# How do I obtain this color and finish on white oak floors



## apriljoy (Dec 19, 2011)

we are putting in new white oak floors, I completely trust my installers but custom stains are not their thing. Can anyone help be find a stain or mixture that can obtain this look? I love the color (i'm calling it a grey based medium brown) as well as the matte finish. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm attaching photos that best show the floors as well as a link that showcases the entire home.

http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/510418/list/Houzz-Tour--Sunny-Update-for-a-California-Bungalow


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*you want to mix it?*

or do you want to buy it prefinished?
http://www.archiexpo.com/prod/admonter/antique-oak-engineered-hardwood-floors-4494-323778.html
There may be an off the shelf color and I would start at a commercial paint supply house or with General Finishes through Woodcraft and others. A sample chart would be the first step then try the product on the wood of your choice to see how it takes. A clear finish will darken it, so be aware of that.

If you want to mix it, I doubt if anyone is going to have formula for you. You will have to experiment on the wood type of your choice and keep track of the proportions as you go, for making larger quantities. 
I have mixed various shades of grey/brown for the siding on my home using solid color stains and adding white or blue or red or black to achieve the desired color...then off to Sherwin Williams for a color analysis and then they blend/mix it up. It requires a pretty good eye on the part of the chemist/mixer and the purchaser...me. 
You will have to use transparent stains to show the wood grain.
It's much like an "antiqued" look. Best of luck.  bill


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## 3fingers (Dec 7, 2011)

I do a lot of work in matching finishes. The first thing I do is to make a story board. A piece of wood from the project if available, divide the board up into sections, get a stain that closely matches then add colors to it writing down each step. 
I make my own colors from trans tint dyes. But most installers just buy theirs from of the self at any paint store; unless the flooring is prefinished. If so, call the manufacture they offer the colors they use in finishing there products. 

If you have any questions just ask I will try to answer the best I can.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

apriljoy said:


> we are putting in new white oak floors, I completely trust my installers but custom stains are not their thing. Can anyone help be find a stain or mixture that can obtain this look? I love the color (i'm calling it a grey based medium brown) as well as the matte finish. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm attaching photos that best show the floors as well as a link that showcases the entire home.
> 
> http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/510418/list/Houzz-Tour--Sunny-Update-for-a-California-Bungalow


 







You could likely mix your own, but qualified floor finishers that are chosen to do the project will be a better choice since they will be on their hands and knees doing the staining and finishing, unless you are going to do that.

You posted a picture of the look you want, but you post the link "showcasing the entire home." Sounds like the home is already done, and this may be an ad for redesign or something else.













 







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## apriljoy (Dec 19, 2011)

*clarification*



cabinetman said:


> You posted a picture of the look you want, but you post the link "showcasing the entire home." Sounds like the home is already done, and this may be an ad for redesign or something else.
> .


I'm sorry I should have been more clear. All of the photos are of the house I am using for inspiration. Sadly my home looks nothing like this :smile:. The floors going in to my home are brand new white oak hard wood, not prefab and I want the end result to be just like the pictures


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## apriljoy (Dec 19, 2011)

oops


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## apriljoy (Dec 19, 2011)

3fingers said:


> A piece of wood from the project if available, divide the board up into sections, get a stain that closely matches then add colors to it writing down each step.
> I make my own colors from trans tint dyes. But most installers just buy theirs from of the self at any paint store


Thank you! This is a great idea. The floors are not prefab, they are solid hardwood that will be stained. The problem is that I am currently in Il and the home we are moving to is in Ca. The installers, as you mentioned, buy their stains from the big paint stores. I've looked at a million swatches and none of them are right. Either too grey or too brown. So i want to explore mixing stains for them to use.
I'm on my way to a local flooring store to pick up some white oak floors to work with!


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

apriljoy said:


> I'm sorry I should have been more clear. All of the photos are of the house I am using for inspiration. Sadly my home looks nothing like this :smile:. The floors going in to my home are brand new white oak hard wood, not prefab and I want the end result to be just like the pictures


Other than what I said in post #4, quality paint stores can match stain and finish from samples...like Sherwin Williams, or M-A-B. For whomever will do the finishing I suggest they arrange for more than the amount they will need to finish the job. 

If the homeowner mixes up their own stain, there's no recourse to get the job right.












 







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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*suggestion*

This may be a 2 part process. It may not be a one coat stain does it all deal. You may want to start with a grey and let it set up, then wipe on brown....various shades, or vice versa. In order to get what you want after 1,000,000 samples you may have a difficult time....just sayin' :blink:
Be Aware that greys are either "warm" or going towards brown/red or "cool" going towards purple/blue. Green greys are actually green + grey= white/black.....
Be aware that the different "cuts" of wood, quartersawn or rift or plain sawn will take stain differently also.  bill


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

apriljoy said:


> Thank you! This is a great idea. The floors are not prefab, they are solid hardwood that will be stained. The problem is that I am currently in Il and the home we are moving to is in Ca. The installers, as you mentioned, buy their stains from the big paint stores. I've looked at a million swatches and none of them are right. Either too grey or too brown. So i want to explore mixing stains for them to use.
> I'm on my way to a local flooring store to pick up some white oak floors to work with!


That makes sense, but they could go off the same picture you look at. Just a tip, getting the stain right isn't the end of it. When a topcoating is added (whatever that will be) will change what the stain looks like. So, if you make your own samples, finish out to the tropcoat, and keep track of the ratios of what you use for the stain, and the exact topcoat you used. You can use cooking measuring spoons and cups to keep track. I would suggest a waterbase polyurethane...like Parks Pro Finisher...available at HD. It dries fast, has very little odor, and stays clear. They may also carry a catalyzer in stock.

The stains for that type of finish that I've been lucky with were basically all oil base and were a single application. I used oil base paint, suspended in boiled linseed oil, and thinned with mineral spirits. It's basically a pickling type of stain. The trick is to get a thin enough application to enhance the grain, and not be pigmented enough to create an overlap in color when applying. Allow each application of whatever you do to dry completely.

There's other ways to make stains, but I find this the easiest way for me.

It's best to make up about a half dozen examples from varying grain to get an idea what the entire floor will look like. In the end, if you take the samples to one of the better stores that mix stains and paint, you won't have to buy all the little can samples of different paint colors. In addition, if its a chain store, you can get a mix recipe that can be used at another store (by your finishers).












 







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## mdeiley (Jul 4, 2007)

There may be a slight problem obtaining the exact match...It appears the photo may be a laminate floor. If so it is nothing more then a photgraph applied to a wood structure. This can be very difficult to match. Just an observation. Good luck!


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## Eagleeye (Dec 3, 2011)

I would find out where your contractor finishing the floor gets their material. Take some of the floor boards to them and let them do the samples with finish for the final look. Finishers like to use what they are used to and trying to duplicate what the part time paint store guy mixed may not give you the results you want.


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## Hammer1 (Aug 1, 2010)

Matte finishes and soft colors are the new thing. Minwax, among others, now makes water based stains. They don't darken the porous grain of species like oak they way oil based stains do. There are a few colors that are similar to what you have shown, one is cocoa. Matte or very minimal gloss finishes are also gaining popularity such as Absco Absolute 1G.


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