You know that typical gray porch paint that's used to paint exterior porch floors? I've been considering it for painting the worn wooden floors of my kitchen. Here's how I came to the desire to go gray:
At first I was thinking black. And my husband was thinking white (it's not at all unusual for us to be on completely opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to home improvement choices). However, I started to hedge a bit on black when I remembered how black often shows dirt even more than white. Yet, I can't quite take the plunge and go all white (the cabinets are being painted white, too).
That's when I thought of traditionally gray-painted porch floors. The kitchen floors could be painted gray: a literal compromise with the hubby, a great dirt disguiser, and a nod to a time-honored tradition. Solved! When (IF) we end up agreeing on gray and getting the job done, I'll be sure to share pics. In the meantime, here are my inspiration pics. The first one shows a gray-painted kitchen floor, the second a porch floor with the traditional treatment.
Images: Inside Out, Don Freeman/House Beautiful
Must-See Small Cool Homes: Week Two
Beth's Romantic & Retro Residence
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Shaw's Original Fir...
How to Cook Moist & Tender Chicken Breasts Every Time
How To Cook Tender, Chewy Wheat Berries on the Stovetop
we had a grey painted kitchen floor AND porch floor in the old house i grew up in- this makes me very nostalgic!
Our entire apartment in Brooklyn was painted with glossy grey porch paint and it lasted forever.
With the white walls and the grey floors it always felt clean and a little Cape Coddy in my opinion. Go for it!
Do it! My kitchen and bath have painted floors, as well as my attic/bedroom. Just FYI you CAN have porch/floor paint tinted any color you like. I would recommend a top coat too. I like the glossy look and it will help everything hold up.
I did it in the bath, but not the kitchen and now I'm sorry.
We painted one of our sets of stairs with grey porch paint and love it!
It really looks fab. Creates a nice neutral base that goes with everything. Sometimes black or white alone is just so stark.
Beautiful. If I wasn't in a rental I'd paint my floors in a heartbeat. And the gray is gorgeous.
I love this idea! I have been mulling over what colour to paint the wood floor in my living room for months. Can someone please recommend a specific brand and colour name? Or the paints used in the pictures?
Love that you chose style guru Li Edelkoort's Paris loft!
Here is an article from May/June Inside Out 2008 with the whole quirky and serene place, all with those floors: http://digital.insideout.com.au/insideout/20080506/?u1=texterity#pg2
But this may not be actual porch paint, more like a standard very tough gray paint plastered over most old wood trim and doors in France for eons.
Marine paint (sometimes referred to as 'deck paint') also wears like iron and holds up to moisture (obviously!), so that's a good option too. I live on the coast where salt air, big temperature shifts, and almost-constant moisture tend to corrode finishes and lots of people use marine paints on porches and interiors around here, particularly in kitchens, baths, attic rooms, breezeways, mudrooms or other transitional spaces.
In the seventies, I lived in a 7 room appartment with three kids. I painted all the floors white. Very easy to clean. White made the space feel bigger, like a first snowfall. Used White varathane in a satin finish, very durable. These days, considering all the options available, I would use a high quality exterior latex, some are made for floors. A few years ago, I did some stairs in such a latex in a soft blue gray and it is still perfect. If you like gray floors, go ahead. If you stay in the lighter shades of gray, it should be very nice.