1) flooring is going in after cabinets, to preserve the floating aspect of a floating floor. Cabinets and appliances are going on top of 1/2" plywood; in the case of the stove (where you can see under it) we've put in a piece of cork that isn't tied into the main floor. 2) I went with a craigslist special. A general contractor had redone a large yoga studio, and was trying to get rid of their overage- 6 unopened Boxes. The cork came from Lumber Liquidators -- Lisbon Van Gogh. The boards seem to be about the same quality of the various styles I looked at in local flooring shops (APC, Wicanders, US Floors). The yoga studio has had it down for nearly a year now, with no signs of problems. 3) no matter what you go with, get samples, take them home. There is no way to evaluate the color or design of a cork floor without putting it in the space and touching it. Decent flooring places will let you take their samples home. Of course, a lot of places aren't interested in 80sf jobs... I tried for months to get a quote from several of them, and was about to go with a cheap homedepot floor when 120sf showed up on craigslist.

We also replaced some carpet and had to blend in with the existing red oak. Our hardwood company ripped out some of the existing floor and found a lot number and used that to order identical hardwood stock. And identical they are. Now, I am not sure stock going back to '67 will work the same. But it may be worthwhile to ask about this kind of investigation. The company we went to specialized in restoration work so perhaps they have more of a skill in this respect. But it took the guy all of 30 minutes to find the stock number...

UPDATE: I've just met with my GC and the lead floor guy (owner). The lead floor guy admits the patches were not what he directed, but his guys thought they were being helpful by patching. Both GC and floor guy agree the patches are visible. They said there are 3 possible courses: 1.) Try to touch up the patches to get a better match of the sheen. Risk is that it compounds the existing problem that they don't fully blend in with the rest. The floor guy also noted that each time they sand a piece, the grain on the wood is affected/sanded down, so that is not ideal. 2.) Let the patches go for now. The floor guy said in his experience, the finish actually gets a bit shinier over time -- and it's possible the patches would shine up a bit to better blend with the rest of the floors. My GC offered that if I go with this option, we could hold out $$$ and if in 6 months or so, I still see the patches, they would come back and fix (either patch and/or re-coat the whole area). Does anyone have thoughts on this idea that the floors will gain in shine over time? Obvious downside to this is that it's a bigger hassle to move everything out in 6 months, if that becomes necessary. Also a bummer (for me) to not start out with a fresh floor as I would have expected from this major addition. 3.) Go ahead and re-coat the affected rooms now. Plus is this gets done and over with, fresh start and no need to move things later. Downside to this, in addition to more time for the floor guys, is always the chance that new issues are introduced in the re-coat. I know it shouldn't be the case but I guess it's always possible. Thoughts welcome!

Thank you, jennifw. I think you are right. Just one point of clarification: as I understand it, there is re-sanding vs. re-buffing -- re-buffing being just dealing with the layers of finish vs. going all the way down to the wood with sanding. My sense (and hope) is that re-buffing and re-coating (as opposed to going all the way to re-sanding and re-coating) could do the trick. Would that be your thought as well? Thank you! I've also posted this in a couple other spots (can't remember which even at this point) and have gotten some good feedback there too. Thanks again!