Back in May I shared a list of all the projects we wanted to have done before moving into our new house. At the top of that list?–replace all the flooring with stain in place white oak. The main level was wall-to-wall Brazilian cherry (the reddest of reds), and upstairs was all carpeted that needed replaced anyhow. To avoid living amongst contractors and sawdust indefinitely, we hired contractors to tackle that beast before moving in and it’s been the greatest gift to have such a clean slate right off the bat.

Getting to this point has come with its own set of hiccups, just like most projects amiright? In this blog post I shared all my inspiration and thoughts about selecting a stain for the floors. I envisioned a rich, medium, classic wood-tone–something that felt timeless and true to the house’s colonial style. Well, there was a bit of miscommunication with the color of stain we wanted, and how many samples we wanted to see. We went back and forth a few times until we finally landed on these two stain options.

I had selected what I thought was going to be the color of our floors (the bottom one above), but when I was shooting this campaign for spoonflower, everything changed. I brought all of my fabric and wallpaper swatches into the new house to start dreaming up a palette, imagining layers of textures and patterns — steeped in tradition. But next to all of these swatches, the “winner” was pulling too… red. And the grain was popping too much. I was sure it was THE ONE, but it was a good reminder to slow down and, pull in some patterns and color palettes you love before pulling the trigger.

As soon as I laid a few samples on the other floor color, everything felt really harmonious.

Honestly I couldn’t be happier with where we landed. I feel like these floors are timeless, yet effortless. The medium-light wood tone is striking all the right chords with warm undertones that don’t read too red or too yellow. And not gray at all, but definitely neutral. And the slightly smaller (than the modern cottage) 5¾-inch engineered white oak floor feels like it’s just always been this way.

Pulling in those fabric and wallpaper samples reminded me that I don’t want the floors to be the show-stopper in this house. I want the hardwood to be the Best Supporting Actor to all of the traditional, colonial design elements we’re leaning into in this house. I didn’t want them to stand out and distract from the patterns and textures that make my heart sing.

The floors are looking quite different than they do in these photos because they’re now holding our furniture and boxes (both empty and yet-to-be unpacked) and it’s really nice to see our floors already doing so well in their “Supporting Actor” role.

For those who will ask, our contractor used the Duraseal Weathered Oak Quick Coat Stain (2 coats!), finished with Bona Traffic HD Satin. Deciding on a satin finish vs. a matte finish is definitely contributing to these floors looking like they’ve always been here–the goal all along.

Still to come–the entryway herringbone flooring has yet to be installed, as well as the grand staircase in the entry. Peek our staircase inspo here and get ready for what’s to come.