Replies

1. 
   oldusty | Jun 16, 2008 07:19pm | #1

       Seems I've seen a deck stain er such in that color range .

                  good luck           dusty

2. 
   HowardAcheson | Jun 16, 2008 07:24pm | #2

   >> I doubt minwax makes a driftwood color stain

   They do. Go here: http://www.minwax.com/products/wood_stains/wood_finish.cfm

   But, there is more to it than just the stain. Different woods will react differently. There's also the "look" or slightly eaten away andsort of smoothed look of the wood.

   You must try the stain on different woods to get the one that will look like the customer expects.

   Howie.........
3. 
   lostcreek | Jun 16, 2008 07:27pm | #3

   Yes, there is a product that I have used to make the cut or routed edges of barnwood match the rest of the piece on picture frames. I'll try to dig through the shop to find the name of it. Meanwhile, Google "how to age wood" to get some other ideas...
   lostcreek

1. 
   Malice | Jun 16, 2008 08:17pm | #5

   That is how she originally stated the color "barnwood"... i'd love to hear what it is you use!

   Thanks!

1. 
   Gretchen | Jun 16, 2008 10:28pm | #6

   You can burnish it with a butane torch and it will look a bit like that. I think I have seen references to making a mix of steel wool or nails and water and then brushing that on.Gretchen

1. 
   Eef | Jun 18, 2008 12:48am | #7

   gretch,

   i could be wrong, but i think it's steel wool and vinegar.

   eef

4. 
   Len | Jun 16, 2008 08:07pm | #4

   Dyes come in a wide range of colors. You can mix them to get the color you want. I've also done a wash of thinned acrylics to color wood and dry brushed to get the desired highlites.

   Len

   "You cannot antagonize and influence at the same time. " J. S. Knox

5. 
   Quickstep | Jun 18, 2008 06:02pm | #8

   Cabot's makes a product designed to accelerate bleaching. Here's a link:

   http://www.cabotstain.com/products/product/Bleaching-Oil.html

    

   I think repeated applications of Oxalic Acid might acheive the same effect.

6. 
   KStrick | Jun 18, 2008 08:50pm | #9

   First you need to prepare the wood. Generally when I used to do it we would use a soft wood such as poplar or bass without a lot of character. You have to get pretty rough with it. We used a wood handle with nails driven through it to "scrounge" the wood. Don't know if that is a word but that's what we called the finish. You can also fur up the surface with a stiff wire brush. For the color we used thin water based paint in a variety of grays and tans. The two main colors would be a basic light gray and a tan made up from burnt umber raw umber and white. Mix together as desired. The key is to use the paint extremely thin. You can also add accents with thicker color. There is not really a right or wrong. After you achieve the color effect you want go back and sand it out to get the smoothed out weathered look. At this point you can use oil and oil stains to recolor the bare wood. Hope this makes sense and is helpful. I used to do this on picture frames and you really can't get to rough. Have fun.

   Kevin

7. 
   troys | Jun 18, 2008 09:44pm | #10

   Just a word of caution just in case you had not thought of this. I would do a large samples and have her sign off on it. Just to be sure that the client does not say "thats not what I had in mind"

   good luck

   Troy

1. 
   Quickstep | Jun 18, 2008 10:10pm | #11

   That sounds like sage advice.... Possibly learned the hard way. Good catch!!!

1. 
   troys | Jun 19, 2008 06:37am | #12

   I always like learning from somebody else's mistakes:)Troy

1. 
   Malice | Jun 19, 2008 05:54pm | #13

   I went to the local paint store and had them tint some water-based stains white and black...brought em home, mixed em up and got exactly what she wanted! I tested it on scrap wood, the same type of wood the piece will be made of and it worked perfectly. I didn't even realize you could get stain colors custom made!  Thank yall for the help, as usual the info has been most valuable!

   I had to go this route because I can't "stress" the wood any, as it will be pyrographed with artwork.  I sent her a pic of the scrap piece tho and she was very happy with it.

   Thanks again!

   ~Malice

1. 
   Phoebe in Asheville | Jun 21, 2008 01:49pm | #14

   I use sandblasting or a wire brush (on a drill or a grinder) to get that wonderful "eaten away" texture - works better on certain woods with pronounced grain. I hear that a torch also will do this.Phoebe