@Jenn Powers Those are nice looking alternatives. Thanks for sharing. I hope not to sound like a furniture snob, but... I happen to have a fear of West Elm quality and have had multiple bad experiences with Room & Board. Perhaps my hesitation with West Elm is unjustified - haven't actually purchased from them - but I've seen some shoddy construction on pieces in their stores. On the other hand, I've made many purchases from Room & Board over the years. All had gone well until the last couple of years when my past 3 purchases had to be returned because of quality issues. So I've written them off at this point.

I guess it depends on how we all describe "beachy". We've just installed some flooring from Goodfellow. They have many different product lines but I've seen this wide plank in store and thought they were beautiful. Here are some ideas for what I would consider "beachy" but they may not be your idea of it. I like both the Sea Salt and Aged Oak colours. I'm having trouble getting the pictures to load. Goodfellow Prime Collection The little spaces you refer to are often called "micro bevel" so if you use that search term you may find choices you hadn't seen before. I like that look too - some folks don't like it because dust and dirt can get into the little bevels - YMMV on that. There are lots of choices though. Go to a proper flooring store (not big box) and see what you like and do some comparison shopping. Some engineered can be refinished, some cannot. Some have a cork backing and some do not. The cork adds an extra layer of softness underfoot which is really nice. Depends on the setting and the usage it is going to get what will work best for you but a knowledgeable salesperson at a good flooring store can help you figure out what will work best for your application.

I would power wash all that is to be stained, and then go with a semi transparent stain. Solid stain, is more like a paint. Semi transparent, will allow the grain of the wood show through, and also it goes into the wood, rather than just sitting on the top like a paint product.

Thanks--as for style? Super flexible! Not too desky though. Anything goes. Midcentury-inspired styles in general work have proportions that work well in my small 1950s rooms and they do tend to be low. I was using a classic 1940s wing chair which was perfect until I needed a swivel. (It's now employed as my reading chair.) I'm currently using a generic barrel chair that is pretty good except I find I miss the back and neck support of the wing chair. Currently I'm in this (slightly different color): I can find wing and club chairs that swivel but the seats are too high or the backs too low. There are better quality desk chairs that get low enough but they aren't nice and cozy like a proper lounge chair. And they look like desk chairs which is the one style I'd like to avoid. Basically I can find lots of nice swivel chairs with high backs, but not with the low seat I want.