Oak Flooring Colour Guide
Twelve colours, one board, one price. Every Marchand colour is the same 20mm European oak with a 6mm wear layer, so the choice is about the room rather than the budget. This guide groups the twelve by undertone and depth, and says what each does in a New Zealand interior, so that the three you order as samples are the right three.
Two things before the colours. Oak changes in light: a board photographed in a north-facing Auckland room and the same board in a south-facing Queenstown one are two different floors, so samples in your own light beat any screen. And texture and edge change how a colour reads: a brushed surface catches the light and shows the grain; a matt surface is quieter; a handmade bevel throws a small shadow at every board edge and makes the floor read as boards; a micro bevel reads as a plane. The guide notes both for each colour.
Quiet and light
Pale oak with a warm undertone. The Scandinavian and Japanese-influenced end of the range, for rooms that want to feel larger and calmer, and for interiors built on white, plaster, pale stone and ash or oak joinery. These colours show the grain most honestly and sit best where the light is good.
Blanc. The palest board in the range: a washed, near-white oak with a warm undertone, so it never turns cold or blue. Matt, micro bevel. For all-white interiors, limewash and plaster, and rooms that need light bounced around them.
Clair. Natural European oak as it comes, warm and clear, with the grain lifted by a brushed surface. Micro bevel. The colour most people mean when they say "just oak", and the safest pairing with almost any joinery.
Picasso. A neutral pale oak that leans neither warm nor grey, with a handmade bevel that gives the floor the rhythm of individual boards. Matt. For interiors that mix warm and cool materials and want the floor to referee rather than take a side.
Warm and minimal
Mid-tone oak with a warm undertone: the colours that make a room feel settled and lived-in without going dark. They sit with travertine, terracotta, brass, linen, and the warmer greys and off-whites. The range most often specified for family homes and for the alpine houses where a warm floor answers a cold view.
Nectar. Honeyed and golden, the warmest board in the range. Matt, micro bevel. For rooms with cool light or grey stone that need warmth put back, and for the mid-century and Mediterranean-leaning palettes that are back in New Zealand kitchens.
Saint-Tropez. Warm without the gold: a sun-softened mid oak. Matt, micro bevel. The quiet choice in this group, for interiors that want warmth at low volume alongside plaster, pale stone and brass.
Marron. A warm mid brown with more depth than Saint-Tropez and less red than Riviera. Matt, micro bevel. For darker joinery and for rooms that want the floor to carry some weight.
Riviera. Rich and warm, with a brushed surface that shows every line of grain and a handmade bevel that reads as boards. The most textured colour in the range, for rooms that want character in the floor: stone fireplaces, exposed timber, dark steel.
Smoke and ash
Mid-tone oak with a grey undertone: the European, weathered tones that pair with concrete, raw plaster, black steel, and the cooler whites. These are the colours to specify when a client says "no yellow, no orange", and they hold that promise in strong light because the grey is in the timber, not on it.
La Forêt. Grey-toned oak with the warmth of the timber still visible beneath, brushed so the grain reads. Micro bevel. Sits between the warm and grey groups; for interiors that want the European look without the floor going cold.
Vuitton. Cool grey oak, the most contemporary colour in the range, brushed, micro bevel, finished with three coats of water-based lacquer. For concrete floors that meet timber, black or charcoal joinery, and the minimal palettes where the floor must not warm the room.
Dark and moody
The deep end of the range, for rooms that want drama, intimacy or a base for pale furniture and art. Dark floors show dust and scratches more than pale ones and reward the felt pads and entrance mats in our care guide; in return they anchor a room like nothing else.
Lune. A soft dark grey, matt, micro bevel: the dark colour for cool, contemporary palettes, with black steel, concrete and white walls. Reads as a plane rather than as boards.
Chocolat. Dark warm brown, brushed, handmade bevel. The colour of Sugi House in Wānaka, where 240mm boards in a compact home won an NZIA award. For dark joinery, stone and the alpine houses that want the floor to hold the room against the view.
Bordeaux. The deepest board in the range, warm, brushed, handmade bevel. For libraries, dining rooms and hospitality interiors that want depth and richness underfoot.
Choosing between them
Decide the undertone first, from the materials already fixed in the room: warm stone and brass point to the warm groups; concrete, black steel and cool whites to smoke and ash. Then decide the depth from the light: pale where light is short, deeper where there is plenty. Then order three samples, not one, and live with them for a week, morning and evening. If the choice still will not settle, bring the three to a studio consultation and we will settle it with you.
Frequently asked questions
Which Marchand colours have no yellow or orange tone?
The smoke and ash group: La Forêt and Vuitton, and among the darks, Lune. Picasso is neutral rather than grey.
Which is the lightest oak colour?
Blanc, a washed near-white with a warm undertone, followed by Clair and Picasso.
Do all colours cost the same?
Yes. One rate across all twelve, in every format: plank, herringbone and wall and ceiling board.
What is the difference between micro bevel and handmade bevel?
A micro bevel is a fine edge that lets the floor read as one plane. A handmade bevel is a softer, rolled edge that throws a small shadow at each board and reads as individual boards. Picasso, Riviera, Chocolat and Bordeaux carry the handmade bevel.
Which colours are brushed?
Clair, Riviera, La Forêt, Vuitton, Chocolat and Bordeaux have a brushed surface that lifts the grain. The others are matt.
Can I get the same colour on walls and ceilings?
Yes. All twelve run across the wall and ceiling boards, so a room can be resolved in one material.
Order samples, free and unlimited.
Last reviewed September 2026.