The Floors

I hope everyone had a lovely Thanksgiving. Here in Maine it was more like Easter weather than the usual chilly Thanksgiving days we've experienced in the past. I flung open the doors and turned off the heat while I cooked the turkey and trimmings. I even sat on the balcony for a while and read my book in the sun. What a delightful day.

The two days before Thanksgiving we coated the bedroom floor with stain and two coats of urethane.

After installing the pine flooring, Michael got down on his knees and sanded all the floors with a hand sander. He did not want to rent an upright floor sander because he felt it would be too harsh on the bare, soft pine. He also felt that the rooms were small enough to sand by hand. It was a lot of work, but well worth it.

After the bedroom floor was sanded, the two of us stained the floor. I started from one end and Michael started from the other, meeting in the middle. I scooted out to take the picture.

                    Here is what it looked like completely stained. This bedroom measures 12' x 24'.

Once the stain dried, I applied the first coat of polyurethane with a brush, and then let that dry. The day before Thanksgiving, Michael's son Matt and I sanded the first coat, cleaned it, and then Michael applied a second coat of high gloss urethane with a special sheepskin mop. The results were spectacular.

We chose to go with a high gloss finish because we wanted a very durable surface, especially when using soft pine flooring, and we liked the idea of reflected light. The floors will wear better and look older, which is exactly what we wanted.

   Once the rest of the cottage floors are finished, we can start on the baseboards and the electrical
   outlets. All that will all happen this week. Fingers crossed!

                                                             Have a terrific weekend.