whitewashed

Our parquet floor is at least 35 years old, but I think it has some life in it yet. I love the scrapes and gaps it has acquired over the years. It tells a history of this little house. Plus it feels good under my feet and doesn't shatter dropped dishes. I've been tempted many times to change it to something new, especially after we had a water leak and had to replace part of it, but sometimes having a tight budget is a blessing. I am glad I have kept it. I don't think our house would feel the same without it!

After stripping the paint and sanding off most of the original finish, I whitewashed and sealed it. Yesterday, I finished repainting the baseboards and touching up the kitchen cabinets and now this monster project is done. Phew.

I used a 2 part water, 1 part satin swiss coffee latex paint mixture. At first, I brushed on the watered down paint and immediately wiped most of it off with a damp rag. Some parts of the floor required heavier coats, and after some trial and error, I found that brushing on a couple of thin layers with a foam brush (on each individual square) without wiping any of it off was the most effective method. I put two thin coats of "clear" polyurethane over the top to seal it. I say "clear" because it is actually sort of amber colored and changes the final color of the floor. I knew this ahead of time, so I erred on the side of "too white" while I was whitewashing.

Parquet probably isn't the best candidate for a whitewash. Because it is made up of so many different pieces of wood, it ends up looking sort of splotchy. But anything is better than the original yellow finish, and the solid color paint I applied a couple of years ago, too. I am happy with it.

The whole space feels brighter and cleaner now. And because there is some variation in the color, it will hide crumbs and foot prints better than the solid gray paint did. It definitely isn't perfect, but it doesn't have to be perfect to be beautiful. Or finished. :)