I just completed my first major woodworking project: a trestle table made mostly of Red Oak; however, the long stretcher is Ash, which I purchased on a whim. (Picture Attached).

My dilemma: I finally settled on a finish, General Finishes “Light Oak” Oil-Based Stain, with a coat of shellac, and topcoats of Arm-R-Seal, also by Gen. Finishes.

Then it came to testing it on a sample of my pesky piece of Ash. The Ash, done the same way, turns brown and clashes with the amber-hued finished Red Oak. I tried Danish Oil, which surprisingly turned out much like the “Light Oak” stain on the Red Oak, but I got the same result on the Ash—dull, brownish.

Ideas on finishing Ash to compliment or contrast with the Red Oak here would be appreciated.

In the picture, it looks almost like all the stretchers are Ash. They’re not. Only the long, center stretcher is Ash. The rest of the table is red oak.