500 Shades of grey

Grey oak, as well as grey in principle, has been a leader in interior fashion for many years. Why? Where does the grey oak come from, and what difficulties are associated with its "prey"? What does a trendy grey oak hardwood flooring have in common with a battered fence? This is our story. And, of course, it is about the shades of grey, which in fact is, even more than stated in the title.

The reasons for the popularity of grey oak

• Grey color is good both by itself and in combination with other colors. Perhaps there is no color with which grey would not become “friends”. For brighter colors, it can serve as a background, and “diluent”- just add grey in the midst of screaming color cacophony, and the cutting pile of colors will turn into a harmonious composition.
• Grey oak is not just a favorite of the last few years, along with the brown and light color palettes, it is a kind of classic of the genre, and you can be sure that the floor, which is laid in gray oak (whether it is in Provence style, minimalism or Chateau), will never go out of fashion.
• Grey oak due to its restraint and versatility is an excellent basis for modular and artistic parquet flooring, wooden tiles and wall panels, especially those where there are many small elements.
• In large formats, where there are colors throughout, a grey oak is also extremely good.
• Grey oak performs well in duet with other materials, whether it is a contrasting color stone or the same grey but concrete.

Origins of grey oak

Of course, the original natural color of oak is not grey but oak can become grey when left outdoors and exposed to the element over a long period of timewooden . A striking example is fences and barn board. This kind of worn, weathered and battered look is in great demand today.

How can we obtain a grey oak in "laboratory" conditions?

It is very difficult to achieve a real deep grey color by artificial means, while maintaining the feeling of natural wood texture. If you use dyes or dense tinting, which simply and quickly give a stable grey color, the open wood cells are painted over, the texture is lost and the wooden floor becomes like a laminate. Finex uses special techniques to obtain a rich grey color that can occur only through a natural reaction with the wood. By using these techniques, and the natural tannins contained in the wood, we pull and remove a yellowness from the wood, leaving only a grey color, which, among other things, is scratch resistant.

To obtain different shades of grey oak, our company uses different degrees of wood staining and combines this technique with the use of light tinting. In Finex you find different shades of grey oak - warm grey, cold grey, oak grey with a hint of grey, oak light grey, grey blue, grey mother of pearl, etc. If you do not find the desired shade of grey oak, our specialists will create the color according to our company’s technology so you can get the correct shade of the color you want under the order individually.

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