Color Palette to Try: Green, Rust & Gold But the great part about this is green works with either yellow-toned honey oak or red/orange-toned honey oak. I picked a cool (toned, not “hip”) sage and a darker green with blue undertones in my moodboard, but you can play around with those to best suit your exact finish.
Earthy, natural tones
Greens like sage or olive help to create a calm feel, perfect for a living room or study. Richer earthy tones like tan, rust, terracotta, or burnt orange create a warm feel, which can be great as an accent colour to match your oak dining table.
If you want your oak woodwork be part of your colour palette, then stick to earthy tones. Oak sits perfectly next to stone greys, terracotta, and creams. This can then be accented with golds or coppers. Then add some colour to the room with big green leafy plants like a Rubber tree or a Ficus.
Paint the walls a deep color you love, put a very large rug down, you could even take the handles off and paint them black. That would be a cheap updating touch. A new light fixture would not be so expensive and would update the look quickly. I love the honey oak.
Color Palette to Try: Green, Rust & Gold
But the great part about this is green works with either yellow-toned honey oak or red/orange-toned honey oak.
Oak shade works well with bright and matte surfaces. The most popular combination is with wenge color. Looks great with rich chocolate, gold, silver shades. Its tones are good next to pastel shades in the decor.
Grey and oak kitchen design is popular because it combines the timeless elegance of grey with the warm, natural appeal of oak wood. This combination creates a versatile and sophisticated look that suits a variety of design styles, from classic to modern.
I looked at the sample for a few days in different lighting and I do think Ben Moore's Grant Beige works beautifully with the oak. I love Grant Beige- one of my favorite neutrals.So, my advice would be to get a sample of Grant Beige and try it in your kitchen.
Yes, oak is coming back into style, but it is a paler, softer tone and, in cabinets, the details are much more modern than what we see in older honey oak cabinets: a straight shaker or slab doors, rather than a cathedral-top shape and a pale color instead of a more golden amber finish, which is often just the yellowing ...
Cool greens and blues can create a tranquil, calming atmosphere and can be a great choice if you are after harmonic sophistication. Calming colours like olive green or duck egg blue can be brought to life with the use of natural pine furniture, accessories or trimmings.
In truth, there aren't many colours that don't match well with oak. While oak pairs the best with natural tones; deeper blues, greens, reds and also neutrals, brighter colours aren't off the map. Cherries, lime greens and autumnal oranges do well to highlight the natural lustre of oak.
Traditional golden and honey oak kitchen cabinets have a bad rap of being the 'wood choices of the 90s', so they look dated by default.
Settle down your Honey Oak with contrasting colours like black and charcoal colours with warm accents OR choose a white countertop with black or grey veins. To finish it off, add contrasting hardware like black to make it come together or a cool metal.
The most versatile neutral of all, gray is a natural choice (literally) for all things cabinet-related. It looks amazing as a kitchen cabinet color choice, a wall color, exterior paint shade, and pairs perfectly with honey oak trim. Light gray or dark gray will complement oak cabinets.
If you prefer a subtler approach, look for colours that share similar earthy undertones with your oak furniture. Warmer beiges and taupe shades will allow your pieces to blend in, making your room appear larger and more open.
Some colours like blue and purple accentuate the warmth of oak, while other colours like warm green and red blend in with oak in an earthly atmosphere. You also can't go wrong with neutrals that come in both warm and cool undertones.
HEX color code is #D8B589 and the RGB is 216, 181, 137
Oak has long been considered a classic color because of its versatility and popularity.
White oak works magnificently with cherry wood, especially when you are wanting to emphasize your cabinets because it creates a nice contrast with the light flooring and darker cabinets.
Oak is a classic. But many people are scared of them because of the applications of oak cabinets in the 90s. These cabinets featured ornate door styles and were paired with honey oak floors, yellow walls, and dark countertops. But honey oak is back and better than ever!
Gel Stain for an Easy Cabinet Refresh
For a quick, budget-conscious update, gel stain is one of the easiest ways to tone down the orange hues of your oak cabinets. With just a little bit of work you can achieve a deeper, richer tone without needing new cabinets.
And believe me, it's quite difficult to choose a backsplash tile color for honey oak upper and lower cabinets. The sneaky golden and yellow undertones of the cabinets can be seamlessly paired with creamy white, light beige, golden or yellow, black, and taupe tiles.