skip to main content

Advice needed for wood panelling in entrance

7 years ago

last modified: 7 years ago

We have a large, old Edwardian era house with wood panelling on the walls and up the side of the staircase in the entrance (see pics). We are planning a total renovation of the house and have really mixed views about whether to keep the panelling, recycle it, paint it etc.

Under the dark carpets in the entrance is a parquet floor and the entrance faces north east. The dark walls and floors make it feel dark and dingy (even though the door is mostly glass). We would like to keep the walls and restore the floors however there would be too much wood, it would look odd.

My questions are:

- Is it a bad idea to paint the wood panelling a light colour? How easy is it to reverse this if we change our minds in the future?

- If we removed the wood panelling, are we killing the character of the house?

- Is it very costly to move parquet flooring from one area of the house (entrance) to another (ie open plan kitchen/living room) and put some interesting tiles there instead?

Thanks!

Featured Answer

PRO

Su Design

7 years ago

I like your wood paneling and I think it is better to keep it as a character of your house and paint to the bright colour! Just in case, you can have some idea through these images of wood paneling and parquet flooring below.

1. White wood paneling with parquet flooring

This white wood paneling gives minimal and contemporary looks and feeling.

2. Light gray wood paneling with parquet flooring

3. Beige wood paneling with parquet flooring

And for parquet flooring, if the wood condition is still good then you may consider sanding the floor to get the nice smooth finish? If you do, the colour of parquet floor might be slightly lighter than the original colour.

I hope this will be helpful for you.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (8)

Nic George
7 years ago
What gorgeous panelling. We have far less panelling in our entrance (it goes mid-height) and we've painted it white. It looks so much nicer and lighte

My logic is that it's only paint and can be removed if a future owner wants to restore it back to brown/orange wood.
kikiamack
7 years ago
If you go to the photo section of Houzz, select "Entryway" and then search for "wood panelling" and select "traditional" for the style, you should get an idea of what look you want to go for. Here's some white painted panelling:

Aviemore · More Info
Related Discussions
How to paint bath panel, product advice!
Q
Comments (1)
You can paint it in shellac zinnser instead of sanding it and worrying about varnish removal. 2 coats of that and 1 coat of oil based satinwood will be enough to cover it. Don't see why you need to varnish it afterwards as it's an oil-based paint meaning it will be resistant to water.
...See More
Need advice on flooring for our entrance with stairs going up and down
Q
Comments (2)
Sisal is impossible to clean and the dirt falls through it, so it's not very hygienic. I would recommend replacing it with a carpet made of olefin or nylon. A fibre that has the colour in the solution it's made of will not absorb stains and will be easily cleanable. I think you'll be happy with it because it will be quiet and luxurious and will clean up with a quick vacuum most of the time.
...See More
Urgent Q. skirting on a wood panelled wall??
Q
Comments (30)
I have eggshell on all of our panelled walls downstairs, up the stairs and landing. Everything got painted in the same finish panelling and walls and it doesn't look shiny at all ( we used Farrow and Ball). It is so easy to keep clean with the dog and everyday wear marks and scuffs still looks the same nearly 4 years on. I also have Benajmin Moore's eggshell in my studio and that doesn't look shiny eitherl. I know I am not MATH but wanted to give you my experience. :)
...See More
Entrance redesign advice
Q
Comments (8)
Wow, what a disaster of a decision to block off half the window! You have got a mess to sort out! Any work you do has got to sort out this mess to ensure that at a future time your house is sellable! You cannot just block off and plasterboard one half of a glazing unit at the top of this window. You need to remove the whole window then stud wall, insulate and plaster board the bathroom side of the old window and get a new, smaller window in the hall. You could consider making this new window larger and more of a feature to look less like a old external window, especially if more light required internally. This is not going to be a cheap DIY job but will increase your chances of being able to sell your property at a later date. You may not be considering selling now but doing anything minor to hide the mess will only mean you will have to fix at a later date and you may not be in a position with time and finances to remedy the issue then. For me, meeting that at the start of a house viewing would have me turning by 180 and leaving - a visible botched DIY job makes it very clear that other botched DIY disasters are likely to be lurking elsewhere....
...See More
kikiamack
7 years ago
And to give my opinion, I personally would keep the parquet in the hall, I think it will look lovely. Also, there are lots of houses where the panelling is painted, times and tastes change and you have to do what is right for how you want to live. I always think it is quite strange that when you see programmes on TV about stately homes, it's clear that a lot of their previous owners embraced new styles and technology and added features that were contemporary to them, and yet somehow people today are expected to stick with past styles. I don't think painting panels is too drastic a change, so fo for it if that is what you like.
PRO
Crabtree & Hargreeves Bespoke Interiors
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
That's a lot of wood and can understand your concerns but I doubt by the look of the design that its original to the house, therefore I wouldn't feel you are destroying a feature of the house if you chose to remove it. The only thing you could be doing is opening a can of worms in that you don't know what's underneath and also any costly repair bills. A safe bet is to over paint.

hope that helps
Carolina
7 years ago
I don't think you'll regret painting the panelling. Gorgeous parquet floor!
PRO
User
7 years ago
Absolutely agree with most of the above, paint the panelling and restore the flooring. I personally love a dark floor with a pale paint. However, there are so many beautiful colours that go with a light oak, it's all down to personal preference
PRO
Conquest Fine Bespoke Furniture
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
Hi Lauren. What a lovely property and so many options. I think you're right to try to preserve the character of the property but that still leaves you with many options - some of which are outlined above. Moving the parquet flooring would seem like a good idea if it suits your needs better and shouldn't be too costly - depending on the size of the areas/scale of the work. I've noticed that a number of people have mentioned the possibility of painting certain areas of the panelling and I thought you might like to take a look at some panelling work that we did on a Georgian revival property in recent times.

Hope this helps and good luck with your project.

Sponsored

More Discussions

Large sliding door or keep small French door and window

36

Opinions and suggestions on Howdens Kitchen Design

15

Advice re updating a tiredbedroom please

6

How can I fit an induction hob in place of a range cooker?

5

Inserting a bathroom downstairs and adding a separate toilet

0

United Kingdom

Tailor my experience with cookies

Houzz uses cookies and similar technologies to personalise my experience, serve me relevant content, and improve Houzz products and services. By clicking ‘Accept’ I agree to this, as further described in the Houzz Cookie Policy. I can reject non-essential cookies by clicking ‘Manage Preferences’.