Unsellable Houses' Lyndsay Lamb Can't Get Enough Of This Hardwood Floor Tone
Flooring is the foundation of a home. Though it may be a functional detail primarily, it offers aesthetic beauty to a room as well. That is one of the reasons why choosing the right wood tone is important when designing a space. In 2024, Lyndsay Lamb from HGTV's "Unsellable Houses" is excited about mid-toned wood floors becoming trendy, according to a post on Instagram. Mid-toned woods sit perfectly between light varieties like white oak and white pine and darker woods like mahogany and walnut. Mid-toned woods are usually a light brown to true brown and tend to be a little warmer and look more like natural, untreated wood.
The versatility is another reason why many people, including Lamb, opt for mid-toned flooring. The simple mid-shades tend to pair well with other colors of cabinets, furniture, and wood because they don't make too much of a statement. While they can be a beautiful addition to a home, they don't overtake the rest of the design details. This is a great option if you want to feature something else in the design rather than have the floor be the focal point.
Lamb uses this kind of flooring throughout the homes she remodels, often opting for flooring on the lighter end of the mid-tone spectrum. The flooring works well with the contemporary and often minimalist decor style that Lamb uses, creating a grounded foundation that provides the perfect backdrop for the rest of the room's designs.
Finding the right mid-tone floors
Most mid-toned floors are lighter in color but have warmer undertones that create a comfortable and inviting space, which is probably one of the reasons that Lyndsay Lamb gravitates to the finish. When looking for the right mid-tone flooring, you can start by looking for certain wood varieties. Maple and oak tend to be among the top choices, with oak having a lighter golden brown finish, while maple can be more of a rich, warm brown. Some hickory flooring can also have medium brown and lighter shades.
However, if you're not looking to put in brand-new floors, another option to get mid-tone floors is staining. This process is easiest if you already have light floors and want to stain a little darker to reach a mid-tone brown. With darker floors, you'll first have to sand the wood to remove the previous stain before adding the new mid-toned stain. Look for medium browns, like Minwax's Honey Pine or Classic Oak at Ace Hardware, which has a classic warm, medium finish.
Finally, you should consider the undertones of the wood species and the wood stain if you're using it. Wood varieties take stains differently, and their undertones can play a role in how the stain presents itself. If you're choosing wood boards that are already stained or luxury vinyl flooring, as Lamb often does, check that the undertones of the wood complement or match the undertones in paint color, furniture, and decorative details.
Decorating with mid-tone floors
Mid-tone floors have the benefit of being versatile, easily taking on a variety of styles and colors. Lyndsay Lamb tends to decorate in a minimalist, contemporary way with natural or bohemian accents. In season 4, episode 10 of "Unsellable Houses," she highlights the mid-tone wood floors with other natural colors, using lots of tans and browns in the furniture. She accents the neutral tones with earthy greens and reds for color, as well as black to ground the space. Pattern-wise, she uses Southwestern prints and cowhides to compliment the bohemian look.
Lamb has also paired mid-toned floors with bright colors. In one home, Lamb and her sister, Leslie Davis, painted the kitchen cabinets a vibrant royal blue, which created a focal point in the open floor plan. Lamb has also used pinks, teals, and yellows as accent colors in homes with mid-toned wood floors.
The term "mid-tone" can encompass a wide range of wood colors. As stated, identifying the undertones is the best way to ensure you're choosing the right flooring for your home. From Build with Ferguson, the Shaw Floors Sequoia Hickory is an engineered hardwood with warm undertones, which would work well with comforting natural tones, such as earthy reds, yellows, and greens. Compared to the cooler tones in the Mulligan Wexford engineered hardware, which would pair well with a contemporary color scheme of blues and grays.