Enticing white oak on a PNW home

Mercedes and her husband moved from sunny, Sydney, Australia to the Pacific Northwest and settled in Seattle. Excited to purchase their first house, they wanted to make it a home. Mercedes had a vision of her dream house and she wasn’t going to let that dream go. Her husband, Carlos, wanted a pet-friendly home for their chocolate lab. Together, read how they made some changes that dramatically transformed a new-construction house to a welcoming, custom home.

We bought our house in December 2018, as first time home owners. Being new construction, there was nothing really wrong with the house, it was actually perfect. It had lots of space for the two of us and our dog. Everything was new and shiny. The colors were modern. But it just wasn’t what I had envisioned as my dream home. We decided to get some quotes on improving the house to our dream home.

I needed a lighter palette to compensate for the rainy winter days and cloudy skies of the PNW. Instead of dark cabinets, my perfect kitchen was pale gray paired with white countertops. Rather than the dark, cold LVP that made the space look small, I wanted a white oak matte greige wood with a lot of character to get a modern farmhouse look.

Carlos and I looked at the Woodpecker USA website and were going to order samples of their flooring when we noticed they have a showroom in Seattle. We went for a visit and spoke to Lorin (who was very helpful AND knowledgeable by the way).

Falling in love with the Berkeley collection, specifically the gray oak, was a blessing. It was everything we were looking for in a floor: wide, long engineered plank, grey wood flooring, great character and has visible knots with a handscraped smooth finish for a rustic look.

Engineered wood flooring Berkeley grey Christmas

Unsure about whether to replace only the LVP, we had to weigh our options. The carpet was brand new. However, in the end we decided to install the entire house with 2,300 sf of Woodpecker Berkeley Grey Oak.

It transformed the house to our dream home and we couldn’t be happier. It is easy to clean and the lighter colors make the space brighter, perfect for that unpredictable Seattle weather.