Hi

I'm planning to cover about 1000 sq ft of first floor with hardwood. We are interested in light or medium colored wood. We were bored of Oak.

Today evening I placed an order for solid, 3/4" thick, 5" wide, natural Hickory of Mohawk at Lowe's. The samples on the shelf looked nice, but when I checked online, all the finished floors with natural Hickory seems to have too varied patterns. I'm now concerned if natural Hickory is appropriate for a house -- it feels too rustic and more apt for a cabin not a house. Also, I'm concerned if 5" Hickory would cause trouble in terms of expansion. Are my fears unwarranted?

So we are now thinking of cancelling our order, and pick one of the options below, which fit within our budget (about 4.5$ per sq.ft):

Somerset, natural Maple, 4" wide
Mullican, natural Maple, 3" wide
Bellawood, natural Maple, 3.35" wide

Q1: Would you recommend that I go with one of the options above, if I'm looking for a more uniform look than Hickory?

Q2: Would you recommend a better option for my situation? I just want something nice and medium colored that is not Oak.

Q3: Has anyone here had some experience getting your wood from an online company. We are looking at floormingo, which is giving a good deal on Somerset Maple. Or is it too unreliable?