Design Dilemma~ Decorating With Brazilian Cherry (Red) Hardwood Flooring (2023)

After 5 years of living in our current house it is time to talk about the elephant in the room.

The red elephant to be exact

The red elephant that covers the whole first floor, the steps and the landing upstairs.

It’s an expensive red elephant…and one that I have a love/hate relationship with

Not even one year before we sold our old house, we installed Pergo laminate flooring throughout the first floor.

It took me months to pick out a floor (and especially one that I knew would hide dirt and dust).

I really did love our old floors.

And then we moved…into a home that has Brazilian cherry hardwood floors throughout the majority of the house.

I kept telling myself how lucky I was to have solid hardwood flooring in this house.

And I am lucky. I know these floors were not cheap. And while they might not be my first choice in flooring, they are really pretty.

But do I ever miss my laminate floors.

I am not one of those bloggers that can rip up perfectly fine hardwood floors to replace them with a different hardwood…just because I do not like the look of them.

I can’t wrap my head around that…and I’d have to find a different husband because my current one would donate me if I even attempted to replace our floors.

So what is a girl to do? She learns to live with them, accepts them and decorates with red floors in mind.

It’s so much easier to accept and appreciate what you have.

Let’s go over a few FAQ and them move into how to decorate with red floors…

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Is Brazilian Cherry Wood Flooring Expensive

It is, and that is why I could not get myself to even think about ripping these floors out. Brazilian Cherry floors are one of the pricier hardwood floors out there. With that said, they do last a long time since they are pretty durable.

A quick google search and you are looking at anywhere between $5-$10 per square foot…for just the wood. Don’t forget to budget for installation too.

Cha-Ching

How Durable Are Brazilian Cherry Floors

Before we moved into this house I did some research on these cherry floors. I even learned about the Janka scale. The Janka Test is a measure of the hardness of wood.

According to the internet, the Janka hardness test gives Brazilian cherry wood hardness a rating of 3500. So…technically this means Brazilian cherry is incredibly durable and resistant to scratches, dents, and imperfections.

However…my family has put these floors to the test….more importantly the dog.

While these floors are holding up well, they are definitely not 100% free of scratches or dents. There are scratches and some dents in our floors.

Some dents and scratches were here when we moved in. I just learned to accept the dents along with the red color.

For the record, Brazilian cherry hardwood is more durable than red and white oak.

Does Brazilian Cherry Hardwood Flooring Change Color

Oh yes it does and do not let anyone tell you otherwise. I have all kinds of proof

Sunlight causes cherry floors to change color over time. The areas where you have area rugs or furniture will be different in color.

The only really way to fix this is to move your furniture around as much as possible or remove your area rugs to even out the floor color.

I have just accepted the fact that my floors will be multi color. I like to call it character.

How to Clean Brazilian Cherry Wood Floors

If you ever were to ask me why I might hate my floors it is because they show everything. And when I say everything, I mean everything.

Everyday I can mop these floors and they will look dirty again 30 seconds later. The vinyl floors we used to have in our old house never looked dirty.

These floors are doing me in though. But for the 30 seconds that they are clean, they sure do glisten

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I play is safe when I am cleaning my floors. I just use water and these microfiber mop pads. I mop my floors almost every day.

There are times I will use my counter cleaner to do a quick clean of my floors with some paper towels. I am fancy like that.

If I want a deep clean I will add some white vinegar and warm water to a bucket.

I have yet to have used a steam mop on these floors. A steam mop was a big no no on our old laminate floors so I just never used one on these floors

Can You Refinish and Stain Brazilian Cherry Wood

Yes, you can and because Brazilian cherry floors are so strong and dense you can refinish these floors multiple times.

Like most red wood flooring, it will be hard to get the red out of the wood once it’s refinished. Cherry wood is naturally red/orange even when it is in it’s raw form.

What Are Stain Options for Brazilian Cherry Flooring

Brazilian cherry is a tad bit tricky especially since there are different variations in the wood color. The stains will absorb differently so always do a test before you jump in with two feet.

And always get a professional opinion first. What I am about to tell you is purely a recommendation or two.

There are a few different ways to stain your floors.

If you want to visually hide the red from the flooring, I’d suggest using a darker stain. There will still be some red undertones to your floors but the darker you go, the less red you will see.

You can also bleach your hardwood floors. I would only do this via a professional and I would proceed with caution.

Bleaching your floors will help to eliminate some of the red in the floors.

But since you can’t really get the red out of Brazilian cherry flooring, you can risk your floors coming off looking pink if you do not use the correct stain.

How To Decorate With Red Hardwood Flooring.

I had a hard time accepting my red floors at first.

I tried to think of them as a neutral but it just wasn’t working for me. Nothing felt right.

Once I started decorating with red floors in mind, it just started clicking.

Complimentary Paint Colors

I painted our walls Sliver Drop by Behr. It’s a warm gray paint color. I wanted a warm paint color but I didn’t want anything too too creamy.

I also did not want anything too dark. When we first moved into this house, the walls were painted a dark brown and I just felt like I was in a cave.

A few cans of paint can make a world of difference

I also recently painted our dining room and TV room Light Blue by Farrow and Ball and the blue green paint color does really compliment my red floors.

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Area Rugs

I added lots of area rugs around my house

I love area rugs for their texture but it also helped to break up some of the red.

Different Textures

I also tried to break up the amount of wood in each room. The more textures I added, the softer the room felt.

I added chair covers to my dining room chairs to soften all the wood in that room

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I also have a fabric ottoman in my TV room instead of a coffee table

And when I did add wood tones into a room, it would be a different wood tone than my red floors

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