When staining raw wood, rub it down first with alcohol to bring out the grain.
By Ron from Cortez, CO
This page contains the following solutions.
I used a off white throw rug and dyed it 3 different colors. I did strips in blue, brown and green. While doing this, I used a piece of wood that was natural to make my lines.
First sand the wood and remove any dust before staining. A clean, used pair of nylons or panty hose works well for applying stain to wood. The nylon provides an even coat and doesn't leave behind any lint.
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
I have a coffee table that I would like to match my TV stand. It would require me to go from light wood to mahogany. If I'm going darker, do I have to strip the stain away completely? Or can I strip off the varnish and apply a darker stain?
By thegoodone1984 from Anchorage, AK
You only need to sand off the polyurethane finish. Then you can apply your stain. I would recommend a gel stain if you are going from a light color to a dark color.
If you're only stripping off the varnish, make sure you get it all! Otherwise the stain won't soak into the wood as well. I have always gotten the best results when stripping everything off, even though it takes more work.
I think you'll have better luck sanding down to bare wood so you know you've gotten all of it off.
I am refinishing an old oak desk. I have removed the polyurethane, but there are a lot of aged old black marks still on the wood. How do I get those off before I stain the wood?
By Teresa
How do you stain mahogany?
Neil from Mt. Peasant, PA
