Although sanding down and refinishing hardwoods is fun for some folks, I happen to side with these homeowners who would rather whip up a light, bright and clean look for their kitchen with as little pain as possible. Want to see what this floor looks like now?
Over at Modern Jane, this kitchen was in need of help and there's no denying that this kitchen floor looks 500% better and the treatment to it makes things light, bright and beautiful.
Instead of sanding, stripping and restaining and sealing this floor, it was painted with a bit of white instead. It makes the island pop out and makes the space inviting to cook, clean or craft in.
Hop over and check out more on this space and the process for creating it over at Modern Jane.
Image: Modern Jane
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Man, that floor must be hard to keep clean. I had a white ceramic tile floor in my last kitchen and vowed never to have a white kitchen floor again.
But I'll admit, it is an improvement over the neglected wood.
It does look great now. That was probably the best option for that floor since the wood looked ragged and there is an obvious patch.
I'm a huge fan of painted wood floors, but... but in this case, I would have looked more carefully into the option of refinishing them.
These look to be pine floors, with a great patina. I would have tried to see if it would have been possible to lightly sand to take off the old finish -- lightly, as in not enough to take of the patina. Then I would have tried to find a better match for the patched section. Finally, I would not have put a plasticized finish, but have gone with an oil -- gorgeous on pine.
I am SO going to have a white painted wood floor someday.
...I say this everytime AT posts a white painted wood floor. *meep*
It's nice to have a change of pace sometimes - from classy warm wood to the B/W Scandinavian look many people want to conquer:P
I really, really want to see how this floor looks a year from now.
I really like it and think it looks great. I have white tile in my kitchen, and while it does show dirt, it's easy to clean. I agree with aileenJ, though, and I wonder if this floor will hold up to normal wear and tear.
Now it looks lovely but I agree with aileenJ, this is going to change and will be hard to maintain. I am also a bit sad for the beautiful warm wood that could have looked stunning with a bit of refinishing etc.
I love the idea of painting wood floors when they are not in re-finishable shape. The black island really stands out; I think it's fantastic. I do agree they are probably hard to keep clean but might be worth the trouble.
I love the look of white high gloss floors! Thay being said I painted my daughters floors just like this a few years ago,a complete nightmare!! Looked perfect for about a week. They are now high gloss black and contrary to what has been said about black floors it still looks great! My sons room was painted battleship grey and it has held up best, no retouch necessary;)
I think it looks great but I could never keep the clean enough.
YES!
Buuuuuuut very unforgiving of mess. If it's poly'ed it'll probably look fine in a year, but I wouldn't be able to handle the constant sweeping!
As someone w/ shiny white laminate floors in our kitchen (IKEA), it's true- they show every last crumb, dog hair and scuff mark imaginable! That said, I do love the look. I'm unsure how long white paint with last in comparison to our shiny laminate- at least I can wet Swiffer ours regularly... and do I do it regularly! Looks great, but isn't the most practical :(
i agree with threeacres - hopefully you had it poly'ed! that way it will last much longer. no matter what, painted floors don't last as long as stained floors anyway so you take a change. BUT they are simply gorgeous + it looks great!
If they got a really durable paint, I'll bet the super high gloss will make it pretty easy to keep clean.
My parents have the same sort of very old pine floors. The problem with trying to refinish them is they often are very thin, and usually rather uneven (so you'd have to sand halfway through one to really sand the next piece of wood over). Probably doable with elbow grease and lots of time, but not with power tools.
I'm currently elbows deep in the "should I white wash my floor" conundrum. I'm worried that my love for the look will blind what is aesthetically right (if that exists). I'm dealing with a 160 year old row home where the upstairs original heart pine was ignorantly buried under plywood, jute, and tacky early 90's Berber carpet.
Would love some educated and vocal minds to get me back on track with this home improvement headache, Not So Handy . . . Man
I'm currently elbows deep in the "should I white wash my floor" conundrum. I'm worried that my love for the look will blind what is aesthetically right (if that exists). I'm dealing with a 160 year old row home where the upstairs original heart pine was ignorantly buried under plywood, jute, and tacky early 90's Berber carpet.
Would love some educated and vocal minds to get me back on track with this home improvement headache, “Not So Handy . . . Man”
Had icky old floors in a 60 year old house. Hubby did not want to refinish. Primed and painted them and they were gorgeous....they got neglected and mistreated. I saw them years later: they still looked great! The secret is in the priming! I swear by Zinzer's products.
This is a stunning floor and if it was done right will still be in a year from now or ten....
Thanks for the feature AT. The floors were not refinishable unlike the rest of the house. They had really taken a beating over 107 years! To be honest they are cleaner now than they've ever been!
The patched spot is the joker in the deck. I think painting was a good idea, though I probably would not have chosen white. Looks nice though.
wow what a transformation. Love the white floor!
Ruben Marquez
www.rubenmarquezjr.com/blog
Black floors are just as much a maintenance nightmare as white floors — dust is essentially gray, and most people's hair is neither black nor white.
If you/your family's hair is not black, the best compromise is actually light or medium gray. It's far more forgiving. Glossiness doesn't really matter in terms of dust visibility, although floors should have some gloss to prevent wear.
I'm SO over seeing this white floors trend go on and on. I lived with white painted floors for three months. Never again. Old wooden floors with patina look great on the other hand. These could have been sanded and refinished and they would have looked great.
I love it! It looks great. :)
WOW. That's a white floor. Beautiful but I always wonder how painted floors wear though, especially white. Wouldn't it show scuffs?
We sanded and whitewashed the floors of my parents' kitchen after some water damage. Six months later we just put down new laminate. The white floors could not keep up with four kids and five dogs - they were pretty for about five mintues before they started to look like a hot mess...
They look lovely and, if I had a full-time, live-in housekeeper, I'd totally do it in my own kitchen.
This looks fresh and fun. But only for a year....
Painted surfaces that aren't supposed to be painted just don't wear well. Our newest rental looked clean and shiny until we realized everything from the kitchen counters to the sink were newly painted. I don't care if it is a "glaze" or not it does not last.
this looks just beautiful!!!
Looks beautiful... but I can tell you... a white floor was the BIGGEST mistake of my home renovation. Unless you have no kids and no pets... JUST DONT DO IT! I'm not a neat freak by any means, but it just looks so. freaking. dirty.
Chic!
I desperately wanted a white floor and picked a lightly used guest room upstairs. I really love it (dark gray walls, white floor and woodwork) but I wouldn't put white wood floor in a kitchen. Try a sun porch, or even closet floor first.
I love the look of it, but I can tell you from experience in a 200 year old house where the previous owners white-washed the original bathroom floors... they NEVER look clean EVER. No matter how much I scrub with bleach and every other product on the market, they never ever look really clean. Once I gave up on that, they did start to grow on me, though.
I have white painted pine plank in an upstairs bedroom and absolutely love it. The flooring was original to the 1904 house but did not match the nicer, more finished flooring in the more public spaces of the home. While we did refinish the master bedroom flooring the two smaller bedrooms we choose to paint: one room with white floors and the other with an industrial looking, mid-tone gray. Some important points to consider, I did prime the floors prior to painting (I used Zinsser BIN which is a shellac-based primer) and then with the white floors I used an oil-based paint. Yes, oil based paint is cumbersome to work with however I have not had any issues with peeling, scuffing or yellowing. I painted the floors approximately three years ago and they still look very clean and fresh. Additionally, I have no fears of wet mopping them which is something I would not do with hardwood floors. I use the room every day and have three cats. Cat fur is the biggest offender in making the floors seem less than pristine but for the price I could not be happier.