Hey all
Back with another ?.
I have a client that needs 4 stools — 2 to be “black” and 2 to be “natural”.
I’m trying to get by with what I have on hand. I have enough ash for two stools and enough poplar for two stools.
I’ve got india ink but really don’t care for it. I found it incredibly tedious and blotchy when I used it on ash stools recently. I recently bought some tannic acid which I still have yet to test in tandem with an iron solution.
I’ve considered faux milk paint from general finishes but not sure it will let enough gain show for the client.
Ideally I’d like to keep the ash natural and dye the poplar. But I know poplar can be tricky to dye. Anyone have experience oxidizing it with a tannic wash and following up with iron? I know I can get ash nice and black that way, but I’d be sacrificing the “nicer” looking wood by leaving the poplar natural and ebonizing the ash. It would also be beneficial to ebonize the poplar to hide the green spots. I’ve had decent success ebonizing a test piece of poplar with a strong tea and iron, but I’m slightly worried a larger area may reveal some blotchiness.
To summarize, anyone ever ebonize poplar successfully? I can’t seem to find any articles that specifically name poplar. I’m sure I’ve read all the FWW and PW articles on the subject of ebonzing.
Anyone have experience with black milkpaint on poplar?
Anyone have success with india ink on poplar?
THANKS!
Replies
I made an ebonized poplar quilt ladder for a friend. I used 2 thin coats of flat black rustoleum applied with a rag, overcoated with shellac and rubbed out with steel wool and wax. Nice look to it. Not sure how the rungs would hold up to shoes though.
Try black shoe dye. I have on many pieces and it held up well.
White vinegar judiciously applied has always worked for me.
Mikaol
Hmm thanks for the tips. Ill have to experiment with shoe polish. I don’t think vinegar alone is going to achieve any “black”. I will also look into black rustoleum, although I’ll probably go with faux milk paint if I go the paint route.
I have had good results roasting wood in the past to change colors but never tried poplar. Last night I put some in with dinner. The photo is before and after 3 hours at 350 degrees F. White oak, Ipe, and Cherry all went jet black with the same treatment. I wrap the wood airtight in foil, rolling and crimping it closed. The color changes are through & through.
I'm sure there are lots of ways to do this but if you have India ink on hand and a way to spray, it works great and is dead black.
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