# Colonial Maple in a traditional room

Colonial Maple, a DuraSeal stain, is a mid dark stain on red oak with an amber undertone, measured from its own picture at LRV 20. Here it is with Stonington Gray walls, Swiss Coffee trim, and Cascades as the deep note, chosen by the numbers.

A vision board by Powell Flooring, 1811 Union Valley Rd, West Milford, NJ 07480, 973-728-9717. AI assisted: the rooms are AI generated, simulated photos; the floor, the paint colors and every number are real.
Page: https://www.powellflooring.com/vision-boards/colonial-maple-traditional

## The floor
- Colonial Maple, DuraSeal stain on red oak: Stain · on red oak · 2-1/4 in strip
- Every color and detail: https://www.powellflooring.com/sherwin-williams-minwax-duraseal-stain-colors/colonial-maple

## Measured from its own picture
- LRV (light reflectance value, 0 black to 100 white): 20
- CIELAB (D65): L* 52.2, a* 18.4, b* 26.4, chroma 32.2, hue 55.1 degrees
- Undertone: an amber undertone, warm and a little orange
- Colonial Maple has a gentle movement from board to board (a spread of 2.2 in L*): calm, but not flat.

## Paint
- Walls: Stonington Gray (Benjamin Moore HC-170, LRV 59.4, +39.1 from the floor). Its undertone leans green (hue 117°), which quiets the orange in Colonial Maple (hue 55°) instead of echoing it. Source: https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-colors/color/hc-170/stonington-gray
- Or walls: Sea Salt (Sherwin-Williams SW 6204, LRV 63.2, +42.9 from the floor). Its undertone leans green (hue 133°), which quiets the orange in Colonial Maple (hue 55°) instead of echoing it. Source: https://www.sherwin-williams.com/en-us/color/color-family/green-paint-colors/sw6204-sea-salt/
- Trim and ceilings: Swiss Coffee (Benjamin Moore OC-45, LRV 81.9). 62 points over Colonial Maple in LRV and warm enough (chroma 5.7) to read white, not blue, beside its amber undertone. Source: https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-colors/color/oc-45/swiss-coffee
- Deep note: Cascades (Sherwin-Williams SW 7623, LRV 4.2). Deep and cool, about 143° around the color wheel from Colonial Maple and 16 points darker in LRV, so each makes the other look richer. Source: https://www.sherwin-williams.com/en-us/color/color-family/green-paint-colors/sw7623-cascades/
- Lower cabinets or an island in Cascades, uppers and trim in Swiss Coffee. The floor at LRV 20 sits between the two (4 and 82).

## Wood, rugs and metals
- Wood a step darker: a dark walnut tone, like our Golden Brown stain sample. About 19 points darker than Colonial Maple in L* (33 against 52), far enough to read as a choice.
- Wood a step lighter: a pale, bleached wood, like our Natural stain sample. About 15 points lighter than Colonial Maple in L* (67 against 52).
- Rug or fabric, tone on tone: blush (#dfc1b1). 14 in chroma, half the warmth of Colonial Maple (32), and 28 points lighter in L*.
- Rug or fabric, across the wheel: graphite (#344a53). Hue 235°, straight across the color wheel from the 55° of Colonial Maple, softened to balance it.
- Rug or fabric, grounding: chocolate (#433128). A deep note at L* 22, 30 points from the 52 of Colonial Maple, so a rug keeps its edge.
- Metal: unlacquered brass. A warm metal that agrees with the amber undertone of Colonial Maple (hue 55°).
- Metal: aged brass. A second warm metal in a worn finish, so the brass beside Stonington Gray walls never looks new and loud.
- Metal: matte black. Black works with every undertone; beside Colonial Maple at LRV 20 it gives the room its outline.

## Room by room
- Living room: Stonington Gray walls, Swiss Coffee trim and crown, a patterned rug in graphite and chocolate on the Colonial Maple floor, furniture in a dark walnut tone, unlacquered brass lamps.
- Kitchen: Cascades on the island, Swiss Coffee cabinets, aged brass knobs, the Colonial Maple floor underfoot.
- Dining room: Sea Salt walls, a table in a dark walnut tone, chairs in blush, an unlacquered brass chandelier.
- Bedroom: Stonington Gray walls, blush bedding, a graphite throw, nightstands in a pale, bleached wood.

## What to avoid
- Walls at the lightness of Colonial Maple: Retreat (Sherwin-Williams SW 6207, LRV 20.9) sits within a point of its LRV of 20, so wall and floor would blur into one.
- Wood that almost matches Colonial Maple: a tone like our Golden Pecan sample, 2.1 apart (CIEDE2000), reads as a near miss. Go clearly darker or lighter.
- Pink or peach beige walls: they pull more orange out of the amber undertone of Colonial Maple (hue 55°).

## The room it suits
- At LRV 20, Colonial Maple is mid dark: it is at its best in a big room with good light and warm lamps, and it shows dust, pet hair and fine scratches more than a mid tone.
- At 2.25 inches a board, Colonial Maple lays about 64 boards across a 12 foot room, the busy, tailored look of a classic strip floor.
- A sand and finish of red oak strip floors in any room above grade.
- Hardness: Northern red oak: Janka 1,290 lbf (the force to press a steel ball halfway into the wood; a higher number dents less under heels and chair legs)
- Finish: Stain on site, then clear coats (the color is in the wood, so a worn floor can be sanded and stained again)

## Sources
- Paint names, codes, hex and LRV as Sherwin-Williams and Benjamin Moore publish them (each color links to its page).
- BS 8300-2:2018 asks for a difference of at least 30 LRV points between adjacent surfaces, such as a floor and a wall, so the surfaces read apart.
- The floor measured from its own picture in CIELAB (D65); the wood tones from our own photographs of 37 stains on oak.
- Janka hardness from the USDA Forest Products Laboratory Wood Handbook (2021), Table 5-3b, at 12 percent moisture.