Not sure if that's parquet, looks more like a herringbone design. But in my (non pro) opinion, it's gorgeous! I'm interested to hear what the others have to say. Good luck!

Please keep this amazing floor and only cover with area carpets,
Does it need refinishing? Looks good in photos.

great floor. I would not white wash it, leave it as it is

This floor is beautiful! Do as little as possible to it; it looks like it's in good nick. If it needs it, have it sanded lightly (you can do this yourself, but it is a messy job!) & seal with a clear floor oil to bring out the natural colour of the wood. Then all you need are a couple of rugs to soften the look. What a lucky find!

I have herringbone wood floors in my inspiration books, my goodness that's a gorgeous floor! Honestly, looking at the pictures it doesn't appear that it needs anything, they are stunning! What a great find!!

Important that you go with someone that knows what they're doing, as these tiles are typically thinner than hardwood floors. Cost depends on location / location competition.

I think I have a similar floor in my living room and finding room. They were hidden under dark brown shag carpet when we moved in. I think they have a traditional look, which I love, and I prefer a darker stain. This is what I did

Whoops- that should be dining room

Depending on the year of your home- be sure they are not wax finished. Wax is impossible to sand. They are gorgeous. Darker would be more up to date, but they are pretty as is. You can whitewash them and they would be very nice.

Sbrustein, where did you get your fireplace screen?
Agree with all that floor should stay as is.

Parquet floors tend to be very thin strips of wood held down with glue, although some old herringbone floors are tongue and groove. Judging by your moldings, you have an older house. Back in the 1880s-1910, "wood carpets" were popular to add interest and pattern to a room and they can be difficult to restore. The floors came in rolls and were installed on top of the wood plank floors for an "updated" look, or were installed new, especially on the edges of floors not covered by rugs. http://www.brownstoner.com/blog/2010/07/walkabout-pourq-1/

Somewhat later homes had parquet floors installed over the subfloor. Such floors remained a popular option to about 1960, when the cheaper, thinner and easier to install parquet tile came on the market. Thank goodness it looks like you have the real thing.. The modern stuff is difficult to sand and refinish--stripper might be possible but too much liquid can make them buckle. I've learned that the hard way!

I would consult with a really good floor guy who knows old houses. And test in a small inconspicuous place before sanding the whole floor or anything drastic, maybe pry up a loose plank to see how much wood you have to work with. Be careful, some old glues contain asbestos. Staining can be difficult with an older floor, it can easily come out uneven and blotchy, even with very careful surface prep.

As Crew of Two suggested, consider stripping them if they are waxed. Or rent a buffer and polish them (but not if they have poly on them). They look quite nice as they are and may need just a bit of a refresh--just consider the imperfections as part of their character, and cover the worst spots with area rugs.

Here are some parquet floor repair and refinishing links:

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-care-for-22574
http://www.peteshardwoodfloors.com/Wood-Floor-Techniques-101/floor-maintenance.html

http://homeguides.sfgate.com/refinish-parquet-wood-floor-37338.html (with more links on the bottom)

http://www.mibnet.se/home-improvement/gluing-loose-pieces-of-fishbone-parquetry-flooring-back-onto-the-floor.html

Extensive patch and refinish job for a whole house:


http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/oldhouse/msg121529068562.html

http://www.peteshardwoodfloors.com/Wood-Floor-Techniques-101/finishing-options-at-pete-s.html

History of the Herringbone floor:

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/design-glossary-herringbone-or-153372
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/style-glossary-parquet-de-vers-152962

Gorgeous floors. It would be a huge mistake to replace them, IMO. Find the best wood floor guy in your area to have a look, get an estimate, and find out what you can reasonably do yourself.

From your pictures, your floors were probably sanded before. Professional sanding machines can be rented. They are very heavy and require know how. My husband tried it once, and did some damage to the floor similar to what is shown on your second picture.
By all means, deal with a professional, as it may not be possible to sand your floors a second time.

sbrustein...your floors are lovely!! They seem to be similar to mine (type and width) but your herringbone pattern & the darker inset around the fireplace is looking to be from around 1900 to maybe 1910.

To the OP...I'd have your floor checked by an experienced old-school carpenter & find out how old they are, how thick they are & if they have ever been sanded prior to now.

Just taking a sander to that floor could be a big mistake if you don't know what's already been done to it.

I have pine floor in the upstairs bedrooms, but downstairs...nearly 100 yo oak. These floors have been through about 4 generations of families & still look great. These pics were right after I moved in 6+ yrs ago

Cool floor! Finding someone to work on that floor might be a challenge, so consider looking around your area for a historic preservation or old house lovers group. Are there any places you can pull up a hidden piece and see how thick the floor is? Just remember that the open areas will likely be thinner than the edges

Hard to tell, sometimes, if a floor is oak or yellow southern pine, but oak does not have knots in it. Just looking at your photos, I would guess they are the YSP, which is harder than white pine, but not as hard as oak. Similar graining, though. If you decide to have sanded, get a professional. If a sander is left in one spot too long you can get gouges, which it looks like someone did in one of your photos. I'd say just to live with them for awhile as is. They look great!

Mrwillie- I bought the fireplace screen about 6 years ago. I think from a catalogue like home decorators.com. Very reasonably priced and hides a really ugly fireplace interior.
My house was built in 1927 and the floors are original to the house

rent a box sander- it doesn't matte which direction you move it in. :) Keep the floors, stain them darker with a less shiny top coat.

*matter

Thank you all for so much advice. So, it looks like we'll keep the flooring in the two rooms. I'll have to pull out staples and get it sanded and varnished. Oh, not forgetting the beading. We'll paint the woodwork white.

as in the skirting, doors, not the floor. :D

I would pay a great deal of money for those floors. Keep them. Sand and polish as necessary.

The floor is gorgeous! This is a project that is well worth a sand and refinish, and there are a variety of stains available should you want to change the color to coordinate with other home decor. I would personally use a natural finish to enhance the natural character of the boards.

With this project you would want to have a professional perform the refinishing; the wear layer on this type of hardwood is typically only thick enough to withstand about three sand and refinish revivals versus a solid wood which can take about seven. The proper equipment, as has been noted in previous comments, is heavy and requires a good amount of skill to properly use. Make sure your pro is using a type of equipment that captures excess saw dust. This helps speed the job up quite a bit. Also be prepared to be out of the house for about three days since each coat takes a day to dry; the fumes are not pleasant at all.

I attached a photo of some of the equipment your professional may have. If you really want to undertake the job yourself this gives you an idea of what you will need.

Have fun pulling all those staples...just when you think you have pulled out every possible staple, you will find another one. Depending on the width and depth, a good pair of electrician's sidecutters or a pair of nippers with a rounded head are good tools to use. A good pair of nail pullers are an invaluable tool for working on old houses...just be careful to keep a close eye on them because everyone who doesn't have a pair likes to borrow them

With all due respect... by the looks of your center photo, the floors have already undergone the "sanding" attempts of a previous do-it-yourselfer...
Those odd looking "swoosh" marks are the result of someone who was clueless about sanding a floor.
The material looks like pine or fir... which is soft-wood, and not that easy to work with when a stained look is desired.
Definitely recommend having a QUALIFIED wood flooring person take a look... (and not everyone who thinks they fall into that category, will be able to pull it off, for that matter).
But your Herringbone PARQUET pattern would be worth the time & effort and provide a great floor with the right people performing the work.

Your floor in this instance is beyond being a fashion item, it is a statement of quality.
It is a traditional parquet design and of a comparatively softwood construction and is beautiful. As has been stated already it does look as though it has been mistreated with a handheld belt sander.
If the thickness of the tiles permit then you really should have it resurfaced professionally and retain its natural beauty. No stains, no paint, introduce floor coverings in the form of rugs etc if you need to introduce plain tones.
As with most architectural items quality will be fashionable again.

You are soo lucky! Those floors are stunning! Please don't paint or stain.

I'd suggest getting in there and doing some detailed cleaning before anything else. I helped a friend do this with a similar floor and it turned out she didn't need to touch the floor.

If you do elect to refinish and budget is a concern, i would recommend hiring someone for the sanding, then doing the staining on your own. That's what we did, and I think anyone with a basic DIY skill set can pull that off. Our floor guy was great about explaining how to do it, and giving us tips before he left. It is a pain in the butt though, because you have to let everything dry, etc.

I really like the distressed look of the flooring...

Moona
Please restore this parquet flooring and you can clean with soft wool cloth and beware of water as it will darkens do not hide the wooden strips , and goes under it. Do not paint or stain you can place a small carpet here and there do not hide. It is really marvelous...

Lucky you - discovering a Parquet floor, this one is Pine, laid herringbone design, it has been previously sanded - not sympathetically though, you can see some chatter marks. Don't worry they will all come out - if you have it professionally sanded - Parquet is a specialist sand as the grain of the wood is not in all the same direction.

It can be stained - I would reccommend a water based stain and finished in a clear matt lacquer.

If you wanted to paint it white, you would need to treat all the knots with knot primer, followed by a floor primer, then a couple of coats of paint ie Farrow & Ball

Personal recommendation a clear finish to highligh the knots and grain of your wood - using white accents

Good Kuck - Elaine

Hi Kashif, I'd love to see what you did to your reception room. Since this dilemma was posted a while back, perhaps you have an update for us?

here's an update 5 October 2015:

Nice. Thanks for the update. Glad you kept the floors.

Why is it I have never bought a home and discovered hardwood flooring under the carpet. Lucky you. Love your floors. I wouldn't do a thing. Spend your money on some beautiful area rugs.

Looks lovely, thanks for the update! Agree that bookshelves would make the room even nicer. Thumbs up!

Saw the update. Looks good. Your wife did a great job on the curtains.

Always worth keeping and restore. Yes, it can be made lighter. Flooreno does this kind of services. The best alternative to paint is bleaching.