I would use walnut. The custom built staircase in our home, though it is not my taste, is done in golden oak and walnut and it is really striking.

idrive65, Adorable model, what is your Dogs name and breed? Do you have to keep the toenails trimmed, how do you keep them short? We have two miniature poodles and a Collie and are concerned about adding a hardwood floor to the Kitchen. Even though we think that it will look great with the white cabinets and be much more comfortable than our hard tile floor! Is this White Oak barn wood a hard or soft wood? Your floors are beautiful, where did you find these and are they expensive? We live in the Mid-west, are these rare? Thank you for sharing! roseofblue Aw thanks. The pup is supposedly pure Labrador retriever, but we got him third hand and he's a mighty skinny specimen for a lab. I don't trim his nails as often as I should because he hates it, I do it badly, and twice I've cut him (ouch!) so he runs and hides when those clippers come out. I may try the dremel route mentioned upthread. White oak is a hardwood but not as hard as many imported species, of which there are quite a few between Hickory and the one imported that I listed, Jatoba. (Ipe, used for decking, is 3684 and considered fireproof!) Upstairs we mixed white with red oak and antique chestnut. In one area where dh wheeled on office chair back and forth (!) you can see wear on the chestnut, a little on the red oak, and none on the white oak boards. According the janka scale: White pine: 420 So. yellow pine: 690-870 Cherry: 950 Red Oak: 1290 White Oak: 1360 Hard Maple: 1450 Hickory: 1820 Jatoba (aka "Braz. Cherry") 2350 I agree with all who say the finish matters. The aluminum oxide finishes on pre-finished floors is very durable. Others have site finished with waterlox which is easily touched up as needed, you can search for photos of ccoombs floors for photos of beautiful waterloxed oak floors. My dh owns an flooring company that sells only antique remilled products so he made the floors for us. We actually kept a lot of boards that might be culled for a customer because I wanted a "busy" floor. Thankfully it matches the dog hair and hides the scratches very well!

I still think that a square coffee table is appropriate [Contemporary Family Room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-family-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_720~s_2103) by Austin General Contractors Greenbelt Homes I've been looking at some photos this evening, and it seems the vast majority don't put any end table on the side that has no arm, but I found a couple that had round tables set off to the back a bit, and this very interesting set up [Contemporary Living Room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-living-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_718~s_2103) by Miami Interior Designers & Decorators Nicole White Designs Inc This seems to be typical. [Contemporary Family Room[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/contemporary-family-room-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_720~s_2103) by Bellevue Interior Designers & Decorators Pilar Calleja - Draw The Line Design Would love to see photos of your loft as you get it put together.

or is it the woven look you like? I found these by googling "wicker table tray top" and going down the rabbit hole a little: