Beautiful Wood Floors

06/03/2026

Another solo and magnificent effort by my son, Nicholas Burnam.

This project required a bit more than just hard work—it demanded thoughtful problem-solving, patience, and a delicate touch.

Australian Cypress can be a challenging species for even experienced refinishing craftsmen. Unlike traditional hardwoods such as oak or maple, Cypress contains very soft grain interspersed with extremely hard knots. During sanding, the softer grain cuts away much more quickly than the knots, creating a challenge we call “dish-out.” If not handled properly, the result can be a floor that appears rippled, with the knots standing proud above the surrounding surface rather than maintaining a smooth, flat plane. You’ve probably seen floors with that effect before without knowing what caused it.

Nick relied on his training, stayed disciplined in his sanding procedures, and paid close attention to the many details—including several tricky transitions and mixed-material areas. The result is exactly what every craftsman hopes for: an old, tired diamond in the rough restored to beautiful new life.

Maybe I’m a little biased, but I have to say it anyway:

Nick, outstanding work, sir.

Thank you for carrying the Burnam name with such professionalism and pride.

05/29/2026

05/29/2026

I am a proud father. This is my son’s, Nicholas Burnam, work.
From start to finish. He has “the gift”.
I can’t express how it feels to look at this and see what he has done and how it feels like a dream come true.

60+ year old red oak, finished with Odie’s Super Duper DARK oil.

IYKYK

05/28/2026

So the client wanted us to turn his black walnut floors into something that would resemble all of his natural looking quartersawn white oak doors, cabinets and trim (door case in these pics for reference)
How’d we do?

In a world becoming increasingly artificial, choose something real.
- Beautiful Wood Floors

. IYKYK

05/07/2026

For over 6 months now, I’ve been proud to be a VIP Member of Evelyn’s Cool Connections— an amazing local woman's networking group that truly supports small businesses and community connections. 💙

One of the awesome perks? WALDO Interior Design & Painting is featured every month in Tidbits of Kootenai County! 🎉🖌️

I’m incredibly grateful for the exposure, support, and relationships that have come from being part of this group. Supporting local businesses matters, and I’m thankful to be connected with so many great people here in North Idaho.

If you see my ad in Tidbits, give it a look — and if you’ve been thinking about updating your home with interior painting, design help, or color consultations, I’d love to work with you!
Thank you all for supporting local. ❤️

— Trisha Waldo
WALDO Interior Design & Painting

05/06/2026

Hardwood Flooring Craftsman / Apprentice Wanted

Coeur d’Alene • Spokane • North Idaho

Beautiful Wood Floors is looking for someone who takes pride in doing things the right way, not just the fast way.

We are interviewing for:

• Experienced hardwood floor sanding/refinishing craftsmen
• Or a motivated apprentice wanting to learn the trade

Pay: approximately $18–$35/hr DOE
• Weekends off in most cases
• Bonus potential
• NWFA training expected

Must have:
• Reliable transportation
• Professional attitude inside clients’ homes
• Clean background (insurance requirement)

Military veterans strongly encouraged to apply.

If interested, send a brief message with your experience and why this trade interests you.

— Beautiful Wood Floors
Serving Coeur d’Alene, Spokane, and surrounding communities.

05/05/2026

According to the National Association of Realtors, refinishing hardwood floors returns about 147% of its cost — the highest ROI of any interior project.

LVP can make a space look clean and updated, but it doesn’t carry the same resale premium. Hardwood actually increases what buyers are willing to pay.

05/01/2026

Not every floor gets the chance to reach its 100th birthday — and fewer still are trusted to craftsmen who understand what that milestone means.

This floor was installed in 1926, when this home became the first house built on Fernan Hill Road overlooking Coeur d’Alene.

A century later, the original white oak floor is still here, carrying the quiet history of the home in every board.

But time eventually catches up with every floor. The nails are beginning to show, which means the wood has reached the end of its sanding life. This refinish would likely be the last full sanding this floor will ever see.

We were honored to be the craftsmen trusted to do it.

After sanding, the client chose Odie’s Oil to protect the floor moving forward. It’s a system we’ve come to trust and specialize in, and at the moment it’s still relatively uncommon in the Coeur d’Alene area.

One thing the homeowner was especially excited about was finally saying goodbye to the old orange urethane look that many floors from past decades developed over time.

With the help of Odie’s Creative Colours, a little Titanium White, All the Greige, and a touch of Burnt Ochre, we softened and cooled the tone, creating a natural linen color while still allowing the warm patina that antique white oak develops over a century to remain.

One of the things we love about working with Odie’s is that every floor becomes a little bit one of a kind, shaped by the wood itself and the choices made during the finishing process.

Unlike older urethane finishes that amber heavily with age, Odie’s keeps the tone much more stable.

And when the floor eventually needs attention again, it won’t require sanding. A simple cleaning and a fresh application of Universal Oil will bring it back to life — good for another decade or more.

If a different color is ever desired down the road, Odie’s also offers ways to adjust the tone without another sanding, preserving the remaining life of the floor.

The result keeps the soul of the original floor intact while preparing it for the years ahead.

One hundred years old… and ready for the next century.

01/21/2026

I think it’s important to acknowledge a hard reality in our industry: the corporate, polyurethane-centric side of the business has perfected the art of gaslighting contractors. Product failures are routinely blamed on “application error,” even when those same products come with steep learning curves and undergo quiet formula or ingredient changes that blindside contractors and their crews with costly, on-site discoveries. I’m confident you can relate.

Now, here’s the part that truly matters.

Odie’s earned my loyalty the moment they flew a seasoned professional across the country—at no cost to me—to personally guide me through the process. Not only did I learn the product correctly, I made money while doing so. And every time I speak with that same professional, he’s doing exactly the same thing somewhere else in the country for another contractor.

That is outstanding.

In doing this, you’ve earned the right to speak plainly about the learning curve. You don’t deny it—you own it. More importantly, you’re willing to personally guide contractors through that curve on your dime. On top of that, your commitment to maintaining a consistent formula—backed by control over nearly your entire supply chain—means what we learn today will be the same tomorrow and years from now. That level of consistency allows us to predict our processes down to the minute and down to the dollar.

You put your money where your mouth is, and that sets you vastly apart from anyone else out there peddling “polyurethane with some assembly required” Euro oils.

Respect where it’s earned.

🧵 The woodworking industry has a dirty secret, and they’re using "misinformation" to protect it. Let’s talk about the Odie’s Oil controversy and what’s actually in your finish. 👇
~Rumor: "Odie's won't list their ingredients!" Reality: They protect their proprietary formula just like any innovator. What they do disclose in their Safety Data Sheets is that there are ZERO chemicals regulated by the EPA or OSHA.
~Most traditional finishes rely on: ❌ Isocyanates (Respiratory toxins) ❌ Heavy Metal Driers ❌ High VOCs Odie’s Oil? Food-safe, non-toxic, and safe for your kids to touch. 🥗👶
~The math is wild. 🧮 Conventional finish: Low price, low coverage, high toxicity. Odie's: Premium price, but covers 20x the area. 9oz = 120-500 sq ft. In the long run, the "safe" choice is actually the cheaper one.
~Don't let AI-generated rumors or corporate competitors scare you off. 190 million square feet of wood can't be wrong. Read the full truth here: odiesoil.com/blog/controversy