I recently retired and have decided to do some work on the inside of
our home. (I have more time than money) My projects a

1. Remove existing base moulding

2. Repaint the interior, adding some color

3. Remove existing ceramic tile and replace with travertine (bathrooms
and laundry)

4. Add crown moulding throughout the house

5. Add 5 1/4" base moulding throughout.

6. Refinish and stain the hardwood floors. (wood is in all rooms
except bathrooms and laundry).

One problem I have run into already is that the base moulding was
installed before the wood floor. It currently has 3/4" stained shoe
moulding. I don't like the look of it at all. By the time they added
the wood floor and shoe moulding to the 2 1/4 base, you can only see
about 1" of the white base. That is why I went with the 5 1/4" base.
I think the rooms will look good with the colored walls and the taller
white trim. Since the wood floor was added after the moulding I have
to use some type of shoe moulding or quarter round to hide the gap.

My questions a

Will it look better with the 1/4 round or shoe moulding? What size?

Should I paint it to match the base or stain it to match the floor? (I
want it to blend in as best possible.

I'm still thinking about the sequence above. Any suggestions are
welcome.

P.S. Don't tell me to go back to work. I love this stuff.