Paint to go with Bamboo floor?

December 3, 2009 6:50 PM

Decor Filter : What colors of paint go with blond bamboo flooring?

We just bought a house and are looking to paint before we move in. Presently the room with the bamboo floor
is a lovely light green that makes the room look sunny and large. We would like to keep the effect but have the room painted a more neutral color so as to be able to match more of the room's furniture etc. Concrete suggestions of actual paint colors would be appreciated. We are looking to use Benjamin Moore Aura Paint.

posted by marlys27 to Home & Garden (12 answers total)

I always want to pair light bamboo with shades of blue. (I know that's not super neutral, but it works with more than green, I find.)

Palm Coast Teal is a nice BM shade, as well as Meridian Blue and Santa Monica Blue. My personal fave would be to have the blue walls, the blonde bamboo flooring, and dark furniture - really dark browns and blacks for fabric sofas and chairs, and dark shiny wood tables.

Then again, I know nothing about interior decorating. Best of luck in the new home!
posted by firei at 7:24 PM on December 3, 2009

From the photo that is a pretty neutral flooring colour. I'd think that it would work with anything that is not peachy or yellow. Your furniture, area rugs and drapes are more important factors. What's going in there?

As an aside I have always found that Benjamin Moore OC-28 Collingwood, Florentine Plaster CC-520 and OC-130 Cloud White (taupe, a very subtle green, the perfect white) are my go-to neutrals in nearly any room.

I don't know all of the Aura paint line yet...
posted by saradarlin at 7:25 PM on December 3, 2009

If you are using Aura paint, I highly recommend going with the Affinity colors. They are amazing in their ability to get along with one another and with the other elements in a room.
posted by HotToddy at 7:30 PM on December 3, 2009 [1 favorite]

I'm a real fan of pairing shades of gray with bamboo-type colors. A nice soft gray -- what's sometimes called kitty-cat gray -- would be neutral enough to go with most everything but still have some color to it.

[BTW: Any Benjamin Moore color can be produced in the Aura line, so you're not just limited to the Affinity colors.]
posted by DrGail at 7:40 PM on December 3, 2009

Our similar floor goes well with light avocado green, and "jicama" (not-too-blue) white wall paint.
posted by anadem at 9:07 PM on December 3, 2009

My bamboo floored livingroom has white walls. I have a medium grey couch, and I switch between burghandy & aqua curtains/accessories. So, you have options, personally I may stick with the light grey as a neutral, and do bright colour for accents.
posted by kellyblah at 10:34 PM on December 3, 2009

That floor looks super-neutral and it would be hard to choose a bad color. If you want to keep things warm and cozy, choose a hue that is a few steps away from the yellow of the bamboo, so go with a soft pinky peach or a light avocado green. If you want to make things feel relaxed and fresh, try hues opposite the yellow base of the floor, so look at light, pure blues or very low-saturation purples and cool-toned greys. Since you already have a brightness that you like available to you in the room (the preexisting light green) I would work with only the colors that are of a very similar brightness, just different hues. In Benjamin Moore, I believe all the colors of a certain brightness share a particular number in their scheme? Last I knew they did, anyway.

Personally, I find that light blues will go with almost anything, if you're wanting a "neutral" that is actually a color. It would have a beachy feel with the sand-colored floor and the blue walls.
posted by Mizu at 1:48 AM on December 4, 2009

Despite what you see on those slob-appeal home decor shows on cable TV, with very few exceptions, walls should not be anything but white, shades of white or shades of ecru- unless it's a kid's room.
posted by Zambrano at 10:06 AM on December 4, 2009

You're gonna wanna look at the light (or dark!) greens with hints of yellow in them. Don't do red, it'll be dramatic by may make your place look like a nice thai restraunt (Alot of those home makeover shows seem to go for that look and It always makes me think i should be ordering noddles)
posted by The Whelk at 12:00 PM on December 4, 2009

Teal, as someone mentioned, and sage look good with bamboo.
posted by Taken Outtacontext at 1:08 PM on December 4, 2009

As an aside I have always found that Benjamin Moore OC-28 Collingwood, Florentine Plaster CC-520 and OC-130 Cloud White (taupe, a very subtle green, the perfect white) are my go-to neutrals in nearly any room.

I should mention that I'd choose one of these colours for the walls and do the trim in cloud white (even if the walls are cloud white too).
posted by saradarlin at 1:49 PM on December 4, 2009

Response by poster: We went with "Refined" by benjamin Morre. A greyish Khaki color. It looks really good.
posted by marlys27 at 6:36 AM on December 10, 2009