Birch or Medium Brown?

[NickD]

Totally random, but I'm re-doing my room, and can't chose which IKEA finish to use for the wood: birch or medium brown.

In your opinion, which would look best with my iMac, and what accent colors would you use with each?

NickD

... like i said, totally random ...

 

[siurpeeman]

birch. i'm a fan of the lighter wood colors. it's like having a part of the apple store in your room. 🙂

 

[TheAnswer]

Keep in mind that the birch will yellow in time with exposure to sunlight. I'd still choose birch though (my whole place is birch stuff from IKEA)...medium brown is right out, but I do like that chocolately black-brown finish.

 

[bartelby]

I prefer birch but some of the birch IKEA products are paint, not wood veneer.

 

[shecky]

i almost always go black-brown on all Ikea stuff as it makes it look more expensive and of a higher quality than it actually is.

 

[NickD]

Really? Do you know which products are actual wood veneer and which aren't?

 

[TheAnswer]

Really? Do you know which products are actual wood veneer and which aren't?

Price is one sign. Although I haven't noticed any paint-on birch. I've seen solid birch, birch veneer, then cheap birch-a-like stickers (usually on the backs of bookcases or parts of beds that they think you won't notice. If you look closely at the products in the showroom, you'll be able to spot which is which.

 

[NickD]

Hmm. OK then. How would it be if I got birch furniture, and then painted the walls chocolate brown, got a chocolate brown bedspread and then accent with some color (suggestion)?

 

[TheAnswer]

Hmm. OK then. How would it be if I got birch furniture, and then painted the walls chocolate brown, got a chocolate brown bedspread and then accent with some color (suggestion)?

Depends a lot on the lighting and the exact shade of brown...because the wrong brown with the wrong light and you'll end up thinking you live inside a turd cave.

And I wouldn't match the bedspread exactly to the walls...if you go will a cool dark-chocolate for the walls, find a greyish-blue bedspread...if the wall color is warmer, find a warm grey bedspread with some bright green shapes on it.

Take all my color advice with a grain of salt, though, as I currently have white walls and birch furniture with greyscale fabrics.

You might mess around on the kuler to get some prelim color ideas. But since monitor color is a lot different from paint and fabric colors, eventually you'll have to match paint chips and fabric swatches and all that other fun stuff.

 

[bartelby]

Really? Do you know which products are actual wood veneer and which aren't?

Things like the VIKA AMON table top. Which used to be called birch, is now called birch effect.
The LACK stuff is the same.

 

[aprilgrey34]

Definitely birch.

Keep in mind that the birch will yellow in time with exposure to sunlight.

I did not know this! 😱 Something to keep in mind.

I do like that chocolately black-brown finish.

Me too! Better than birch!

 

[TheAnswer]

I did not know this! 😱 Something to keep in mind.

It happens slowly...and some of their birch veneers will yellow less/slower than others. It definitely starts to get warmer over time, though...I had a birch BILLY bookcase that had moderate sun exposure...when I moved after two years...the spots where the books had been were a lot lighter than the surfaces that got sun exposure.

 

[iKwick7]

I've always gone with Medium Brown at Ikea- but it really depends on what else is going on in the room.

 

[cycocelica]

I thought men just bought whatever no matter what the color (besides bright colors) and wasn't too worried if it matched anything.

 

[NickD]

Well then, how's this then. I'll paint one wall chocolate brown (the wall with the desk on it) and then go birch furniture (maybe a Malm twin and a Mikael) and add a grey blue bedspread.

NickD

 

[TheAnswer]

Well then, how's this then. I'll paint one wall chocolate brown (the wall with the desk on it) and then go birch furniture (maybe a Malm twin and a Mikael) and add a grey blue bedspread.

NickD

That sounds good. Especially if you get the Michael with the bookcase/whiteboard on it. Otherwise break up the chocolate with some B&W photography in brushed aluminum or birch frames. Remember keep the chocolate a dark and cool color, if you have a warmer brown, you'll have to switch the blue-grey to a warmer grey and add in either bright green or a red/orange as the highlight color.

Did you play around with that kuler link above?

 

[NickD]

I did play around with the Kuler a bit. I'm thinking about a spread like this:

http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stor...-1&categoryId=15836&chosenPartNumber=20099547

 

[TheAnswer]

I did play around with the Kuler a bit. I'm thinking about a spread like this:

http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stor...-1&categoryId=15836&chosenPartNumber=20099547

From the choices in their current selection, that's not bad...the ultimate would be something like this in a darker more-muted blue-gray. If you are really brave you can always try dying those IKEA quilt covers...if you mess up, they are fairly cheap to replace as linens go.

 

[NickD]

I'm going to try to find something warmer though because I want a warm chocolatey brown, and don't want the room to feel too cold and harsh.

 

[TheAnswer]

I'm going to try to find something warmer though because I want a warm chocolatey brown, and don't want the room to feel too cold and harsh.

Remember, the dark chocolate will look warmer in fabrics than on the wall, so maybe go for a lighter color on the wall/walls and then keep the darker colors in the linens. BTW...On the Real World Denver, they had a really cool bedspread that had thick Dark Brown, Tan, White, Light Blue and Dark Blue stripes...I thought it might have been IKEA, but I haven't seen it there. If you can find that, it would be perfect.

 

[twistedlegato]

Here


That was when i was planning to fix up my room. Use it for some ideas. Im going to sart the project in about 2 weeks. After vacation.


I like birch. Becasue if you have a dark wood it makes the room the stuff is in seem smaller. If you have light wood it makes everything seem so much more open.

Not to hijake your thread but does anyone know good paint brands and what color would go well with birch items form IKEA? The color should be pastel.

 

[TheAnswer]

Here

LOL...between that thread and the other Post your IKEA stuff thread, I'm getting the idea that half my posts may be in IKEA related threads. 😱

Not to hijake your thread but does anyone know good paint brands and what color would go well with birch items form IKEA? The color should be pastel.

Either Lowes or Home Depot will have tons of color options. Just remember, with pastels and warm colors especially, that the colors will look darker/more vibrant in the room because the walls will play off each other. The smaller the room the more this is a factor.

Remember to primer, and don't tighten your wallet too much for the paint. You don't need the high end stuff, but don't get the low end either. Get the medium octane paint.

 

[NickD]

I was just thinking about my choice of bedspread and the single chocolate brown wall. Would the blue-gray-black bedspread clash with the chocolate brown of the wall?

NickD

 

[TheAnswer]

First off depends what you mean by chocolate:

More like a cool dark chocolate, cocoa powder, milk chocolate, candybar, or hersey's syrup?

(Note: This is gonna be kinda dangerous, because our monitors are probably calibrated differently).

 

[NickD]

Like the first or the last one, but more like the latter as opposed to the former.