SFGate

Ironwood Builders Depends on where else the floors are. If the dark floors work well with your living room furnishings...do that. If a lighter tone works with the rest of the house...there you have it. Please do something better than the sample with the backsplash, OK?

murphleea Entire main floor will be hardwood. Furnishings are all pretty much neutral colors. Wide open concept floor plan and there will be a large stone fireplace. I just wanted something that went with the cottage/woodsy theme. I guess its just a personal preference, I've seen everything on Houzz from very light almost white washed to really dark walnut on the floors for the "cottage" look. Thanks.

bevballew Beautiful cabinets. Wait and see what designers say. I say stay with a color similar to the cabinets. From many pics on houzz I have seen where cabinets and floor match looks great. Otherwise other choice would be a very dark color, not cherry.

feeny Lighter will be a bit easier to care for. They will show dirt and dust and footprints much less than a darker shade.

Tisdale Home Solutions, LLC I usually wait on the color choice on the hardwoods until the cabinets are in. Have your builder put samples of stain on the floor next to the cabinets so you can see how the light in the room affects the floor and cabinet color. When deciding, remember that the hardwoods will be in more areas than just the kitchen. I would try to find a color that compliments but don't try to match the color. Another idea is to have your builder install a couple rows of a hardwood in the openings between areas that will be stained a different color to be used as a transition and then select a new color for the adjoining room. for example ... Natural stain on white oak in the kitchen, couple rows of Brazillian Cherry between the kitchen and the next room stained natural then a different stain in the next room (Provencial, Early American, etc). Just be sure to have a definite color difference between the rooms.