnt scratch.
BTW I have even used emulsion under diamond varnish so if you wanted a matt finish then just use matt emulsion covered in matt diamond varnish
Many years ago; I bought a house built in 1907! The floors had been sanded for the last time…….(way too thin to sand again!) My darling artist friend; "Jean Fox Fowler" came over and we "trompe l'oeiled" (sp!!)_ them! (the background was whitewashed); and flowers were strewn all over (different kinds of flowers!!!)
By the front door; there was a "fool the eye" rug with one corner flipped over! Exquisite!!!
Oh, do I wish I had pictures! It was the most beautiful floor ,to this day, I have ever seen!!! It was 40 years ago!
We could not afford new hardwood floors! The "poverty cycle"! Lovely!!!
Penelope
At first glimpse, I was attracted right away with your bedroom. I actually love the colors you’ve used. One of them is quite like the color, avocado green – which happens to be my favorite color. If you’re going to ask me, a little renovation and repainting, your room is going to be more beautiful. 🙂
– Please visit our website
Thanks for sharing this. I think the painted floors in your bedroom are great and I especially love the colours you have used. I am going to be painting my floor soon and have found a couple of paint manufacturers to choose from. However, I think the best one is https://www.blackcountrypaints.co.uk/. Has anyone used these guys before?
Engineered Hardwood Bymydiscountfloor distinguished in the business for its inside result & help. Our persistent research for our clients' requirements headed us DIY Flooring
floorings do complete the totality of a house. if i have my choice, i would go for a white floor. It is easy to maintain and scratches are not to visible compared to darker floors.
The written piece is truly fruitful for me personally; continue posting these types of articles.
Floor Gurus Flooring Specialists
Engineered Hardwood Bymydiscountfloor, Carpeting grounds is less unreasonable than other ground sorts.Vinyl deck has made some amazing progress from the times of the meager designed vinyl, we take up with our grandmas kitchens.
Vinyl
Farrow and Ball paint is not as good as it was. My painted stairs look so shabby now. I spoke to a paint specialist who said that F&B; have cut costs in manufacturing and omitted the special ingredients that made F&B; well F&B.; Im using Little Greene company paint now and it is so much better. I'm re-doing the stairs this weekend!
Love reading about floor painting. I am painting my old house foyer and stairs. The stairs are not good wood and were painted dark brown and a fake wood look. Can you tell me the colors you used int the bedroom that is a pale green and the colors on the stairs and walls by the stairs. Also what did you use on the risers of those stairs? I like that color combo. Color choices are making me crazy!
This is good along with this i’m glad to see some more paints.Here i’m satisfy with some other website. If you want to see that just go through the above link.
Interesting Read
Mia https://www.anysite.com/
ripped out tatty grubby carpets in hallway and lived with unfinished floorboards for a couple of years before finally finding the time to get on and paint them. They are cheap pine not in great condition so not really worth sanding down and varnishing. Originally wanted a whitewashed look, and went for watered down annie sloan which looked great until the varnish brought all the orange of the wood up through the paint…not a good look. So the floor required primer which meant ditching the white wash look and going for white painted. Stuck with annie sloan which is a joy to use and looks great though i’m not so happy now it’s varnished, tried a flat matte varnish but it didn’t clean up well and ended up using a satin.
the whole process hasn’t been as bad as i anticipated, but i am giving up on the chalk paint and switching to Farrow and Ball floor paint. The multi stage paint then varnish hasn’t worked as i have to work around kids and never get enough time to do everything at once. I’ve ended up with a patchy hallway and still haven’t found the time to do the stairs, i get the chalk paint finished and by the time i get round to varnishing it’s gotten grubby and can’t be wiped down. And varnishing a white floor with 3 black cats and 3 long dark hair girls has taken lots of effort with tweezers… gave up in the end and decided no one would notice, but it bothers me.
With a satin finish paint, should be easier as i can wipe it down between coats. And despite it all i love the look, fresh and airy and wipes clean with a steam mop. Definitely better than a carpet which is forever grubby.
I wish you would get in touch with The purple Painted Lady. Trust me she can tell you how and what to do.
Good day! I could have sworn I’ve been to this website before but after browsing through some
of the posts I realized it’s new to me. Anyhow,
I’m certainly happy I came across it and I’ll be bookmarking
it and checking back regularly!