At a Glance:
Wood Colors, Stains, and Grains
7 Best Wood Furniture Picks by Wood Color
Although colors and stains go in and out of style, incorporating well-crafted wood furniture pieces in your home never does. If you’re shopping for wood furniture, you’ll want to consider the color, stain, and grain of each piece and how it looks next to the other pieces in your room. You’ll also want to consider whether you prefer warm undertones or distressed finishes. Ultimately, you get to decide whether you want to embrace a traditional, modern, or farmhouse style in your home, and the right wood color choices can help you achieve the look you want.
In this blog, we will talk about what to consider when choosing wood furniture, compare popular wood colors, and recommend seven of our favorite wood furniture pieces from the Great American Home Store in a variety of styles.
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Wood Colors, Stains, and Grains
When examining wood furniture colors, it’s important to consider the color, stain, and grain of the wood. What’s the difference between these three? Let’s break it down.
- Wood color refers to the undertones in a piece of wood that give it its color. Wood can have warm, cool, or neutral undertones. Even within wood species with warm undertones, there is a variety depending on whether the wood reads more red, orange, or yellow.
- Wood stain refers to the stain you apply to unfinished wood which can turn it a different color. For example, you can take creamy white maple wood and stain it to be a dark, espresso brown. Wood stain colors, paint, and distressed finishes can all drastically change the original appearance and undertones of your chosen wood material.
- Wood grain: Some wood species have distinctive, eye-catching patterns while others have less variation in grain. For example, knotty pine, as its name suggests, features noticeable dark knots. Cherry wood has a fine, straight grain that is less noticeable. More noticeable wood grains can contribute to a more natural, organic look and can add interest to your space. If you are mixing different wood furniture pieces with wood cabinets and wood floors throughout your home, you want to balance the grains you choose. If you incorporate too many unique grains, your design will become too busy, and it will be overwhelming for the eye to take in.
With wood color, wood stain, and wood grain, you can mix and match, but it is all about balance.
➝ Learn More: What is Reclaimed Wood Furniture?
Popular Wood Colors
There are so many species of wood available to homeowners today, and it can feel a bit overwhelming. Let’s examine some popular wood furniture colors.
- Red wood furniture: Cherry and mahogany are two woods with warm tones that lean toward red.
- Orange wood furniture: Teak and cedar have warm tones that appear to have a more orange undertone.
- Maple wood furniture: If you are looking for a lighter colored, warm toned wood, maple is a great choice. It is white with reddish-brown undertones. It takes dark stains very well, so you could stain it to mimic cherry or mahogany.
- Oak wood furniture: There are two main variations of oak: white and red. While white oak is a gray-brown color, red oak is a reddish, gray brown.
- Blonde wood furniture: Pine, poplar, and birch are all blonde wood finishes that take paint and stain well, so you can stain them to mimic other wood tones.
- Walnut wood furniture: Walnut can have warmer undertones in some applications, but overall, it is a dark chocolate brown with dark or purple-toned streaks. It is a very classic choice for elegant furniture.
7 Best Wood Furniture Picks by Wood Color
Keep reading for seven of our favorite furniture pieces from the Great American Home Store, whether you are looking for warm tones, neutral tones, rustic pieces, or distressed finishes, we have something for everyone.
Warm Toned Wood Furniture
The New Classic Furniture Sevilla Nightstand features a sophisticated walnut in a dark stained wood color. Two drawers, with felt lining on the top, give you room to store whatever you need with tender loving care and built-in USB ports allow you to charge your devices within arm’s reach overnight. We love the craftsmanship of the carved, tapered feet with gunmetal hammer-finished hardware that is reminiscent of a different time.
➤ Design Style: This nightstand would be at home in a traditional or modern farmhouse bedroom.
➝ Learn More: Wooden Nightstand Ideas for Your Bedroom
Neutral Toned Wood Furniture
The Homelegance Mayville Black Youth Full Sleigh Bed, Dresser, Mirror, and Nightstand bedroom set features furniture pieces with a black finish so that it can blend seamlessly into your overall design and add a hint of bold elegance to the space. This bedroom set offers a neutral backdrop for whatever wall color, bedding, rug, and pattern you decide to incorporate into your room.
➤ Design Style: The elegant feet and handles on the dressers and nightstand and the shape of the sleigh bed both lend themselves to a more traditional or eclectic design.
The Elements MeKinney Charcoal Wood-Trimmed Accent Chair strikes the perfect balance between hard and soft, lines and curves, and light and dark. The espresso wood color of the base is a neutral choice that will easily complement other colors in the room. The light charcoal fabric is another versatile and neutral choice that works well with a pop of color that can be added using a blanket or throw pillow.
➤ Design Style: This chair would be at home in a contemporary, minimalist, midcentury modern, modern, or transitional living room or bedroom, whether you need additional seating or want a special chair to enjoy your stories.
Rustic Wood Furniture
The International Furniture Direct Loft Brown Trestle Table & Six Upholstered Side Chairs features a multi-colored finish that gives this dining room table a more rustic and reclaimed wood vibe with its simplistic design. The black painted trestle base adds an industrial aesthetic that wonderfully contrasts with the tabletop, making it the focal point of the dining room. We love how padded seats of the upholstered dining chairs add comfort, color contrast, and plenty of room for guests.
➤ Design Style: This table is an inviting place to gather for any meal or get-together in a modern farmhouse dining room.
➝ Learn More: 4 Farmhouse Dining Table Set Ideas for Home
The Uma Brown Teak Wood Rustic Coffee Table is an organic coffee table that allows you to bring the outdoors inside with its au naturale look. It is constructed with discarded trunks of teak trees, hence its orange undertones that make this take pop. Its rectangular shape, wood grain, and cross-shaped base make this coffee table a conversation piece that will impress and awe guests when they come over for game night. If you’ve been looking for a natural, rustic table with unique craftsmanship to design the rest of your living room, let this table be your inspiration!
➝ Learn More: How to Clean Your Wood Table: Do's and Don'ts
Distressed Wood Furniture
The Liberty Magnolia Manor Queen Wood Panel Bed, Dresser, Mirror & Nightstand bedroom set features a white distressed wood color with European influence that embraces a farmhouse, coastal, and shabby chic style unapologetically. We love the dramatic details of this bedroom set with its curving lines, carved details, and contrasting dark hardware and countertops that makes you feel like you stumbled upon a treasure at an antique store. For a put together and coordinated bedroom, this bedroom furniture set is an excellent choice if you want your bedroom to exude an aura of simply chic.
➝ Learn More: 5 White Rustic Bedroom Sets Perfect for Country Livin'
Last but not least, we have the Style Craft Mirrored Distressed Wood Cabinet, which makes for a unique choice that is sure to be a focal point in your living room or entryway with its antique design. It looks like a treasure brought home from faraway travels, and it is intricately crafted with its wood carvings on the doors hiding away your prized possesions and mirrored inlays to make the room feel bigger. The distressed finish and warm wood color offer a neutral finish that is far from boring, and you can decorate this piece with colorful decorations to really draw your guests’ attention. If you love eclectic, global-inspired designs or want a statement piece in an otherwise neutral space, this cabinet is the way to go.
➝ Learn More: Wood Console Tables for Every Style Living Room
Wood colors vary greatly and can shape the feeling of your room. Distinctive grains lend themselves to rustic spaces while distressed finishes tend to be found in farmhouse, coastal, and shabby chic designs. What wood color and stain you choose is ultimately a matter of personal taste, and your choices allow you to express your style in every room of your home. To browse a variety of wood colors, you can visit the Great American Home Store to shop for wood furniture in person or online today.
Why Trust Great American Home Store?
Boasting the largest selection of in-stock home furnishings in the Mid-South, the Great American Home Store is your one-stop shop to find all the furniture and décor items your home needs. Our buying team is constantly searching across the globe for the next hot style in home fashion products. We go to several markets a year comparison-shopping to ensure you’ll be able to find everything from formal living to casual comfort at the lowest prices. Since our business is backed by the manufacturer, we can promise that we bring you all your furniture needs at prices that are far below our competitors’.
At the Great American Home Store, we also understand the importance of offering a vast selection for any-size budget. We offer many flexible financing options with approved credit so that you can find the perfect furnishings to reflect your unique style.
Shop Wood Furniture at Great American Home Store
The home of your dreams is closer than you think. Shop wood furniture online or visit us today at one of our furniture stores in Memphis, TN and the Mid-South. Check out our website to shop local furniture sales and subscribe to our email list to be the first to learn about our special offers. Our experts at Great American Home Store are always happy to help you find the right wood color for your space — whether you call us at 800-260-4898 or use our online chat feature. Contact us today!
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