I am building a cabinet for a friend and trying to match the finish of some other itmes that he already has. The wood I am using is Poplar and I am trying to get a stain that will give an even light color which will match the light portions of my poplar, but hide the darker streaks. In other words to get an even color the same as the light part of the poplar.
Any suggestions? and if it is a dye stain, the particular brand or color.
thanks
Edited 12/9/2006 11:40 am ET by uncas
Replies
Poplar is tough to color sometimes.
You should include a color picture of what you are looking for in terms of matching.
I have found that dyes work much better on Poplar than stains.
Please include a color picture of the match you are going for and we'll see what we can do.
I use Transtint dyes for the most part. They can either be wiped on quickly, or placed into a Shellac to color or into a finish to tone the wood.
There are many options to get you the desired color.
Poplar is really tough to stain, I usually try to open the grain first with a damp wipe . I use a sponge with water mixed with tsp + bleach. After the wood drys I use a water based dye Which penetrates a little deeper into the wood fibers. A water based sealer will keep the colors lighter and more even, if your trying to acheive that type of look . Try test piece first.
Try a little Wood Conditoner (Minwax) on a piece of scrap and then apply your stain. It really evens things out and prevents blotching.
Then use your stain, seal with superblonde dewaxed shellac and then your top finish.
You can make poplar look like most anything.
Frank
<<< "Then use your stain, seal with superblonde dewaxed shellac and then your top finish.">>>
Frank, did you mean "Stain" as you said, or did you mean, dye? I intend to color some poplar soon and know nothing of dyes and had hoped to be able to remain clueless (at least for now)- Thanks-
Dave
Don't flinch from dyes. They are among the most important tools in the arsenal for achieving good finishes. And, they aren't really difficult to use. Dyes "blotch" less than pigmented stain, and are about the only way to achieve a medium to dark color without just "painting" on pigment that obscures the wood. The darkness is controlled by how concentrated you mix the dye, not how you apply it.
Application is best done by virtually flooding the surface with the dye, and then wiping off excess. You should be neat, so that you don't have runs or splashes onto undyed surfaces that you don't cover quickly with fresh dye. Otherwise it is pretty much foolproof. You do have to test the effects on scrap wood before doing it on the project. You can't tell what a dried dye will look like until you apply a top coat (or mineral spirits to simulate the top coat). Before they are coated dyed surfaces can appear awful.
Kay, and thank you- What dyes do you find favorable and where do you purchase them? Thanks again- Yogi
I have used TransFast and TransTint dyes, especially since I can get them at my local Woodcraft, usually when I am eager to start cutting wood for a new project and want to work out finish ideas before I start. http://www.homesteadfinishing.com is also a good source for these.
I have also used a number of dyes from Woodworker's Supply. http://www.woodworker.com Although these are marketed under the Moser house label, they appear to be the Lockwood dyes.
I have been itching to try the Arti dyes at Highland Hardware, especially the ArtiPorin line that is formulated specifically to color the pores of woods like oak where sometimes the almost waxy inner wall of the pores does not take dye. But, I hardly ever work with oak, and the workaround is simple--just use a pigment stain after the dye has been lightly sealed. http://www.highlandhardware.com
Edited 12/10/2006 5:40 am ET by SteveSchoene
Steve- Thanks very much- Think I'll try some dyes-
Yogi,
I am sorry. I should have been more specific. When I used to work with poplar I always used wax based stains (minwax). I don't know if you can use stain on top of wood conditioner (which is basically thinned out BLO).
I have used some dyes with nice results. It might be worth palying around with some scraps and see what you like.
The last time I used poplar it was as a secondary wood.I just sealed it with shellac. Interestingly, I itched from head to toe the last time I used it. Has anyone else ever gotten sensitized (allergic) to poplar?
Minwax stains don't contain wax, that's just the brand name for a company that long ago did have some wood finish products that did contain wax. If they did have wax, polyurethane varnishes wouldn't adhere.
I use water solvent analine dyes from Lockwood, they've been making them for over 100 years and the price is right. And I use dyes on poplar a lot.
Go here: http://www.wdlockwood.com/main.html
Click on products and then you can drill down to different color charts, none of which will be perfect but will give you an idea about what you may need. Then call them and speak with the guy there, I don't know his name, but he's very knowledgeable. And you can buy 5 each 1 oz sample sets at a discount and they will ship them free.
John
Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you are trying to accomplish, but you won't be able to apply a light color stain that will also hide the dark streaks in the poplar you are using. Stains and dyes are basically transparent, they don't hide much of the underlying coloration.
John W.
>> In other words to get an even color the same as the light part of the poplar.
Can't be done unless you use paint. Stains darken wood even the wood that is already dark. That will get darker. No stain can lighten darker wood.
Sometimes commmercial furniture manufacturers will bleach wood to remove color. You can try using two part A/B bleach to remove the color.
As others have said, poplar does not color evenly even where the wood color may look the same.
John has gotten us back on track. He is quite right you can't use dye to cover dark streaks--you can only make everything as dark as the streaks. If you want to have light wood you have to start with light wood.
It's pretty tough to lighten wood with a stain!!! You'll have to use white or yellow pigments to lighten the dark streaks. They will be really difficult to blend in. What you are attempting is a fierce challenge for the best experts. I'd rate your chances as extremely slim.
Bottom line is that you need to eliminate the dark streaks during the wood selection process whenever you need to stain to light tints.
John is right on.
First of all I am wondering if the wood you are trying to match is poplar. If it is Poplar then your best bet is to look high and low for boards that match.
If you have already built the piece you will most likely need to use a combination of shading lacquers and stains. Spray equipment is a must and an airbrush can be handy. If you are trying to do what I think I think you should know that these are, in my opinion, the most advanced techniques in finishing. using shading lacquers to counter wood tone variation with out completely obscuring the grain is basicly like painting a picture that has no lines and the colours have to fade in some spots and cut clean lines in others.
Pardon my spelling,
Mike
Make sure that your next project is beyond your skill and requires tools you don't have. You won't regret it.
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