Be a Hardwood Flooring Rebel and Leave Them Unfinished

Choosing between the many floor finishes can be a little overwhelming. You just spent a long time deciding on the wood species and the installation pattern, and now you have hundreds of floor finishes to choose from to complete your hardwood flooring project. But, what if you didn’t have to choose? What if you could just leave your floors exactly as they are, raw and natural.

Tips to great hardwood flooring in Colorado
Leave your beautiful Balboa floors raw and natural, or talk to us about the best finish for the most natural look.

Tips to great natural hardwood flooring in Colorado

We teach our kids to appreciate natural beauty. We teach our kids to ignore photoshopped magazine covers and to appreciate their bodies as they are, not what doctors and diets can manipulate them to look like. We teach our kids that make-up should enhance natural beauty, not alter the way your face looks. The same is true for hardwood flooring finish.

Sure, you can find a finish that will completely alter the look of the wood species you choose, changing the color, hiding little imperfections, making each board look exactly like the next. The way that everyone now has the same perfect white Hollywood smile. It gets a little creepy when everything looks the same. It takes away a lot of the personality. Wood has personality. Let it shine through.

Leaving your floors naked and raw may feel wrong, but if they’ve been installed correctly and sanded smooth so you won’t get splinters in your feet, then unfinished floors can be quite beautiful, and just as durable as those with a finish.

The best finish for reclaimed floors in Colorado
To highlight the natural colors and characteristics of your floors, go for a water-based finish. Perfect for reclaimed floors.

Hardwood flooring inspiration and installation in Denver and Evergreen, CO

Raw floors will be more susceptible to stains and watermarks, but as the wood ages, like our face, the marks of time will show. Like wrinkles, the marks of time on your floors are like memories. And like memories, some are better than others, and the best part about hardwood flooring is that you can sand away those memories if one day you think you’ve had enough.

Having a hard time making a decision on your next hardwood flooring project, call us for a free consultation, or stop by one of our showrooms for inspiration and guidance. 

Picture of Chris Keale

Chris Keale

Owner & Operator of Tongue & Groove Flooring
Wood Flooring 101 Course Creator

Chris Keale is the owner of Tongue & Groove and the creator of the Wood Floors 101 course, an educational resource that helps homeowners and design professionals make confident flooring decisions.

With a career that began in global technology and consulting, Chris traded boardrooms for floorboards, bringing his leadership skills and love of craftsmanship into the hardwood flooring industry. Since 2007, he has grown Tongue & Groove into one of Colorado’s most trusted flooring companies—built on a foundation of integrity, education and precision. 

Known for his sharp insight, dry humor and genuine commitment to his clients, Chris has helped homeowners, builders and designers through the complexities of choosing and installing hardwood floors. Whether teaching in the showroom, on a jobsite or through his Wood Floors 101, his mission remains the same: to simplify a complicated industry and deliver floors that stand the test of time.

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Whether you are searching for new hardwood floors, working on an upcoming project or looking to learn more about wood floors, we are here to help.