Recently we milled a floor for a client of ours using a batch of pine decking that we had acquired from an old factory. This decking material was painted white on the underside and when we split them in half we got a floor that was a 50/50 mix of brown and white patina.

Upon installation our client felt that the resulting floor, though stunning, was too funky with it’s contrasting whites and darks for their project. They had been hoping for a more unified patina.

To amend the situation my co-worker TJ and I, fresh from the previous night’s company holiday party, boarded a 6 am flight to Texas.

In addition to some shorts, we packed a random orbital sander and wire brusher.

Over the course of the weekend we sanded and brushed each board. We took special care to take the white painted boards down to a more worn ghostly patina, and we polished up the brown boards to accentuate the grain of the pine.

Though I personally  would have been happy to put the original floor in my own home, the new brushed and sanded floor looks exquisite! It has the authentic look of an old factory floor that has been worn for decades.

…and we even had some time to sample the local Houston culture. This boozy chicken shared our table at a Bar-B-Q joint called the Hungry Farmer.

Regardless of your politics, how could you not admire this debonair sculpture of President George H. W. Bush with his coat tossed casually over his shoulder and his tie blowing in the wind? He certainly embodied our sense of satisfaction as we headed home, feeling that we had left a job well done.