I've done jobs with different oil products but used the Rubio only twice. One turned out perfect. It was a mix of White and Pure on rift sawn White Oak. The owner insisted on using a green finish with no solvents and I warned her it was fine except for potential issues with dog accidents. You can probably guess what happened. The second was Super White that we water popped. It ended up with some cloudy areas which points out issues with finishing technique. The floor needs to be sanded perfectly and scrupulously cleaned before oil application, and the finish needs to be removed completely or it will be cloudy. I just finished a natural color job with WOCA. It turned out nice in the end but took a bit of work. We washed the freshly sanded floor with the Wood Cleaner. The effect of the water made the floor look less smooth than desired. We tried extra coats, abraded with an abrasive nylon pad then re-oiled to the same end. Then we re-screened the floor, applied two more coats and it looks great. I think I'd forgo the cleaning step in the future. I like the idea of the Rubio and even have enough material in stock to do my own floor however I like the ease of maintenance and relative simplicity of the WOCA product line. The Rubio Soap is crazy expensive IMO. Coloring my opinion is that my local Rubio distributor is somewhat pathetic. I found a distributor in GA that carries WOCA and Rubio so that will at least put that issue to rest and give me a resource with expertise to draw on. I like the Rubio Smoke, Fumed and Precolor products for the breadth of unique looks it can achieve when used with their products. The bad? It requires more routine maintenance than poly. It's more susceptible to minor spills and stains. You are unlikely to find maintenance product for sale locally, so stock up. I have two older parquet floors in a wood that's no longer available. I plan on sanding it, wire brushing it, then applying a mix of White and Super White with the idea that the floor will go from it's current dark mahogany look, to a coffee with cream color with white in the deeper grain. I don't know that I'd use it in my own kitchen even though I can pay my own workers to change it fairly effortlessly. I am something of a skeptic when reading the claims of the wonders of the new generation of oil finishes, even though I'd like them to be true.

Thanks to all for your comments! No going back on the natural cherry cabinets (they were just installed) so looks like I will have to address any issues with the finish we use on the red oak floors. I think my problem is that I really hate to put a stain on beautiful hardwood but, as you both note, a contrast is considered best. Guess I was just hoping against hope that the cherry will darken enough so that I would still have a contrast. An option suggested by my kitchen designer is to go with a Provincial stain on the floors. I really value her advice... just resisting staining that wood! :-)

what forums would you like to add to your OP next time you post? say "Conversations" wouldn't appear in your list..one has to go there, open a thread there, then add another forum (say this one) before posting Other forums should be listed as options for you to add (I usually choose patterns like this..first, I fall in love..then,I make sure I am in love indeed-which would be me constantly looking at the pattern/pallette, or having it on my mind for a long enough time(the time can vary..if it's a throw pillow I alot less time to it than whether it's something big and expensiive)..then I try to analyze whether my love will work with what a house would love too..usually I'm able to sneak it in..if no, I let the house win. Then there's budget. That's how I don't have a rug..)) Well, not a big, important one. I find that the more colors one has-the easier is it to incorporate one more. But it demands certain preferences of course..and minding things like fresh, bright, clean colors vs more muted versions, or cooler temperature colors vs warmer vesrions ..and repetition, which can come in many subtle forms. Depends on a person..the amount of colors they're comfortable with in their houses. I don't like going by the strict rules here..I mean it's important to read what others think and to know it, because then it gives one more confidence to break it if he's so inclined. He knows his "why" better so to say. It takes some time to build this confidence. Add pictures..recently became a bit of an arduous process as pictures, because of this site's glitches, often don't upload in the opening post..but usually one can upload them in the comment section.

Thank you so much! I appreciate the expert advice. I'm definitely not an expert! I think I used the wrong term earlier - when I said 'raw'. What I meant is that that ideally the colour looks like natural wood, as close to white oak as possible - vs. something that turns pink, yellow or orange. We do want some shine, and are leaning toward a satin finish. So, in that case, would you still recommend Loba invisible? Concerned about durability, as we don't want to be fretting about the floors. These floors are rather yellow, which is why I asked about the UV blocker or stain. Edited to add: we also have the option of delaying this work and waiting until someone that can do both Bona and Loba is available. So, if Bona might be a better option, that's something we can consider. Quite possible I'm overthinking this ;)