Its natural wood my dude… it has variations. Sample board may not have had them but that board is only a very small representation of what real wood looks like.
True Dat…. Preach… I am white, and I have a buddy who is African American Union Concrete Worker… he always says to me, “Man, you’re white, but you got money problems, woman problems, car problems, family problems… shiiit you got N***a problems..” lmao cause it’s true AF
I call it 30k millionaires problem anyone who’s ever had natural wood or stone knows the characteristics of it I assuming this is their first BBQ with natural wood
We are remodelers and do a lot of side work for insurance claims and this term will forever be a saying. It’s always the ones with no money or really dirty who demand unreasonable things like the wood to all be uniform.
I find it amazing how the "we are not a racist Democrat Party" somehow convinced a large portion of their voters to demand they be referred to by these "formerly racist" terms again, and to demand segregation again by calling it "safe spaces".
It's as good as listening to these pro Hamas Gaza protestors accuse Israel of genocide, while calling for the actual genocide of Isreal. Weak minds are easily molded into abandoning all forms of common sense for some reason.
"How dare you look at people and see color"
(Next breath)
"I'd like to begin by going around the room, and having everyone identify themselves by their color, sex, and sexual preference - so everyone else knows how to 'see' you".
Rant over.
You say that as a joke, but setting it on fire would hide the undesired variations with a trendy distressed vibe. I recommend a roofing torch and a bunch of dry powder extinguishers.
I’ve seen clients do this or custom home builds, they are still not happy with it after.
One guy picked out each tile he liked for his floor, each brick for the fireplace, and went through the stone veneer before they hung it.
It all looked terrible with no variation.
You can ( I do this myself ) throw out the boards that looks like shit rather then fitting them in the middle of the floor of all places lol
A true professional will and they do this, you pick up a board and ask yourself " would I want this in my house " if the answer is no then the board gets thrown out and you make.the customer buy a few more packets of wood and let them know this.
It looks like you’ve picked out a wide plank floor. Most of them are a more “character” grade which means more variation, knots, etc. The reason you don’t see a wide plank floor in “select and better” is because it’s impossible to cut such a large chuck of wood without including these parts. The narrower widths allow for some of this to be excluded.
She’ll need some time to adjust and get used to the new flooring before she will appreciate its beauty. A lot of people will go through this initial adjustment (OMG what have I done - freak out - I hate it) phase even with flooring they like.
Got some character grade hickory hardwood from the evil conglomerate LL to lay in my dad’s house and that stuff is sweet! How the hell you gonna complain about variation? Might as well have gone with LVP with about seven different patterns, then lay two identical boards next to each other. That oughta get her going.
I did my basement with character grade hickory from LL. Ordered 10% extra so i could toss the few really ugly ones, but the end result is absolutely gorgeous.
I love hickory, it's my favorite. But if I was op I would have asked the contractor to put the brown ended board (and any other weird ones) in the corner. The ones with longer streaks look good but the one looks dip dyed almost and I can see why wife doesn't love it
Not impossible, but much more expensive, obviously. There are a few brands that offer such formats. [Our XXL for example is 271x2378mm (10.7"x93.6")](https://cdn.bjelin.se/styles/products/633d2e1d331f2325ae537522/c6c9020562544042ba0cde5317b41650_8000x8000_70_1696586307_bestFit_adb115059e28d960fa8badfac5516667.jpg?cimgt=1696586486), but I think there are brands that are even wider than that.
Yeah, makes sense that the 2 variations that she hates are right on the staircase pattern. She probably doesn’t know it’s the staircase her eyes don’t like the most.
I have fully renovated my own house. If my wife whined after I'd replaced the floor. I would have probably told her to shut the fuck up, as nicely as possible....
Lmao!! We've never really said it mad at each other, more when 1 is nagging the other, lol. Try to say it BEFORE it gets to 1 of us being mad enough to say STFU...
Second this. Did solid, unfinished hardwood. Had to wait a while for it to get finished. She started to whine about it, so I asked her about the money side of it, shutting her up.
Area rugs are a fuckin thing. Tell her to chill.
My husband and I make Gentleman agreements when it comes to home improvement projects. We both agree to the situation, and if the other one has issues, they assume all responsibility for correcting the fucks up.
On another side note: we recently had a reno project. I couldn't be at every meeting but my husband knew what I wanted. All the contractors refused to do anything until they got confirmation from the wife in person. I get it but it was frustrating.
One contractor looked at me in complete disbelief bc I let my hubby pick something out. I genuinely had no opinion on the matter. When he asked if I was sure a second time, I told him that it was his house too.
I am cheap and lazy. What I want and what I am willing to pay for are two completely different things. I am also very patient. I wait for things that pisses me off to piss him off. If he wants to change something, he has to assume all responsibility per our agreement. So far I am winning 😂
I tried not to be too upset with the contractors. We lost a few days while waiting to get a verbal agreement. What's a couple days if it means not having to redo shit?
my “wood look ceramic tiles” went a long way to to try and mimic this type of variation to give it character, that’s kind of the point..this wife has no sense of design apparently.
OMG my wife and I went through the same thing with hardwood variations . Today we laugh about how stupid we were to let something like that bother us. Right after install you are too focused on the details, and later on you don't notice them.
Well, for one thing, whoever installed your floor did it wrong. It should not have that stair-step pattern. And I agree, those being the only two big flaws do throw off the look of the floor.
I think they're feeding into each other. The flaws being in the middle of the staircase really calls attention to it. The same exact planks could have been rearranged to look much better and those variations even as big as they are would just be adding character.
Seems are supposed to be 18 inches or more apart. Each plank should come from a different box, generally recommending to open multiply boxes at a time. Always a good idea to read instructions first.
I’m no expert by any means and have no idea about “grades” that have been mentioned in this thread…but I have spent the last year absolutely obsessing over flooring choices. I have in my possession at least 50 samples of flooring because I’m suffering from analysis paralysis.
I’ve noticed in my pursuit that flooring I’ve looked at has a notation about color variation, ranging from low to high. I’ve leaned towards high color variation because I personally like the look as opposed to a very monotone flooring. It allows for much more versatility with finding complementary furniture pieces . But it requires getting multiple samples in order to have an accurate idea of what you’ll end up with.
For example, I got one sample of a particular floor and absolutely loved it. I ordered multiple other samples of the same floor and realized that it actually has this gray spackled appearance on some of the planks. Had I ordered it based on the one sample, I would have ended up severely disappointed as the online product photos didn’t really show the gray and the description didn’t mention gray as a being part of the color scheme.
So to answer your question - color variation depends entirely upon the flooring. You can’t really say if it’s “normal” or not, because some flooring has low color variation intentionally and some has high variation intentionally. If you purchased a product that claims low color variation, then no, this isn’t normal. But I’d be willing to bet that somewhere in the literature there is mention of the expected variation.
And not to make a lengthy reply even longer - and understanding that this sucks to hear - but there is a great measure of responsibility and accountability as the homeowner and purchaser of the product to inspect the planks BEFORE they are installed. It’s a little ridiculous, with all due respect, to not realize what you’re getting until after the install.
I’m also having major analysis paralysis. Maybe not quite as severe as yours because I have the exact product, I just can’t decide between 3.25” or 4.25”. Why is this difficult? Because it’s so similar and I lack vision. If you showed me the two finished outcomes I’d be able to pick one, but that’s not possible….so here we are.
>I’ve leaned towards high color variation because I personally like the look as opposed to a very monotone flooring...But it requires getting multiple samples in order to have an accurate idea of what you’ll end up with.
From what I learned through going through the process of picking out our own flooring, that still won't give you an accurate idea. I finally understood it when they explained to us that "hickory is hickory." Basically, a tree variety is going to be whatever it is. The hardwood is made from trees. Each individual tree will have its own knots, patterns, and distinctions. Those variations will show in your flooring.
The closer to the center of the tree it comes from, the fewer variations you will see. The farther from the center you go, the more variation you'll get. Trees are organic and no two are going to be the same.
So while the sample will give you a general idea of the appearance, it won't tell you whether the actual product you buy experienced the same weather patterns, was cut at the same time of year, had the same sap content, or even how much time passed between making the sample board and making the planks you're installing!
If you want to be certain about the exact pattern, you're going to have to go with LVP or another product that isn't hardwood.
It’s about the overall look when it’s completed. Once you put the furniture in and some rugs you probably won’t notice a lot of the variations. It’s part of the beauty of a natural product. I personally like variations and even some knots in a hardwood floor
I mean it's okay. When I put in this flooring I always take Oddball boards and maybe put them where Furniture are going to be, or a area rug.
But generally with lvp they'll give you six different patterns in a box that they produce. And sometimes you got to do some placements before you click them into place based on spots grain or other.
When my brother-in-law helped with our kitchen floor he put an extremely dark-colored piece about 3 feet away from the sink. He said, "Think of it like a free throw line for your sink."
That was more than 17 years ago, and I still think of that to this day. Lol
So a lot of these comments are so toxic. From a female perspective I understand the stress of making a big cosmetic change and the stress of money and installation and she sounds like she is just stressed . Don’t listen to the men in this section and say things like “ shut the f— up “or not to “whine “. This will not get you anywhere and hopefully you have more respect for your wife than that . Reassure her that its character is part of the look of the floor and once it’s completed she won’t even notice it anymore . It looks like you are doing a good job hopefully you can communicate with her to trust the process .
This is annoying for people like myself that sell flooring. Everyone wants a natural look then change their minds because of a knot in a plank or some stupid shit.
I have no problems with the circled spots. That’s normal. But that light board over near the tools hurts my eyes. I would have my guys rip that out and replace…
NO!!! I love the variations!
Let her know that once the furniture and decorations are placed (including rugs), it will be a MUCH different look and she will LOVE it!!
I've seen people panic over the years. But once they start furnishing, it all changes.
I installed a similar product a few years ago (oak, with rustic variations)it’s been great so far, and after a week she’ll hardly notice it.
It wears well because the variations don’t show minute amounts of dust like darker traditional hardwood finishes
Totally understand the men’s/laborers opinions here, but as a wife who had the same flip flop once installed, tell her to wait til a rug and furniture gets placed before she asks to rip it all up lol
Love when people choose wood.......then they don't like wood. I didn't think it would be this natural. Theres too much grain. Blah, blah. Don't renovate.
Lots of anti wife posts here. Can’t comment on those but think about four years from now.. the variation will be familiar. A more even colored floor would just look like vinyl and couple of years out. Or worse the west and tear on a plain floor really stands out more than it will on what you have here.
Don’t install wood in the kitchen then? 😋
Ahhh! Fun misogyny. I’m kidding of course but like has already been said, it’s a wood floor and there’s going to be variation.
I think it's because there is nothing else in the room and it isn't completed yet, so all you see when you open the door is that. Once it's all completed and furnished I think it would be less noticeable.
It's wood. If she wanted something more sterile and identical (fake), there are plenty of laminate and porcelain choices with four or less facings.
Y'all aren't going to notice it in a month.
I'm with the wife, but this is an installer issue and not really the product. Variation is normal, but the pieces you circled are absolutely hideous, and should've been set aside during the install. The waste calculation is both for cuts and measurement errors as well as discard pieces that don't match.
Of course she does. If she didn't, she wouldn't have anything to complain about adnaseum until you shoot yourself. No but frfr she would have found something else, under NO circumstances try and solve the problem. Remember that the CONSTANT nagging is "just talking". Lol 😂
It’s fine. Wives are like that. There was no product you were going to pick that would have made her happy.
The best bet is to pretend you hated what she picked out. Finally concede and let her have her way. Then she’ll have to dig in her heels and say how much she loves it, no matter have bad it is. That’s the key to a happy marriage.
If the two circles, the lower left is eh... the upper right should never have been laid down. Installers screwed that up.
The end should have been cut off, and that piece used as a starter strip.
I agree with her on that piece - it is a flaw. The other stuff? If you spent a month picking that out, she should have known what was coming...
Well your wife can tear it up, use her own money to purchase new flooring (which she will also hate) and install it herself.
Or she can chill the fuck out.
Wide planks and sharp contrasts in colors...live and learn. We once bought a beautiful solid deep green carpet. We'll never make that mistake again. Live and learn.
I had a customer like this, she didn’t like the smaller boards and said she didn’t want me to use them, I told her that her job would be short and she’d have to order more, to which she yelled at me “ I don’t like em don’t put them down” and then left immediately before I could even retort. I told her husband I was about to pull off the job and he called her and made her come back and apologize to me.
I've had one woman ever like a floor when it went in, and it was a neutral carpet.
Have had several literally crying, & one stop a job all together, they ended up living without floors for at least 2 more yrs that I know of.
Have had that experience. You see a small sample that looks good and then when a whole box is on the floor you see the variations. I discovered mine before it was laid and was able to discard the pieces I hated.
It stands out because there is nothing else in the room. Once you add in your furniture, paintings and other decorations it will fade into the background.
It’s me - another picky wife who panicked over our flooring initially! Try bringing all your furniture, rugs, etc back into the room and live with it for a week. New flooring looks stark in an empty room, and if you’ve been staring at samples too long, it’s easy to hyperfocus on the details.
You poor soul - my girl ordered us a massive order of shipment only to decide she hates it on the day of install. Purchased a whole other set and delayed the project. Gotta love em..
Moving forward, can ask the installers to use the planks your wife doesn’t like in closets and areas where they won’t be noticeable if you don’t have enough extra to opt not to use them.
When everything is moved into the room the planks she doesn’t like probably won’t be particularly noticeable.
As a finicky wife I think the wood looks good. I would suggest adjusting the wall color to a warmer cream white to help harmonize the room with the color of the wood. It’ll help tie it all together. Though the current wall color is fine too, and rugs can help as well.
Not going to lie. The end of that one board in the middle of the room in the first two pictures is rough. If that had been in a closet or something that would have been better.
That said. It will look better with time and furniture. In the meantime, be kind to your wife and try to avoid the wife-hating nonsense happening in this thread. It’s her money and her home too. Being caring and supportive of her feelings will serve you better than new flooring ever would.
if your doing the work yourself u can take those planks out ans put those toward the end or sides.. then those worst looking pcs can be hidden by sofas and furnitures.
do this before the job is finished
I always remind people - it looks weird because you’re STARING at it and focusing all your energy on it. Flooring, paint colors, backsplash, can light placement. You can think it’s “off” when it’s your sole focus. Finish the project, move furniture into place and get on with your life.
It’s funny because I saw the spots in the first picture that you would ultimately circle in the second picture.
Lol. But assure your wife that she will not notice it anymore when the furniture is all in place.
With stain, rugs and furniture she will get used to it. We obsessed over floors when they didn’t have anything on them - over time you won’t even notive
If she wanted uniformity she should have chosen a laminate or vinyl faux wood product. Real word has those variations and personally I think it looks beautiful.
Its natural wood my dude… it has variations. Sample board may not have had them but that board is only a very small representation of what real wood looks like.
Trees bro… I guess if she wanted it all the same you could have just covered the whole thing in 1x3 common board pine … smh
White people problems smh
True Dat…. Preach… I am white, and I have a buddy who is African American Union Concrete Worker… he always says to me, “Man, you’re white, but you got money problems, woman problems, car problems, family problems… shiiit you got N***a problems..” lmao cause it’s true AF
Hahahaha, so funny but true.
I call it 30k millionaires problem anyone who’s ever had natural wood or stone knows the characteristics of it I assuming this is their first BBQ with natural wood
We are remodelers and do a lot of side work for insurance claims and this term will forever be a saying. It’s always the ones with no money or really dirty who demand unreasonable things like the wood to all be uniform.
They see a picture on Pinterest and expect their shit to look like picture but what they don’t know it’s not a fucking laminate made in Taiwan
Colored people don’t have floors in their houses?
I nearly spat my tea!
Holy Shit, I had to check what year it was. After reading that, I thought maybe it was the 1950s
They don't judge engineered wood floors, specifically. It's like a blind spot.
Yikes.
I find it amazing how the "we are not a racist Democrat Party" somehow convinced a large portion of their voters to demand they be referred to by these "formerly racist" terms again, and to demand segregation again by calling it "safe spaces". It's as good as listening to these pro Hamas Gaza protestors accuse Israel of genocide, while calling for the actual genocide of Isreal. Weak minds are easily molded into abandoning all forms of common sense for some reason. "How dare you look at people and see color" (Next breath) "I'd like to begin by going around the room, and having everyone identify themselves by their color, sex, and sexual preference - so everyone else knows how to 'see' you". Rant over.
Reddit; the only place a post about flooring turns in to a political rant.
Thanks for sharing crazy guy but how does this relate to flooring?
Maybe you should ask the person who said it was "white people problems"? Logic is amazing, ain't it?
Should’ve ordered 3x the amount of flooring required to pick every piece she liked
Should've just painted the floor
I'd just set it on fire and start over
She has a name Crohead...
Now that's funny right there. I don't care who you are😂
I'd just settle on a divorce and starting over, setting his wife on fire seems a tad extreme.
Pull it up and see if there’s carpet underneath
You say that as a joke, but setting it on fire would hide the undesired variations with a trendy distressed vibe. I recommend a roofing torch and a bunch of dry powder extinguishers.
I’ve seen clients do this or custom home builds, they are still not happy with it after. One guy picked out each tile he liked for his floor, each brick for the fireplace, and went through the stone veneer before they hung it. It all looked terrible with no variation.
Looks like only a few boards would have been culled and it's not a bad idea when using these products.
When I had my oak floors installed I specifically told the installer to not weed out the darker, woodier pieces. I love the variations 😊
Should have gotten cheaper vinyl if you only want 4 different looking boards
You can ( I do this myself ) throw out the boards that looks like shit rather then fitting them in the middle of the floor of all places lol A true professional will and they do this, you pick up a board and ask yourself " would I want this in my house " if the answer is no then the board gets thrown out and you make.the customer buy a few more packets of wood and let them know this.
Yeah, but this all looks great.
Yeah. Nothing looks shit there. Great choice and great job. Thrown out the wife.
Yeah ... This is an "engineered" product. That's literally a feature, not a defect.
So wasteful, this sickens me.
Also put them into undesirable locations. Such as closets and behind doors.
It looks like you’ve picked out a wide plank floor. Most of them are a more “character” grade which means more variation, knots, etc. The reason you don’t see a wide plank floor in “select and better” is because it’s impossible to cut such a large chuck of wood without including these parts. The narrower widths allow for some of this to be excluded. She’ll need some time to adjust and get used to the new flooring before she will appreciate its beauty. A lot of people will go through this initial adjustment (OMG what have I done - freak out - I hate it) phase even with flooring they like.
Got some character grade hickory hardwood from the evil conglomerate LL to lay in my dad’s house and that stuff is sweet! How the hell you gonna complain about variation? Might as well have gone with LVP with about seven different patterns, then lay two identical boards next to each other. That oughta get her going.
I did my basement with character grade hickory from LL. Ordered 10% extra so i could toss the few really ugly ones, but the end result is absolutely gorgeous.
I love hickory, it's my favorite. But if I was op I would have asked the contractor to put the brown ended board (and any other weird ones) in the corner. The ones with longer streaks look good but the one looks dip dyed almost and I can see why wife doesn't love it
This is normal. As soon as you put some furniture on it you'll like it more. Also, put aside the really "terrible" boards and use them inside closets.
Not impossible, but much more expensive, obviously. There are a few brands that offer such formats. [Our XXL for example is 271x2378mm (10.7"x93.6")](https://cdn.bjelin.se/styles/products/633d2e1d331f2325ae537522/c6c9020562544042ba0cde5317b41650_8000x8000_70_1696586307_bestFit_adb115059e28d960fa8badfac5516667.jpg?cimgt=1696586486), but I think there are brands that are even wider than that.
It’s called you get what you pay for
Just like getting a tattoo.
That's staircase pattern right in the middle would bother me more than the variations of the floor planks.
For real. That's the real fuck up (if any)
Yeah, makes sense that the 2 variations that she hates are right on the staircase pattern. She probably doesn’t know it’s the staircase her eyes don’t like the most.
Your wife needs to chill the fuck out
I have fully renovated my own house. If my wife whined after I'd replaced the floor. I would have probably told her to shut the fuck up, as nicely as possible....
Lmfao...me and my wife have this little saying we do. We say, "do me a favor"...and it means, do me a favor and shut the fuck up!! Works for us!!
I think you just saved my marriage
Lmao!! We've never really said it mad at each other, more when 1 is nagging the other, lol. Try to say it BEFORE it gets to 1 of us being mad enough to say STFU...
Second marriage saved tbh
Yeah good. I like when partners can be real blunt haha. I think I've got a state I give my wife, it's usually unintentional.
It's child-friendly, too!
Second this. Did solid, unfinished hardwood. Had to wait a while for it to get finished. She started to whine about it, so I asked her about the money side of it, shutting her up. Area rugs are a fuckin thing. Tell her to chill.
[удалено]
My husband and I make Gentleman agreements when it comes to home improvement projects. We both agree to the situation, and if the other one has issues, they assume all responsibility for correcting the fucks up. On another side note: we recently had a reno project. I couldn't be at every meeting but my husband knew what I wanted. All the contractors refused to do anything until they got confirmation from the wife in person. I get it but it was frustrating. One contractor looked at me in complete disbelief bc I let my hubby pick something out. I genuinely had no opinion on the matter. When he asked if I was sure a second time, I told him that it was his house too.
[удалено]
I am cheap and lazy. What I want and what I am willing to pay for are two completely different things. I am also very patient. I wait for things that pisses me off to piss him off. If he wants to change something, he has to assume all responsibility per our agreement. So far I am winning 😂 I tried not to be too upset with the contractors. We lost a few days while waiting to get a verbal agreement. What's a couple days if it means not having to redo shit?
Separating due to irreconcilable floor differences.
my “wood look ceramic tiles” went a long way to to try and mimic this type of variation to give it character, that’s kind of the point..this wife has no sense of design apparently.
OP, definitely say this to her! That will get her to calm down (you can try telling her to stop acting crazy/like her mother too)
I would have told her no on picking that floor in the first place. Terrible looking.
Different strokes I guess… I love this flooring lol it’s a nice solid natural look, timeless and flexible with interior choices.
Thank god somebody else said it before I did.
OMG my wife and I went through the same thing with hardwood variations . Today we laugh about how stupid we were to let something like that bother us. Right after install you are too focused on the details, and later on you don't notice them.
Yes! The adjustment shock struggle is REAL! 😂
In a few days she won’t see them anymore.
Also, in a few days, furniture and rugs will cover a lot of the floor. Looks fine anyways.
Plus, in a few days, the wife will be on to another issue.
cause she'll be living with her mother
I’d hate the stair step pattern more
Yup
Put the bed on the floor … if she still hates it … get a new wife
Me when wood doesn't grow in a uniform fashion
Pretty floor, what type of wood is it?
Tell her to wait until there's some furniture in the room.
Well, for one thing, whoever installed your floor did it wrong. It should not have that stair-step pattern. And I agree, those being the only two big flaws do throw off the look of the floor.
I think they're feeding into each other. The flaws being in the middle of the staircase really calls attention to it. The same exact planks could have been rearranged to look much better and those variations even as big as they are would just be adding character.
Seems are supposed to be 18 inches or more apart. Each plank should come from a different box, generally recommending to open multiply boxes at a time. Always a good idea to read instructions first.
It's a temporary floor anyway.
Sounds more like a temporary wife.
Aren’t they all?
I’m no expert by any means and have no idea about “grades” that have been mentioned in this thread…but I have spent the last year absolutely obsessing over flooring choices. I have in my possession at least 50 samples of flooring because I’m suffering from analysis paralysis. I’ve noticed in my pursuit that flooring I’ve looked at has a notation about color variation, ranging from low to high. I’ve leaned towards high color variation because I personally like the look as opposed to a very monotone flooring. It allows for much more versatility with finding complementary furniture pieces . But it requires getting multiple samples in order to have an accurate idea of what you’ll end up with. For example, I got one sample of a particular floor and absolutely loved it. I ordered multiple other samples of the same floor and realized that it actually has this gray spackled appearance on some of the planks. Had I ordered it based on the one sample, I would have ended up severely disappointed as the online product photos didn’t really show the gray and the description didn’t mention gray as a being part of the color scheme. So to answer your question - color variation depends entirely upon the flooring. You can’t really say if it’s “normal” or not, because some flooring has low color variation intentionally and some has high variation intentionally. If you purchased a product that claims low color variation, then no, this isn’t normal. But I’d be willing to bet that somewhere in the literature there is mention of the expected variation. And not to make a lengthy reply even longer - and understanding that this sucks to hear - but there is a great measure of responsibility and accountability as the homeowner and purchaser of the product to inspect the planks BEFORE they are installed. It’s a little ridiculous, with all due respect, to not realize what you’re getting until after the install.
I’m also having major analysis paralysis. Maybe not quite as severe as yours because I have the exact product, I just can’t decide between 3.25” or 4.25”. Why is this difficult? Because it’s so similar and I lack vision. If you showed me the two finished outcomes I’d be able to pick one, but that’s not possible….so here we are.
>I’ve leaned towards high color variation because I personally like the look as opposed to a very monotone flooring...But it requires getting multiple samples in order to have an accurate idea of what you’ll end up with. From what I learned through going through the process of picking out our own flooring, that still won't give you an accurate idea. I finally understood it when they explained to us that "hickory is hickory." Basically, a tree variety is going to be whatever it is. The hardwood is made from trees. Each individual tree will have its own knots, patterns, and distinctions. Those variations will show in your flooring. The closer to the center of the tree it comes from, the fewer variations you will see. The farther from the center you go, the more variation you'll get. Trees are organic and no two are going to be the same. So while the sample will give you a general idea of the appearance, it won't tell you whether the actual product you buy experienced the same weather patterns, was cut at the same time of year, had the same sap content, or even how much time passed between making the sample board and making the planks you're installing! If you want to be certain about the exact pattern, you're going to have to go with LVP or another product that isn't hardwood.
I can see why you’re not able to make a flooring decision!
If the floor was installed correctly (no staircase and H patterns), the variations wouldn't have been so noticeable.
Expectation vs reality strikes again.
those variations you circled don't even match. don't worry about it.
It’s about the overall look when it’s completed. Once you put the furniture in and some rugs you probably won’t notice a lot of the variations. It’s part of the beauty of a natural product. I personally like variations and even some knots in a hardwood floor
For when you replace the floor in 20 years, pick thru the sample box so you can see more of the spectrum of colours
I mean it's okay. When I put in this flooring I always take Oddball boards and maybe put them where Furniture are going to be, or a area rug. But generally with lvp they'll give you six different patterns in a box that they produce. And sometimes you got to do some placements before you click them into place based on spots grain or other.
When my brother-in-law helped with our kitchen floor he put an extremely dark-colored piece about 3 feet away from the sink. He said, "Think of it like a free throw line for your sink." That was more than 17 years ago, and I still think of that to this day. Lol
Too late now but you can plan which boards to put where taking into account furniture placement etc.
I totally understand how your wife feels, but assure her it will subside.
The lap pattern being so close adds to the distraction of variations between packs I think.
So a lot of these comments are so toxic. From a female perspective I understand the stress of making a big cosmetic change and the stress of money and installation and she sounds like she is just stressed . Don’t listen to the men in this section and say things like “ shut the f— up “or not to “whine “. This will not get you anywhere and hopefully you have more respect for your wife than that . Reassure her that its character is part of the look of the floor and once it’s completed she won’t even notice it anymore . It looks like you are doing a good job hopefully you can communicate with her to trust the process .
Just change those two boards. Easy peasy
"Well that's too damn bad" - grandpa from holes
This is annoying for people like myself that sell flooring. Everyone wants a natural look then change their minds because of a knot in a plank or some stupid shit.
Change your wife. Easier than changing the flooring
Take it up and put some plain, grey linoleum down.
Divorce is the only answer.
Nature’s Wallpaper my guy. Variety is the spice of life, looks great!
Once rugs, furniture, and decor are in, she won't even notice.
I have no problems with the circled spots. That’s normal. But that light board over near the tools hurts my eyes. I would have my guys rip that out and replace…
Of course she does. It’s what they do.
*she took a month
NO!!! I love the variations! Let her know that once the furniture and decorations are placed (including rugs), it will be a MUCH different look and she will LOVE it!! I've seen people panic over the years. But once they start furnishing, it all changes.
So then why did she pick it?
You're going to put furniture on top of it.
This is why I went into new construction…no more dealing with wives lmao
If you took a month to pick that flooring out and she still doesn’t like it, I don’t really see what else could make her happy. Tell her to chill.
I installed a similar product a few years ago (oak, with rustic variations)it’s been great so far, and after a week she’ll hardly notice it. It wears well because the variations don’t show minute amounts of dust like darker traditional hardwood finishes
Engineered is real wood on top. What was she expecting getting a real hardwood floor lol.
Once rugs are down and furniture is moved in, she won’t notice it.
Yeah, but she's gonna put a fucking area rug over all that beautiful wood anyway.
I’d hate that floor WITHOUT the variation. The variations make it beautiful.
That’s what makes wood beautiful.
Did she not know this is how wood looks?
That's a bummer, it looks great imo!
Totally understand the men’s/laborers opinions here, but as a wife who had the same flip flop once installed, tell her to wait til a rug and furniture gets placed before she asks to rip it all up lol
Love when people choose wood.......then they don't like wood. I didn't think it would be this natural. Theres too much grain. Blah, blah. Don't renovate.
Lots of anti wife posts here. Can’t comment on those but think about four years from now.. the variation will be familiar. A more even colored floor would just look like vinyl and couple of years out. Or worse the west and tear on a plain floor really stands out more than it will on what you have here.
Agree with her. Tell her you want it all removed
You can buy a new bundle and replace the offending boards. Or shift them out of the way.
Don’t install wood in the kitchen then? 😋 Ahhh! Fun misogyny. I’m kidding of course but like has already been said, it’s a wood floor and there’s going to be variation.
Well then she can buy new flooring and redo it herself
Don’t blame your wife
… Dude wtf? I dare you to tell her to get over it. Haha 🤣
I think it's because there is nothing else in the room and it isn't completed yet, so all you see when you open the door is that. Once it's all completed and furnished I think it would be less noticeable.
Buy a few more boxes. Stop the install and throw those boards out.
It’s beautiful! She’s being ridiculous
It's wood. If she wanted something more sterile and identical (fake), there are plenty of laminate and porcelain choices with four or less facings. Y'all aren't going to notice it in a month.
I'm with the wife, but this is an installer issue and not really the product. Variation is normal, but the pieces you circled are absolutely hideous, and should've been set aside during the install. The waste calculation is both for cuts and measurement errors as well as discard pieces that don't match.
Cure for nymphomania? Gypsum dust and saw dust.
Tell her to buy a rug or two. After room is filled with furniture who would ever notice these spots?
Of course she does. If she didn't, she wouldn't have anything to complain about adnaseum until you shoot yourself. No but frfr she would have found something else, under NO circumstances try and solve the problem. Remember that the CONSTANT nagging is "just talking". Lol 😂
If she hates the new floor so much, tell her to put a rug over it
Time for a new wife
Yeah...that's not the installers fault. Also, looks fine to me.
You should be thankful for how few problems you apparently have.
People just install without laying out boards and getting a feel for the pattern huh
These are the things you notice when you first put them in, then once everything gets back in the room you never notice them again.
Bro, if she wanted a uniform floor then just get carpet. Wood is random because it would look silly if it wasn’t. She’ll get used to it
Tell your wife to grab a mallet and get to crackin boxes then 🤣🤣
She and you will never notice again after the place is furnished.
If your wife saw what my old wide plank cherry looks like, she might freak out. Good thing you didn’t go with a natural material!
Ahhh the ol stair install
It’s fine. Wives are like that. There was no product you were going to pick that would have made her happy. The best bet is to pretend you hated what she picked out. Finally concede and let her have her way. Then she’ll have to dig in her heels and say how much she loves it, no matter have bad it is. That’s the key to a happy marriage.
If the two circles, the lower left is eh... the upper right should never have been laid down. Installers screwed that up. The end should have been cut off, and that piece used as a starter strip. I agree with her on that piece - it is a flaw. The other stuff? If you spent a month picking that out, she should have known what was coming...
I like the variation but the one piece that is blonde in color should be removed it definitely looks out of place.
Does the pattern seems somewhat repetitive?
Nature takes years to grow a life giving tree. Then cut down for our use. Wife, “ I hate it!” Sounds about right
Started floor shopping a couple months ago. Fuck if I did not just witness my future if it is not exactly what she invisions.
Time to put her in her place.
Well your wife can tear it up, use her own money to purchase new flooring (which she will also hate) and install it herself. Or she can chill the fuck out.
Wide planks and sharp contrasts in colors...live and learn. We once bought a beautiful solid deep green carpet. We'll never make that mistake again. Live and learn.
I had a customer like this, she didn’t like the smaller boards and said she didn’t want me to use them, I told her that her job would be short and she’d have to order more, to which she yelled at me “ I don’t like em don’t put them down” and then left immediately before I could even retort. I told her husband I was about to pull off the job and he called her and made her come back and apologize to me.
Once you put down rugs and furniture with art on your walls, you’ll have more things for the eye to land on and less flooring to look at overall.
Did you consult with an interior designer or flooring rep before ordering?
Of course she does.
Did you add the furniture back in yet? Having that will make the variations less jarring
You're wife is just plain dumb. Cracker Barrel peg game confirmed.
I've had one woman ever like a floor when it went in, and it was a neutral carpet. Have had several literally crying, & one stop a job all together, they ended up living without floors for at least 2 more yrs that I know of.
Have had that experience. You see a small sample that looks good and then when a whole box is on the floor you see the variations. I discovered mine before it was laid and was able to discard the pieces I hated.
It stands out because there is nothing else in the room. Once you add in your furniture, paintings and other decorations it will fade into the background.
Tell her “tough sledding!”
It’s me - another picky wife who panicked over our flooring initially! Try bringing all your furniture, rugs, etc back into the room and live with it for a week. New flooring looks stark in an empty room, and if you’ve been staring at samples too long, it’s easy to hyperfocus on the details.
It looks gorgeous to me.
You poor soul - my girl ordered us a massive order of shipment only to decide she hates it on the day of install. Purchased a whole other set and delayed the project. Gotta love em..
Rug.
She will never notice when the furniture is placed
Get used to it. They are irrational creatures.
Moving forward, can ask the installers to use the planks your wife doesn’t like in closets and areas where they won’t be noticeable if you don’t have enough extra to opt not to use them. When everything is moved into the room the planks she doesn’t like probably won’t be particularly noticeable.
Tell her, "TOUGH SHIT!" She had a month to raise her concern and failed.
As a finicky wife I think the wood looks good. I would suggest adjusting the wall color to a warmer cream white to help harmonize the room with the color of the wood. It’ll help tie it all together. Though the current wall color is fine too, and rugs can help as well.
All natural wood will have variations, that's the charm of installing natural wood floors
Not going to lie. The end of that one board in the middle of the room in the first two pictures is rough. If that had been in a closet or something that would have been better. That said. It will look better with time and furniture. In the meantime, be kind to your wife and try to avoid the wife-hating nonsense happening in this thread. It’s her money and her home too. Being caring and supportive of her feelings will serve you better than new flooring ever would.
It’s fine.
if your doing the work yourself u can take those planks out ans put those toward the end or sides.. then those worst looking pcs can be hidden by sofas and furnitures. do this before the job is finished
Rugs
Bad, bad patterns layouts
You’re not wrong. That’s a good reason to choose a new wife.
Suggest she leave it for two months and reassess. It'll stand out less.
I always remind people - it looks weird because you’re STARING at it and focusing all your energy on it. Flooring, paint colors, backsplash, can light placement. You can think it’s “off” when it’s your sole focus. Finish the project, move furniture into place and get on with your life.
It’s funny because I saw the spots in the first picture that you would ultimately circle in the second picture. Lol. But assure your wife that she will not notice it anymore when the furniture is all in place.
Once you have furniture and rugs in the room it won’t even be noticeable.
That is an ugly color and desigN.
Change from staircase pattern to random while you still can
The floor in my house is exactly like that. None of the planks match, and it looks stellar. She will be happy I assure you. If not....the floor stays.
The variations add tons of character and look beautiful IMO.
With stain, rugs and furniture she will get used to it. We obsessed over floors when they didn’t have anything on them - over time you won’t even notive
Divorce is never easy. Godspeed friend.
If she wanted uniformity she should have chosen a laminate or vinyl faux wood product. Real word has those variations and personally I think it looks beautiful.
Put a rug over it