kats - Yes, our taste does sound similar. And I'll bet in order of priorities, your hairy family member ranks even higher than your beautiful floor! Our white oak floor isn't stained, but does have a clear finish on it. We were pretty set on white oak with 'character,' but the machine and hand-scraped wasn't our cup of tea either. We drove many miles (we're hours from the closest big city) to see samples since the exact color really mattered to us. As you know, wood floors next to unpainted wood kitchen cabinets means extra care to ensure the two woods work well side-by-side! We wanted as wide a board as we could find, but the wood flooring we liked best was only available in a 4-inch wide board. We were a bit worried, but once installed, we liked it just fine. We've been in our house exactly one year now and the wood floor is holding up well and is easy to maintain (just vacuum and Bona Kemi). We had one standing liquid situation about six months ago (a very, very sick dog). I just knew we'd have to replace a couple boards because they initially looked stained. However, after cleaning up the area, I generously covered it with talcum powder which I left there for several days, and now you can't even tell where the problem was. (Caveat: I don't know if this was actually the right thing to do, but it was all I could think of and it seems to have worked.) If we ever need to replace our floor, I'd certainly look into Provenze though. Your floor is gorgeous and I love its 'mood.' Here's a picture of our family room floor (complete with some of those south-facing windows!). The same white oak flooring is in all our downstairs rooms except bathrooms and utility areas. By the way, that fireplace is a wood-burning fireplace (Fireplace Xtrordinaire) and the floor has had to endure a few random sparks from it too, but it hasn't been a problem.

Terry I think you answered your ? "I don't know if they will be right for my home" I love hw flooring - imo - beautiful flooring does not need to say much else other than to be - looking beautiful. Think of the expanse (# sq Ft) your flooring takes up in your home. High gloss is a bit overkill imo - it screams look at me - taking away the beauty of the room as a whole. Not to mention it shows dust bunnies, scratches, higher maintenance High gloss (need sunglasses to enter;) http://www.northernriverstimber.com.au/images/High%20Gloss.jpg http://www.resourceconservationgroup.com/files/Reclaimed_Douglas_Fir-Flooring_Red_Mahogany_Stain_High-Gloss_Finish.jpg Satin finish http://www.electrical-res.com/EX/10-17-01/Satin-Finish.240203.jpg http://www.truehardwoods.com/i/LM%20FLOORING/Gevaldo_Brazilian_Cherry.jpg Good luck

Holly-Kay, When you have time, we would love to see pictures. I have seen pictures of Sapele before it darkened and after it darkened and truly is a beautiful floor that is very stable, neutral and gorgeous. I know you will be happy. I also get nervous because a sample always looks different when the whole floor is done. The same with paint. A little bit on the wall is scary but when all the wall is done, it is amazing how different it looks. Paint also picks up colors in the room and lighting so it looks different in each room. What width did you go with? I may look at Sapele also for my new floors when I remove the damaged wood floors from my flood in March 2013. Suzannesl, I love your floors and I love your toy chest. The Sapele sure looks like Mahogany. KKSMama, any pictures of your floors as now I am thinking of looking at Sapele also but I have to find out who sells it in the engineered format as I have a slab floor due to the wetlands I live in.

Decluttering before redecorating/remodeling is a good motto. Your kitchen is warm looking but all the stuff on the countertops is unappealing. I'm confused as to why decluttering is more of a challenge than renovating the kitchen, a massive expense consuming months of family time! If necessary, hire an organizer to do declutter for you--money well spent. This will give you a fresh eye to see how attractive your kitchen actually is and how to make the most of it before you spend a fortune in money and time to gut it. When you've gotten rid of duplicates of things, then consider putting in Rev-a-Shelves in some of the lower cabinets to increase functional space. Get carousels for upper cabinets. The countertops are beautiful and go well with the cabinets. Add some under cabinet lights if you don't already have them. Consider adding a backsplash of rippled subway tile in a warm cream color that harmonizes with the countertops. This will lighten the kitchen hugely along with undercabinet lighting like this kitchen with dark countertops creamy backsplash and wall color: Since you have adjoining spaces opening up near the kitchen, consider painting all the walls throughout a warm white that you pull from the background of your countertops. This will give you a feeling of flow and lightness--no need to repaint the cabinets. You have some beautiful wood floors in your house. Refinish them in a stain that goes with your cabinets so everything flows from room to room. Yes, the kitchen floor tile isn't an ideal choice with your warm cabinets. Once you declutter, get an attractive indoor-outdoor rug for now with golden tones and colors. As for gray floors, why? You have warm, golden floors elsewhere. If you're changing out the kitchen floors down the road, then find a floor tile that harmonizes with the wood floors you will have elsewhere.