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Flooring Home Decorating Design Dilemma

Hardwood floors - Stain color help!

2 years ago

Hi everyone,

We’re trying to pick a stain color for our hardwoods. Currently the house has very dark hardwoods and we’d love to lighten them for a more modern feel AND to help open up the rooms. There’s not a lot of natural light in the living room and lighter floors could really help.

I’m attaching our inspiration photos, as well as the stain samples I’ve done on our floor and what our floor looks like currently.

Does anyone know a stain that would get us close yo our inspiration pictures?

I’ve tried 4 different minwax stains:

Pickled oak (water based): Thought this would be my favorite, but it looks very unfinished to me

Weathered oak: like it the most of all 4, but still feels outdated and a little too grey

Silvered grey: too yellow

Natural: too red

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Comments (7)

Kate Day
Original Author
2 years ago
Thanks in advance for any advice you might be able to offer!
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Kate Day
Original Author
2 years ago
It’s also worth nothing that the pickled oak looks MUCH better in photos than in real life
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I wouldn’t recommend gray flooring of any type, especially hardwood. The gray flooring trend has passed. I don’t know what your floors look like now, but they are probably more timeless than the samples you show above. Also, those stains say “shown on white oak.” Do you have white oak? Sounds like you may have red oak - that’s most likely - although Brazilian cherry is very red also. Think about your home’s color palette and the style you’re going for. In general, a wood floor that looks like natural wood is timeless and works with just about any decor. Gray looks unnatural and will make it more difficult to decorate around. If your refinisher uses Bona, you can try Bona Red Out to help reduce the reds and get a look that is closer to white oak.
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houssaon
2 years ago
I like natural the best. Then Weathered Oak. I would have said Pickled first but you don't like that sample.
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shirlpp
2 years ago
When you put the polyurethane on the pickled oak, does it still look unfinished?
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kempek01
2 years ago
What do you get with no stain, just poly? Would you like that??
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jck910
2 years ago
As kempek01 suggests no stain just poly
Jennifer Hogan
2 years ago
You don't want to pick the floor color in isolation. It has to work with the elements you are not going to change.

Are you keeping the wood beams? Are you keeping the exposed brick? Are you planning on painting?

Do you already own furniture that you will be using long term or will you be buying new in the next few years?

I suggest using some online or phone apps where you can upload the picture of the room and change flooring materials - test different looks in your room and decide what color you are aiming for.

I think that the wood beams and red brick make your space unique and wonderful, so I would use that to plan the rest of the space (flooring stain, paint colors, furnishings), but you need to decide what you love and how to make it work in your home.
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