Perhaps you just inherited a farmhouse, or you’ve realized a dream and purchased one, intending to work from home in a tranquil, rural setting. Although we live in the 21st century, no one says you must give up the antique farmhouse style you love. In this article, we’ll explain how to use modern flooring and the right paint color scheme to make any home provide that antique farmhouse vibe.
What defines antique farmhouse style?
The word antique refers to any item aged 100 years or more. When we say farmhouse in this context, we literally refer to the main home on a working farm. When you put those two together, antique farmhouse style refers to a decorating technique that evokes the feeling and look of a farm home of at least 100 years ago.
History offers many periods of design and fashion that also apply to décor. In reference to antique farmhouse style, you’ll find the following periods represented:
- Victorian
- Colonial
- Craftsman
- Spanish Revival
- Mid-Century
Mid-Century color schemes haven’t reached an antique status since that period ranged from 1945 to 1969, but their popularity has vaulted them ahead of their time.
Antique farmhouse-style color schemes broadly use natural colors like white, cream, tan, blue, and green. Think of the sky and grass, and you have the right idea.
Some periods of this design style, such as Craftsman and Victorian, use yellow and reds, too.
Choosing Your Color Scheme
Farmhouse style evokes the feeling of down-home, rural roots. Its furnishings frequently feature simple two-color plaids or gingham prints. These designs provide the color pop for a room, so leaving the walls a single, neutral color provides the ideal base.
The flexibility of this farmhouse style lets you use your favorite color unless you favor pink or purple. Common combinations include:
- dark blue with cream or pale yellow (Spanish Revival)
- light or medium green with bright yellow (Victorian)
- dark red with creamy yellow (Craftsman)
Regardless of your favorite color, choose a shade of white for the trim in each room. Paint the ceiling this same color.
Choosing Flooring that Blends with a Farmhouse Look
Farmhouses of yore and today use hardwood flooring for a natural look that stands the test of time. Farmers of yesteryear needed tough floors that required little upkeep but could handle boots scuffing along them. They required something easy to clean and accessible material. Choosing hardwood created one of the most lasting décors looks in history.
You can duplicate the antique farmhouse look in any setting, even a condo in a metropolitan area. You only need to follow a few guidelines and choose the right materials for your needs.
Choose Light-Colored Woods
Farmhouses tend to use lighter-colored woods. Darker colors like ebony and mahogany offer an opulent look that doesn’t resemble a farm. Think in terms of white oak, pine, cherry, rosewood, or walnut.
These white and cream colors compliment the many windows a farmhouse usually features. When replicating this décor in another setting, such as a condo, the light-colored flooring increases in importance because apartments and condos typically feature fewer windows. Rooms with fewer windows need lighter flooring.
Many of the color schemes for paint in the antique farmhouse style use a dark color, such as navy blue or pewter green. These dark wall colors require a much lighter flooring color to balance them out.
Going the Safe Route
Perhaps you have your furnishings already and want to use a safe method of creating an antique farmhouse feel for them. Most of the periods of this antique style use warm tones, so plan accordingly for your flooring and walls.
Farmhouse color schemes use either summer days or fall leaf colors as their inspiration. Colonial colors evoke the ocean and spring, the only exception. Choose neutral tones with a hint of color for your walls, such as alabaster, rare ivory, and casa blanca (the color, not the movie). Livable green or gray screens offer a subtle tinge of color that lets you use any furniture you own without clashing.
Using ash, pine, or white oak with neutral walls offers a simple solution that matches any furniture. This safe route provides a solution if you want to sell your home and stage it as an antique farmhouse to capitalize on the popularity of the décor style.
Work with a Professional Designer
Alleviate lingering doubts by working with a professional designer. Color schemes, contrasting warm and cool tones, and ensuring you choose the right paint for your walls get complex. Make it easier by contacting the professionals at From The Forest. Let us help you plan the wall color scheme and choose the flooring you love that works with the wall colors you want to use.
Having an expert help you with these tough decisions can help you achieve the desired results faster. Our expert advice can help you determine which wall colors work best because you can find warm, cool, and neutral tones within any color, such as blue. Working with a design professional takes the guesswork out of these decisions and simplifies finding a blue you love that matches your new floors.
You can create an antique farmhouse style in any location. You don’t have to reside on a farm to create this look for your home. Pick a period, such as Colonial, and email or phone From The Forest. We offer the experts you need to plan the right look and the flooring and wallboard to create it.