If you want a lighter colored board go with Maple, and if you want a darker board go with Walnut. Maple is a slightly higher quality wood with many benefits. Still, despite that, it is a less expensive end product though Walnut offers its own advantages.
Maple is a significantly stronger hardwood product than walnut. In fact, maple is one of the strongest and most durable natural wood options available.
Budget: Walnut is more expensive than maple due to its unique grain patterns and durability. Appearance: Both woods offer unique aesthetic qualities; you have to choose which one fits your style preferences better.
New walnut has a consistent dark-brown color but as it gets older, two changes occur. 1: Unlike maple and cherry, it gets lighter. 2: A rich honey color starts to come through the grain.
Maple is a creamy white hardwood that sometimes has a reddish tinge. One of the hardest wood species, maple is often chosen for heavy-use items, like dressers and kitchen cabinets.
Dark hardwoods such as ebony, walnut, mahogany, Bubinga, rosewood, and certain species of teak are an excellent choice for those looking to give their home an elegant touch. These dark woods typically have deep browns or black hues that provide a striking contrast against light colors like white and cream.
With deep salmon-toned hues in the heartwood that darken with age, unfinished Red Oak flooring offers a rich color palette that brings warmth to any room. Maple floorboards offer a cleaner and lighter complexion. Its hues range from creamy blonde to amber and brown in the heartwood.
Oak has a light to middle brown colour with some reddish hues, complimented by a straight and tight grain pattern. Walnut can range anywhere from a light brown to a deep, dark chocolate hue. Though its grain is very open and more coarse than maple, walnut still has a beautiful, uniform surface.
Walnut wood can change color depending on the way it's dried or its age. The heartwood usually is a dark brown color and the sapwood is a light yellow color. When the wood is left out in the elements, such as the sun, the lighter wood will turn darker and the darker wood will turn lighter.
Reminiscent of dark cocoa and coffee beans, Dark Walnut embraces the shadowy hues of black and brown. Woodgrain appears etched with charcoal, creating a sultry dance where light and dark meet.
Due to its premium quality, unique beauty and durability, walnut is considered a high-end wood. In fact, walnut is considered one of the most luxurious non-exotic woods available for home furniture. Walnut is highly desired for its rich, chocolate-brown color, and lends a feeling of luxury to any space.
It's prized by woodworkers for its strength, grain and color. It polishes to a very smooth finish, and the color ranges from creamy white in the sapwood to a dark chocolate in the heartwood. Over the years, natural walnut wood develops a lustrous patina.
Regardless of what option you may choose, real or look-a-like, walnut wood is becoming a more and more requested item. Although walnut has been around for a while, we think this “trend” is here to stay. Walnut is recognizable, it's beautiful, and it's a rich-looking material for any kitchen space.
Good pairings
walnut and maple. white oak and walnut. cherry and maple. red oak and white ash.
Maple wood is not only incredibly strong, it looks nice and stains beautifully. Woodworkers gravitate towards maple for its durability, smooth grain pattern, and light, creamy color.
Jacobean is very similar to Dark Walnut but a bit darker. Jacobean gives off a more rustic vibe than dark walnut. Additionally, Jacobean has a subtle hint of redness to the dried product. However, tints and undertones are also impacted by the type of wood used, which will vary with every application.
The Colors of Walnut Wood
The heartwood of the tree is the innermost part of the tree. In a walnut tree, the heartwood gets down to the nitty gritty with rich colors that include a range of dark browns and light browns with some purplish hues, grays, reddish rays, and dark streaks included.
Like cherry, maple will darken over time, though far less dramatically. Maple starts off very light and bright, with a few pink and grey tones. Over time, it will age to a warm golden honey color.
Walnut brown is a dark brown color; a representation of the color made from walnut hulls. At a hue of 30, it is classified as an orange-brown.
Typically, walnuts are lighter and slightly larger than pecans. When removed from their shells, they have a golden color. Walnuts are also softer; grinding or crumbling them is easy. Pecans are usually darker, while walnuts are stubbier and have two hemispheres with a brain-like shape.
Walnut wood offers rich, brown colors that range from light to dark brown. The sapwood (outer part of the tree log) is pale yellow to white and the heartwood (center of the tree log) has brown shades that vary from light brown to dark chocolate brown with some dark brown streaks.
Oak offers more options as far as grain pattern, and will provide a richer look when used as cabinetry or flooring. Maple is lighter, more affordable, and works well in contemporary spaces and for indoor projects.
Compared to Red Oak, it is slightly harder. Maple is generally the lightest colored hardwood. Its grain is very smooth, giving it a modern chic look. Maple is the best choice if you're looking for super blonde wood in its natural form.
Many of the accounts of mahogany's apparent “darkness” of tone may come from the fullness of the midrange, and even the fact that it actually looks less bright than some other tonewoods—but whatever the reason, it is often viewed as the warmer, darker alternative to maple.