Creating a reproduction oldé worldé aged floor

Have you noticed the current fashion for antique effect finishes on floors? You might think that this type of work is very specialised but in fact it isn't, providing you with a fantastic opportunity to give customers exactly what they want.

For an antique oak effect here's what to do:

1. Sand the floor as usual distressing any boards with a ball pein hammer / sharp implement etc., to represent wear. Lightly resand.
2. Apply a single coat of Finney's Dark Oak Professional Water Stain and leave to dry.
3. Touch sand the boards when dry to expose paler wood in areas that need to look worn.
4. Restain with Finney's Dark Pine or Mid Oak Professional Water Stain to give extra richness to the dark oak stain and to replace the colour on the lightly sanded areas.
5. When dry apply a single coat of Finney’s Transparent Fixative to seal in the stain. Leave for 30 minutes.
6. Seal the floor using Finney’s Extra Tough Floor Varnish, Finney's Extra Tough HardWax Varnish or Finney’s Ultimate Floor Varnish.