The appeal of wooden furniture has been an integral part of our history. If maintained properly, it will withstand the test of time. However, over time and as a result of daily use, stains appear on wooden furniture. Often it looks older as a result of spots. But it takes time, labor and money to repurchase a single piece of wood furniture and many people do not want to discard it easily. That’s when you need to color or stain your wooden furniture. Varnish, oil and wax have been used for finishing wooden furniture for a long time now. So wondering how to stain or color wooden furniture? In today’s article we have broken down the steps for you.
Some Things to Remember
Furniture coloring or staining depends entirely on whether you are actually taking the whole preparation properly or not. The wooden furniture has to be cleaned by rubbing it so that the color or stain will sit on it. If there is any previous stain or dent on the furniture, the result will not be as expected. So, the final result depends on how much you are prepping the furniture.
Word of caution
You have to choose the place to stain or color the furniture with a lot of thought. A ventilated place should be chosen and a mask must be worn while staining. Also, removing stain or color from your skin can be difficult. So to prevent that, you must wear gloves at all times. Also wear protective glasses to protect your eyes.
Things you will need
Tools
Sandpaper
Sand foam
Brush
Microfiber staining pads
Vacuum machine
Microfiber cloth
Tack cloth
Constructor masking paper
Empty color can
Stain
Color coating
Ways to Stain or Color your Furniture
Often people get confused about how to stain or color wooden furniture. However, staining or coloring wooden furniture is quite easy. You can get it done by yourself. Some tools and time are all you would need.
Choose the workspace
Firstly choose an open space with a lot of ventilation. It can be a garage, balcony or an open room. But avoid places with heavy air flow. Use a plastic sheet beforehand to avoid damaging the floor with paint.
Remove Excess Stuff
Remove all excess items from the furniture. Remove all the things that don’t need to be rubbed by sandpaper such as hinges, knobs and other decorative items.
Rub the Furniture with Sandpaper
Carefully rub the whole furniture with sandpaper. Use sandfoam to remove any dark stains or varnish. The furniture should be rubbed well with sandpaper. A lot of the time there could be some remaining paint or varnish on the furniture. In that case, when you try to re-paint it, you might find some difficulties. To avoid this, all the paint and varnish should be removed from the wood by rubbing it well.
Clean the Dust
Clean the entire furniture with a vacuum cleaner. The whole furniture should also be cleaned with a brush. All dust and dirt must be cleaned properly. Wipe with a clean and white microfiber cloth so that not even a drop of dust is on the furniture.
Prepare the workspace
Move the furniture. Remove the plastic sheet and spread the cloth and spread a large paper or newsprint on the cloth. Then place the furniture on it. So that the fabric does not stick directly to the furniture while staining or coloring. Since the paper is spread out, it is easier to remove it even if it is on stain or colored paper. So it is very important to spread the paper well.
Mix the Color or Stain
Open the stain or color can after wearing gloves. Use an opening tool or screwdriver to open the can. Then stir the color with a wooden stick and mix the color well. Make sure the can doesn’t move at all. Pour the color into another empty color can.
Start Staining the Wood
You can start staining the furniture with a microfiber staining pad or brush. Dip the pad into the stainless can and then squeeze the excess. Next, stain the entire furniture with a pad. You can stain the spots that are more visible at first and when that part is dry, paint the rest.
Clean the Exccess Stain
While painting the furniture, it is always important to make sure the extra part of the furniture doesn’t get colored. Keep cleaning them as you go. If you don’t do that, there is a possibility of ruining the design and beauty of the furniture. So remove the color before it dries, otherwise it may be difficult to remove the excess color.
Let it Dry
Wood paint or stain does not take long to dry. You can remove the furniture in a couple of hours if you want. Keep furniture away from dusty places. Otherwise it will sit on the furniture.
Use a Protective Coating
Use a high quality protective coating when the paint or stain is finished. However, apply the coating only after making sure that the paint or stain has dried properly. This coating is used to protect wooden furniture. These coatings are used to make the furniture transparent as well. The original color or texture of the furniture remains unchanged and enhances the beauty of the furniture too.
When to Consult with an Expert
The design or shape of some wooden furniture is very complex. Shaping such complex designs with sandpaper can also be very critical at times. In cases like this, it would be wise to seek the help of an expert otherwise the color or stain will not sit well.
Since the beginning of time people have been using different types of wooden furniture. With time many different materials have be introduced but nothing could replace the appeal of wood furniture. The demand for wood as furniture seems to be increasing day by day. However, there are several things to keep in mind before buying furniture. Otherwise it will defuse the entire purpose of it.
