California classic w/ tons of light — best floor finish?
Good problem to have, we’re under contract with our dream home in Napa... some dated details to restore over time but great bones, incredible landscaping and protected view. My initial design impulse is “California eclectic” with a mix of craftsman, mid-century and modern elements.
The entire main level (kitchen, living, dining and master bed) floors haven’t been redone in 20+ years and will have to be refinished before we move in, and I can’t make many other choices before I settle on floor color/finish. Pretty sold on matte finish but paralyzed by the choices of color. There is so much light I feel like I can go fairly dark, but we have dogs so I don’t want something that shows every speck. I’d love to bring out more of the grain and variation in planks but don’t want to go “full rustic.”
I love the kitchen cabinets so need to balance them (don’t think anything w grey tones will work). All other wood cabinetry and trim in the house is dated and on my list for updating. I do have a designer I work with but would love thoughts from this group. (These are staging photos, obviously, and I will test a few colors.) Thanks!
Comments (12)
Jennifer Hogan
4 years agoRelated Discussions
Finished Kitchen! Creamy French Classic
Comments (53)Thanks everyone! Here is one of the layouts, it may be hard to see. The sink cabinet bump out is 3 inches (legs are three inches also). The sink bumps out an additional 1 inch. From the sink cabinet to the island is 39 inches. So in other spots that aisle is 42 inches. The other side of the island has a 49 inch aisle. Originally the plans showed the 49 inch side 1.5 inches wider. Once they laid out the island I had major misgivings and I made them move the plumbing over 1.5 inches towards the sink line of cabinets- bc the 47.5 inch aisle seemed way too narrow with the door there and the fact its a major walk through. I am happy with the dimensions now. Even with my husband and 2 small kids (3rd due soon!) milling around in the kitchen it doesn't feel cramped. It feels much bigger than our old kitchen, very functional. I did 39 inch uppers and then 4 or 5 inches of crown molding. I also have 8 foot ceilings. 36 is pretty short, we had that before with like 9-12 inch soffits. As for the grout, I was stressed over that like everything else and did briefly considering going with a darker contrasting color- it might not look as bad as you think. I often hate things at first, even when I carefully plan them! The Miracle 511 sealer was well recommended and we havent had any trouble with it. If you still dont like your grout, I have heard of grout lighteners. When I did my grout, I did some test patches with broken tiles before the grouters came and that is how I decided on a color. I think the grout was dry in a day or two- yours sounds like its taking a long time to dry, but I am not an expert. I had unsanded grout I think....See MoreFinished Finished! Rancher Remodel, dark to light! (tons pix)
Comments (150)Jam: The Lugano floor by DuChateau was wonderful! It hid dents and dog scratches and the color was exactly what I loved...and it was a great price! If you are fine without sand-in-place flooring (expensive!), then you should go ahead with this flooring. I am definitely going to have exactly the same brand/color when we re-do our new house in April. It got raves from relatives and friends, and while that certainly wouldn't be my deciding factor whether people thought it was beautiful, the fact that it was so darned great for our common area IS the most important thing. The variation in color didn't bother me...as you saw from the pictures, once installed they blended pretty well. Admittedly I did "throw out" three boards that were too dark. During install the workers put one in and immediately I saw it and said, "Not that one!". The rest were all good. I did find another oak flooring that came close to the color I wanted--it was a white oak with an oil finish but was more than twice the price. Since I had a 42 x 22 ft room, that added up pretty quickly and I opted against it. I think it was a custom stain too. They also needed 3x the amount of time to install since it was not engineered, but full wood. I can look back in my files and see what the name of that company was if you are interested. We didn't have the budget, but you might....See MoreModern California Bungalow Kitchen: Finally finished!
Comments (55)I had to come out of lurkdom on this forum to comment on your new kitchen! I looked twice to be certain this was the NEW kitchen because it so perfectly suits the age and style of your home that I thought it might be the original kitchen. Love the stove, lighting, eating area for humans and pets, the shoe rack, and the warmth and evidence of family living that happens in this room. You've achieved a timeless kitchen which is marvelously integrated with your bungalow....See MoreOur almost finished kitchen (w/ tile countertops!)....
Comments (47)Christine R we actually just recently did away with the tile. The tile held up just fine and would have easily lasted us another 10 years + but I was ready to do away with the grout lines. Also, to be perfectly honest the white shows EVERYTHING! It was a good "budget friendly" alternative until we could do granite. I am attaching a pic of our kitchen...7 years later :)...See More
SJ McCarthy
4 years agoboernegal
4 years agoK Laurence
4 years ago
PROSabrina Alfin Interiors
4 years agoKeep them as is. I do agree there's a bit too much wood in the kitchen, so if there is a natural stopping point between the kitchen and the next room, I'd consider putting in charcoal slate floors (or a faux slate in porcelain) just in there. Tile floors will be super durable and hold up to dogs, too.
This is a photo of a more modern kitchen, but you can see how nice the contrast is between the natural wood base cabinets and the slate flooring:
Kitchen with a penquin · More InfoJay Porter
4 years ago- PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
4 years ago Jay Porter
4 years agoIt took me a while but I finally have “after” pics on the floors and the space as a whole. We went with the Bona product and have been very happy... though our floor guys had a hell of a time getting the old stain off as it was prefinished white oak.
We still have a number of projects (top of the list is getting chandeliers up in the living and dining room!) but we’re really happy with the progress so far. The natural floors were definitely the way to go, so thanks to the community for the advice!
groveraxle
4 years ago
Frederic
4 years agoWe have bona poly with a clear topcoat, the white oak are beautiful just as is, 1/3 of our house was red oak when we decided to do the rest and refinish, bona makes an amazing product, besides swiffering we don’t do anything else.
groveraxle