Inside a 1929 MacGregor Home Restoration: How We Matched Original Wood Stain on New Baseboards

 By Chad Feagley | Cutting Edge Painting | Home Painting

When a general contractor reached out to us about an interior painting project earlier this year, we knew right away this wasn't going to be a typical job. The home — a 1929 build by legendary East Bay developer Charles MacGregor — carried nearly a century of character. Our task wasn't just to paint it. It was to honor it.

A Home Built by a Legend

Charles MacGregor built roughly 1,500 homes in the early 1920s and '30s, and if you've spent time in Albany, you've seen his work. He had a signature style: Mediterranean-texture exteriors, large picture windows — especially in living rooms — and a fondness for split-level floor plans, whether that meant a bedroom perched over a garage or a staircase that went halfway up and halfway down.

This particular MacGregor home was undergoing a near-complete remodel. By the time we arrived to estimate the job, contractors were still on-site putting the finishing touches together. New can lighting had been installed throughout, along with new baseboards, refinished floors, and all-new fixtures. The bones were original; nearly everything else was fresh.

The Challenge: Recreating Original Stained Wood

Here's where the project got interesting. The original windows — still in place, still wearing their coatings from the 1920s — gave the home an unmistakable warmth. The clients had fallen in love with that aged, stained-wood look. But the new pre-primed baseboards being installed throughout the home? Bright white. Factory-fresh. No character whatsoever.

The ask was clear: make the new baseboards look like they belong with the original windows. Recreate the appearance of old stained wood — without actually staining them.

That meant no shortcuts. I analyzed the original coatings closely, got together with my team and our paint reps, and we worked through the best method to achieve a convincing woodgrain effect on pre-primed surfaces. The results exceeded expectations.

The Reveal

In this video, you can see exactly what we were able to achieve. Look closely at the baseboards — they almost have the appearance of real woodgrain. The texture, the tone, the warmth. All created with paint and technique, not actual stain.

We carried this finish throughout the entryway, living room, dining room, and kitchen — and we freshened up the fireplace mantle to match the same aesthetic. Every inch of new trim now ties into the original windows, creating a cohesive look that feels authentic to the home's era.