After going through this website checking out a bunch of painted minis I decided to pick the lighter colors for the wood and the felt so the minis show better, as the majority of the painted minis I am seeing are predominately dark. The only mini that would have an advantage to the brown felt and darker stain would be the skeletons. That and this option helps light up the inside. Also once all the slats are put in for keeping the minis separated the entire inside would most likely be overly brown. So for contrast reasons I chose the lighter colors.