I, too, have natural stained red oak floors. Beautiful, aren't they!! We replaced all of the woodwork before we took up the carpeting and discovered the floors. I believe the stain we used was Wood-Kote Gelled Wood Stain, Fruitwood 206-3. It does blend very well for us, even though at the time we were not trying to do so. Be aware that all "fruitwoods" are not created equal. Some are very light, some very, very red. This particular one was "just right". Also, white pine is a very soft wood. Use the Minwax pre-stain conditioner before staining. It helps even out the pores of the wood so stain goes on more evenly. The white pine will darken over time, so be aware of that when choosing a stain. Personally, I like the stain with an oil-based poly over it. I have never been a fan of the one-step stain and poly mix. I have tried it and have never liked the results. I have used Provincial. It is a very dark stain. You will need to try various shades - and on the wood you are going to use, back side. All woods stain differently.

mclarke, Thank you for the suggestions. I think SW Creamy may be toosimilar to Dover White, as they are really almost a match, but I'll check out SW Muslin. Thanks!

Ask your floor sander if he's ever done water popping. A thin coat of water is applied to the freshly sanded wood and allowed to dry before staining. It makes the harder grain darker, more like the deeper soft grain. We then apply three coats of finish rather than two, to allow the finish to be sanded enough to remove the fuzziness the water popping produces. When we're using oil poly, we sometimes add up to 8 ounces of stain to the first or second coat of polyurethane (to make the floor darker, more uniform, or adjust the color*), buff with a maroon pad, apply the second coat, buff with a 180 screen, then a maroon pad, then apply the final coat. When applying a tinted coat, one must take care to apply evenly without drips or puddles. We have added stain to to the first and second coat in some instances. *You can either add the same stain to the poly or a different color to alter the tone. For instance if you stain with Special Walnut and want to lessen the red, you can use a few ounces of Ebony in the poly. Before doing this it's important to make a sample to determine the process. You can't accurately gauge color on a stained floor until a coat of finish is applied. Unless someone has a lot experience with this, it's best to proceed cautiously. We mostly use DuraSeal stains and oil-modified polyurethane from Lenmar and have had no problems with compatibility or adhesion using this process. We often use gloss or semi-gloss for the under coats and satin for the topcoat. Shinier oil poly has less flatting agent so using the shinier finish should increase durability. The satin topcoat hides wear, scuffs and scratches better.

Agreed with the above. For fairly priced change. I’d paint the risers and balusters white. If you want to up the game a drop you can add a runner And for the wrought iron- you will have to do a lot of it. Also at the top of the stairs by the railing in the hallway. So it’s a big project. It is expensive. Not so necessary. But it would look nice :)