KindredTIMBER

Floors, wall panels and doors in one finish

Designers often ask us for matching floors, wall panels and doors. What they want is timber that belongs together. We carry the same species, brushing, gloss and coating across every surface, with tones chosen to complement each other, all prefinished at the mill.

Why timber surfaces rarely belong together

On most hotel fit-outs, each timber surface comes from a different supplier. The floor is oiled, the wall panels are stained and lacquered, the doors arrive in a semi-gloss veneer, and the joinery shop sprays its own clear coat.

Each one is fine on its own. Side by side, they read as four products. The coating changes how much light comes back, the brushing changes how the grain feels, and the tone drifts between batches, and between solid boards and thin veneers.

Fixing it on site means staining and recoating in a building that's meant to be finished. It rarely works, and it's never quick.

Four suppliers and four finishes, or one set in one finish

Four suppliers, four finishes, brought to one finish specificationOn a typical fit-out the floor, wall panelling, doors and joinery come from four suppliers, each with a different coating, gloss and brushing. Kindred carries the same species, brushing and gloss across every surface, prefinished at the mill.TYPICAL FIT-OUT · FOUR SUPPLIERSKINDRED · CONSIDERED AND COMPLEMENTARYFloorSupplier A · hardwax oil, matt, wire-brushedWall panellingSupplier B · stained, satin lacquerDoorsSupplier C · walnut veneer, semi-glossJoinerySupplier D · clear lacquer, gloss, smoothKINDREDFinishspecificationSpecies · brushing · gloss · toneFloorSame species, brushing and glossWall panellingSame species, brushing and glossDoorsSame species, brushing and glossJoinerySame species, brushing and glossFour suppliers with different coatings, gloss and brushing, brought to one Kindred finish specificationTYPICAL FIT-OUTFloorOiledPanellingSatinDoorsSemi-glossJoineryGlossKINDREDFinish specificationSpecies · brushing · gloss · toneFloorSame finishPanellingSame finishDoorsSame finishJoinerySame finishKINDRED · PREFINISHED AT THE MILL

What we keep the same

Brushed grey-brown oak sample with open grain, beside a woven metal mesh

Species

The timber and its grade

Every surface starts from the same species, graded to the same brief: how many knots, how much colour variation, which edge. It stops a rustic floor ending up beside a clean veneer.

Light and dark brushed oak samples laid over an oak floor, with a woven fabric swatch

Colour tone

Colour and undertone

Oak drifts warm or cool from batch to batch, and stain takes differently on a solid board than on a thin veneer. We set the tone from a master sample and measure every batch against it with a colour meter.

Close-up of deeply brushed grey oak beside a strip of brown velvet

Texture

Brushing and surface feel

Brushing takes out the soft grain and leaves the hard grain standing. A floorboard can take a deep brush, but a 0.6 mm veneer can't, so where they sit together we brush both to a depth the veneer can hold.

Dark smoked oak with a stone sample and a metal finish disc

Finish and gloss

How much light the surface returns

A matt floor beside a satin door reads as two products, even in the same colour. Floor finishes and furniture lacquers are different chemistry, so we set the gloss level for both and check it with a gloss meter.

Complementary, not identical

One finish doesn't mean one colour. A dark herringbone floor can sit under pale panelling and still belong, because the species, brushing, gloss and coating are shared.

We choose the tones with your designer so they work together, then hold everything else constant. At Roki Collection in Queenstown, the floors come in two tones from one collection. At The Foundation, herringbone and wide plank share one oak collection.

Prefinished at the mill

Every surface arrives finished. Nothing is stained, oiled or coated on site, so what you approve as a sample is what's installed.

Our standard is an extra matt lacquer, the finish our team has specified on hotel, lodge and residential projects for years through Forté, our sister company. It means one coating and one care guide for the whole building. Our guide to hardwax oil or lacquer explains why mixing coatings causes most of the trouble.

What you get in writing

  • Finish specification

    A document for the project listing species, grade, tone reference, gloss level, brushing and edge detail for each product.

  • Master samples

    Signed sample sets, kept at each mill and with you. Every batch is checked against them.

  • Batch records

    Colour, gloss and moisture readings for every batch, sent to you before it ships.

Questions

Can you match our designer's existing specification?

Yes. Send the specification and samples. We match species, grade, size, colour tone, texture and gloss, then make master samples for you to sign off.

Will the floor and wall panels look identical?

They'll look like they belong together. A solid oak floorboard and a 0.6 mm veneer take stain and brushing differently, so we adjust each product until the tone, texture and gloss read as one family. The signed master samples are the reference for every batch.

Which surfaces can share the finish?

Floors, wall and ceiling panelling, doors and frames, stairs, beams, skirtings and architraves, and joinery such as vanities, wardrobes and reception desks.

How do later stages and refurbishments stay consistent?

Master samples stay at each mill, and every batch is checked against them for colour, gloss and moisture. Later stages and refurbishment stock are made to the same samples.

Bring your finish schedule

Send the finish schedule or a few samples. We'll show you how each surface can carry the same finish.

Send your schedule

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