Nature’s best

Dark Resene wood stains provide a nurturing, cosy, and comforting elegance to a space that feels like a refuge to escape to.

Classic, bold and elegant, dark brown hues hold their own even as an array of colours come increasingly into the limelight in our interiors. Timeless and never-dated, deep, sumptuous hues bring sophistication and refinement to a room.

As opposed to dreary and depressing, dark Resene wood stains provide a nurturing, cosy, and comforting elegance to a space that feels like a refuge to escape to. Popular choices include Resene Shadow Match, Resene Dark Oak or Resene Crowshead; their ease means they can be used to bring out the best of any room.

Bold and brilliant Resene dark wood stains speak to us for the element of texture shining through the paint. If depth and texture make your heart sing and truly speak to you, look no further than a stain. By applying this product, the pattern of natural wood grain can be still seen rather than covered up, adding to the depth and atmosphere of a room, hence why timber walls have been a desirable design selection for recent years.

Bringing an added flair, stains celebrate a colour tone while allowing your wood's natural grain to be visible. The nuances of this effect on an interior is intriguing, and the multitude of colours stains come in are timeless, bringing a warmth to a home that some colours don't have; it's an ideal choice for space lacking depth and character. We've used Resene Charred Black in our bedroom, mimicking the look of charred black timber.

Pairing with the Resene Charred Black, Resene Bleached Riverstone on our floor continues the wall’s rustic, comforting textured narrative. A warm, weathered grey stain, it allows the timber grain to be seen. Such a finish has a sense of earthiness and authenticity that brings an honest feel to a room. In keeping with all wood-stained finishes, it moves us towards a relaxed feeling in our interiors, laid-back and homely.

This relaxed, natural feel fits best in rooms which we turn to unwind in, such as the bedroom. Far from cold and soulless, a bedroom with a dark-toned Resene wood stain is cosy, comforting and welcoming, leaving you waking up happy!

The beauty of these wood stains is the variety of choices they provide. To create even more depth to your bedroom, coordinate more than one wood stain cohesively. We've layered our wood tones, starting with our stained wall as our hero, then applying furniture from here. On our bedhead, floating bedside table and bench seat, we’ve applied Resene Bark wood stain, a deep, warm, woody brown. A touch more uplifting than Resene Charred Black, Resene Bark allows us to mix and match the browns in this bedroom for depth and visual interest.

Showcase colour and definition by incorporating a light, fresh colour onto your stained surfaces. We did this by outlining the bed and shelf top with Resene Colins Wicket, a warming ochre green. This bold design feature contrasts the wood stain – such a neutral brown allows this pale green to pop – and blends beautifully with the rattan items in the room; the basket, sandals and light pendant shade. This layer of light colour is a welcome break from the richness of the wood stain; the balance of the two being perfect.

Continuing the rhetoric of the natural world is the lush, spring-like grass green of Resene Waiouru on the cane armchair. Fresh and soothing, it pairs perfectly next to the wood stain. Its effect on the space is uplifting and vigorous, delicate and soothing, reminiscent of wide open country hills or a lawn on a summer's day. It easily brings a smile to a face as its clean tones brighten a room to life.

Adding to this level of lightness are serene off-white tones in the warm-white bedlinen, book and bowl – the latter painted in Resene Sandspit Brown, a neutral beige, sweet and pretty by nature. Light-hearted and subtle, it gently calms the dark tones in the room.

To layer another touch of colour even further, you can easily create your own artwork using Resene paint colours. It doesn't have to be complicated or difficult, and best of all, you know you'll have a unique, one of kind artwork using colours you love! We found a frame in a second-hand shop and painted onto a canvas in colours that tie in with the room's paint scheme. Resene Element sets the scene as the background hue; then we added Resene Top Notch, a soft holly green; Resene Secrets, a pale frosted green and Resene Waiouru.

To ground the room, Resene Element, a dark earthy stone – soft charcoal by nature – is painted on the skirting. It fits in with the space as it is earthy by nature, in keeping with the surrounding browns. Our skirting colour plays a dramatic role here, bringing a sense of drama to the room next to the richly toned walls.

A wood stain in this bedroom is perfect for a space where you want it to be comforting, relaxing and sleep-inducing. We see it being a warming and nurturing reflection of personality with this room.

Colours mentioned in this article

Styling by Melle Van Sambeek. Photography by Bryce Carleton. 2024