Don't make it something it's not

One of our first big projects were refinishing the floors.  Unlike those people you see on DIY shows who have no clue who know what they are doing, we knew exactly what to do...hire someone.  At first we were going to just polish them up as they were not in bad condition.  But when we removed the entryway carpet there was a repair right in the entry way.  So we decided to get them done.  We were only going to do part of the house, once they started and we saw the dust, we decided to do the whole house.  One thing we quickly learned is the our floors are pine.  You can only get them from reclaimed lumber at a $15 per square foot.  We got REALLY lucky, we had over 3200 sq ft and only 12 sq ft of repair, which they took from the attic.  We originally wanted them to be stained dark as I LOVE dark hard wood floors.  We use Tim McCune, a long time family friend, he strongly advised against this.  But I insisted.  Then the day came where they showed me samples.  That is when I realized, love what the house brings and don't make it something it is not.  See the comparison pic below.  I could not forgive myself if we wound up with zebra looking floors.  The natural stain is unbelievable.  And I remind myself all the time, stay true to the house, don't make it something it's not.