I hired a contractor to sand exposed beams before staining/applying a seal coat. Unfortunately I returned a few hours after they began and they had already started staining in “brown mahogany” when the goal was to lighten up the room (the beams were all different colors and had dust and grime attached to them previously). Thankfully they only began staining small areas in two corners of the kitchen and were able to mostly sand it away. (The last image is from before any sanding was done.)

I hand sanded away all beams as best I could, but as you can see in the photos there are darker spots in the wood. My goal is for them to be a rustic piece in the kitchen and keeping them a lighter color. Has anyone had experience with rough cut exposed beams such as these? It’s also important to note they appear to be multiple different wood species.

I am OK with imperfections/not having the color be completely uniform but want to make it look the best it can. Thanks!