Modernising the interior of a boat

[yachtorion]

I've done the stripping out on my horizon and I'm beginning the work of re-fitting the interior. I've discovered paint and vinyl makes a boat look a lot better.. but I'm wondering about modernising the interior look. It's an 80s boat and I'd like to bring it up to date a little.

Simple things... will painted wood look better than textured vinyl?
What colours are more modern (the old blue has already gone but I'm not sure I'm happy with what I've coated it with)?
Some of the wood is a little manky - does painted wood look good?

Anyone got an experience of this? What worked for you?

 

[30boat]

What looks really good is white bulkheads with dark wood trimming.It can look very modern despite being traditional and will make for a very airy interior.
A before and after from my own boat.
The bulkheads weren't painted but lined with two pack painted thin plywood.

 

[planteater]

I used van lining carpet to update the interior of my 80's boat. Really easy to fit, fairly cheap and looks great. I also bought a large offcut of cherry veneer from ebay and used that to cover any manky wood.

I spent around £100 on the carpet, £30 on the veneer and another £15 on paint. Unfortunately I don't have any 'after' pictures but I'm delighted with the results.

 

[JumbleDuck]

What looks really good is white bulkheads with dark wood trimming.It can look very modern despite being traditional and will make for a very airy interior.
A before and after from my own boat.

Lovely job. That look was one of the things which attracted me to my current boat - I think of it as an American style, and she was designed by an American ...

 

[Colin Regs]

30boat, how did you fix the sheeting to the existing furniture?

 

[30boat]

30boat, how did you fix the sheeting to the existing furniture?

I used tiny screws around the edges that are hidden by the trim.The panels that take the lockers are painted but they are not original so I thought it wouldn't matter to paint them.