Hi, Happy Mother's Day!

when we redid our floors, I mixed two stains together to get a look like they had been natural years ago, but had mellowed with age. We have antiques, too, and I wanted the floors to look like a Paris apartment. I used a natural stain and mixed it 2/3 natural to 1/3 a half and half solution of a golden color mixed with an ashy color. They turned out exactly as I wanted! here's a picture of it close up:

{{!gwi}}

Whatever color you choose, if you decide to stain the floors, will look completely different on pine and oak floors. We have both and were shown finished samples of the same stain on both woods and were surprised at the difference. Just make sure you know what kind of wood you have before you pick the color.

We have floors stained in a medium fruitwood color and I like the look. However, where we live (Georgia) it is more fashionable to stain the floors a dark wenge or brown. I hardly ever see a new home with natural floors any more, but perhaps that's regional.

I will add my two cents: just changed from Natural Oak to a darker Provincial Stain. Darker is much prettier on the oak.. the grain is meant to be dark!! (Not sure about pine.)

BUT, and it's a big one.. natural is much more forgiving.. hides dust, scratches, etc..

I love the look of the darker oak, but it is a higher maintenance finish.. the microfiber dustmop is my best friend.
Here is a link to my two colors:

Here is a link that might be useful: Pictures of Natural vs. Provincial Stain

Our floors were white oak, which is one reason we wanted them lighter. and that's another thing to take into account, as kwli pointed out. you can have red oak, white oak and different grades of pine, too. you'll have to do some samples on the floor and see which one works best.

Darker is not necessarily prettier on oak. It depends on the style you are going for. For example, we live in an historic neighborhood, and most of the homes have medium to lighter oak floors. It's just a matter of taste and the quality and age of your oak. Better oak shows a lighter stain better, as it has less knots, etc.

I don't care for the natural look, but neither do I like very dark. The one Nora has, Provincial - looks just right to me!

Susan ~

That is very true decorpas!! I should have said "to me, RED oak is prettier stained darker rather than lighter!!"

White oak looks great any color! Your floors are very warm and beautiful

I lived with natural red oak for 12 years, and thought I loved them too!!! Until I went darker... I still have one room (and the stairs) natural, and to me they look ORANGE now!

You need to find out what your floors are made of.

Oak and pine have very different grains and will absorb stain in very different ways.

Pine grain is more "open" than oak and will absorb the stain in an irregular way that you might not like.

Find a place -- perhaps inside a closet? Where you can experiment till you find a look you like. The sample area should be at least a foot square, since different boards will look different.

I have 3 small children and have natural in most of my house with dark in the kitchen -- and the natural is MUCH lower maintenance than the dark. Love the look of dark though.

Lisa, you say you are in a 1950's New England colonial. Is this the style you are drawn to? What colors are you using on the walls? I ask because these are things that would influence my choice in floor color. If you are doing Martha Stewart pale palette, for example, with clean fresh modern country feel, dark floors could be a great counterpoint. If you're doing primatives, you might be using a different color palette-- and this could influence the color/warmth of the color you choose for floor. Have you seen any of the houses in the neighborhood to see how other's handle this? If not, you could go through some open houses to see what is being done a lot in your area and what looks good to you. In the '50s, the same builder often built on your same street and maybe you can get into a house like yours.

I should clarify that when people say "dark" floor to me, I think of the dark, Brazilian wood colors that are in right now. I love those, but they aren't right in every house!

Nora, I know what you mean about red oak. It has a very particular look to it, and leaving it natural can exacerbate that look. The older floors had a nice patina to them that didn't leave that look (dare I call it builders oak, which is how I think of it? No slam to builders, it was just way over done for while). I was lucky with my floors, as they are older and the builder's wife apparently hand picked each plank (this is the story handed down, and it looks like it could be true). Of course, I wanted to showcase her careful work, which was completely lost under the PO's dark brown stain. But I still wanted that patina of an old oak floor. Hard to pull that off. Your floors are very pretty and I love that you are mixing stains with your staircase and foyer floor. Very creative!

I don't envy anyone going through the stain color process. It takes a few years off me every time I do it. I want a warm glow, not orange...not white...not brown...well, you get it. Good luck, everyone:-) Keep us updated, Lisa.