The answer is – no! The oak trim and oak flooring finish (the golden color known in the industry as “honey”) will never come back in style. Today, there are many beautiful versions of stained oak on the market that allow it to appear more contemporary and aesthetically pleasing.
However, oak cabinets are currently in the middle of making a comeback. There are several possible reasons for this. First, homeowners are looking for warmth and authenticity in their kitchens.
With the introduction of painted, high gloss and glass furniture designs, many people deemed oak furniture to be out dated and somewhat old fashioned. However in recent years oak furniture has made a massive comeback with a vast range of styles and designs adorning even the most contemporary designer interiors.
Clear finishes with no gloss and color will leave your wood with its natural color and look. Painting your oak trim white is a great option too. The trim will absorb some light, brighten up your space and make your room appear bigger, even if it's not.
Honey would be closest to the natural wood color. The Golden has a yellowish/orange tint but still close to the natural wood color and Red oak is much darker and a brownish red.
There's two main ways to transform your honey oak trim, doors, or cabinets simply by painting the walls: Using a harmonious color palette (similar colors or colors with a similar undertone) that will work alongside and help fade or camouflage the orange or yellow wood tones.
Wood trim is an excellent interior element that you can use for linking the white doors with any other things in the room. Without something like this, it would be hard to connect the bright white tone with any other items in the house.
Yes, you can mix wood and white trim in the same house (or, even, in the same room)! Mixing painted and stained trim is completely doable, as long as you keep these tips in mind.
While dark hardwood flooring has a special beauty of all of its own and it has been fashionable for a while now, it's likely to fade out in favourability. Trend is going towards lighter woods such as natural oak.
Wooden finishes are also making a return for cabinets, but typically in lighter shades and not the traditional cherry wood of the early 2000s. Instead, oaks and walnuts are increasing in popularity. We're also seeing a shift towards unique storage inside cabinets, such as corner larders and even blending pantries.
KITCHEN FLOOR TRENDS
Light (and medium) oak flooring will continue to be on-trend in 2022. Of course, you can create this look via solid wood floors or engineered wood flooring (or even LVP). This is most definitely a (classic) trend I would incorporate if building in 2022.
Honey Oak Cabinets
A staple in kitchens of the 1980s and '90s, these golden-toned wood cabinets have fallen out of favor as white and gray cabinets have risen in popularity. If you don't like your light-stained cabinets, but they're in good shape, consider refinishing or painting what's there.
Grey kitchens are not going out of fashion. They are a safe choice that will age well due to them being sleek, space-efficient, and easy on the eyes. You can pick and choose which grey to go with and still get the type of kitchen that is easy to fall in love with.
Dark stained woodwork is still very much in style, though white painted is very popular right now. These two also look good together (white trim with dark stained doors for example).
"I almost always recommend that clients paint the trim in their homes white," says designer Christina Garcia Lysaught of Dallas-based firm, Layered Dimensions. "Not only does it create a framework for the house, but it highlights major points resulting in that fresh and clean look that will never go out of style.
As a general rule, plan to paint all the trim throughout the main areas of the house the same color to create a unified effect from room to room. In more personal spaces, such as bedrooms and bathrooms, you might want to play around with more unique wall and trim color combinations.
Edgecomb Gray also compliments honey oak tones of wood really well, so it's a great choice for kitchen walls.
Agreeable Gray has warm bronzey undertones that complement the yellow orange in the oak. If you must pair your honey oak with gray walls, Agreeable Gray is a good place to start.
Grey wall paint will work with oak furniture. The trick is pairing the right tones together. If you have a piece of dark, red oak furniture, you'll want a grey that leans toward greige. If your furniture is a lighter white oak, then you might choose a light grey paint color.
As a simple rule, kitchen cabinets should always match trim as much as they can. Any contrast that you intentionally create should not necessarily be a striking contrast. It's important to try to create a sense of unity among the different elements being tied together to avoid making the contrast appear accidental.
Honey Oak isn't an actual type of wood. Common wood used for flooring, trim, and furniture is actually from the Northern Red Oak tree. One reason that makes it popular, is that it can be finished with a variety of stains.