I matched 1929 oak with new in my last house. I refinished the old stuff at the same time, so that helped. The floor guys laced the new into the old in the doorway where the new and old met end-to-end and it met perfectly in the doorway where it went side-to-side. The new and old floors were stained and finished together. I guess that doesn't really count as matching, does it? I cheated.

A good wood floor guy can do just about anything. Have someone come in and give you a quote!

We recently took out the wall between our kitchen and dining room. The kitchen had existing hardwood, the dining room had carpeting. Our flooring guy did an amazing job weaving into the existing hardwood and then refinishing everything. No stain, just 4 coats of poly. It came out beautifully.

Thanks!

So it sounds like I may be able to do this!

Um, how did you get a good floor guy? Through your GC or elsewhere?

In my project I am having to weave in hardwoods from 3 rooms and a hallway. Here is how they weave it in, they will then sand it and stain to match existing areas that are connected. This is where we took a wall down.You can see the old and then the new floor.

My GC provided a "good floor guy". I wouldn't really know how to find one, now that you mention it.

Try going into a hardwood supply shop (not a showroom, but a place that sells to the floor guys). They usually have a few cards lying around and that is a good place to start.

Lumber Liquidators always have a list of installers.

If you're in the DC/VA/MD area, I know a great floor guy.

We did it, had to put matching white oak planks in the new kitchen and foyer to match the rest of the existing 40 year old planks in the house. Turned out beautifully. Had everything refinished at the same time as well.

We did it and it looks great. Before the cabinets and island went in, if you stood in the corner of the DR (which we converted to the LR post-reno) and looked across the two rooms, you could barely tell that the new floor was ever-so-slightly lighter and less yellow than the older floor, but that was only because we were looking so closely (and because I have a good eye for that sort of detail). It really was barely detectable. Once the cabs and furniture went it, covering sections of the floor space, it was (is) even harder to tell.

Thanks so much! I'm in NJ so I'll check out the Builder's General supply store and ask them for recommendations. I can't move forward until I get this flooring issue worked out and budgeted.

I love this forum!

YES!!

I just got home after being away for 4 days while my DH put the finish on the oak flooring he'd patched into the old stuff. (We knocked down a wall and the original kitchen space had linoleum, we needed to match the existing 1956 red oak that had been refinished by the P.O. 2 years ago.)

I was really worried it wouldn't match, but it's PERFECT. DH used to work for a wood flooring company so he knew not to stain it... we simply used a natural untinted finish like the rest of the floor has. I cannot believe how good it looks!! It's ever-so-slightly glossier than the older finish, but he says he is going to lightly buff the "seam" to blend it.

It's much better than I expected! We spent about $3/sf on the wood, DIY labor, and I don't know how much on the finish.

My boss did that in his kitchen and I could not tell that the kitchen was new wood and the living room was 1940's.

Yes, we just knocked down the wall between the kitchen and dining room and put in new oak floors in the kitchen that were "weaved" into the existing hardwood in the dr. Originally, I was ok with a strip across where the old dining room stopped and the kitchen began, but the line would have been in a weird place, so contractor had the floor match. My original floors were not stained, and the new floors were not either - the floor guy just sanded eveything to bare wood, then sealed/urethaned. We just got back into the house today.

Here is a picture of the transition, before and after refinishing: