Replies

1. 
   SteveSchoene | Mar 27, 2008 01:06pm | #1

   Here is a good piece that addresses most of your questions. 

    http://www.woodworking.org/WC/Garchive01/3_27colorants.html

   I generally prefer the consistency from using manufactured anilne stains, but quite often make my own pigment stains.

1. 
   flairwoodworks | Mar 29, 2008 07:44pm | #6

   Thanks for all the replies and for posting that link, Steve.  There's some very interesting stuff and it seems to be well-researched.Chris @ flairwoodworks

    - Success is not the key to happines.  Happiness is the key to success.  If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer

2. 
   blewcrowe | Mar 27, 2008 07:04pm | #2

   This is weird but I have a piece of furniture I regularly make for an art gallery. I color it with ground pastel pigments. I use several approaches. One is mixing them in BLO or some other carrier, letting it cure, then covering with shellac. The other is to apply a varnish type finish, then rain the pigment dust over it and letting it cure.

   Like I said, it's pretty weird. Makes for some interesting color effects though.

1. 
   9michael9 | Mar 31, 2008 12:03am | #8

   I would like to see some pictures of the results you get with this method.

1. 
   blewcrowe | Mar 31, 2008 04:06pm | #11

   I'm like totally inept in this attachment thing. Send me a private email through my profile and I'll forward some pics.

3. 
   Disputantum | Mar 27, 2008 08:33pm | #3

   I might try pokeweed juice for something when the plants come up later in the year. It was used for ink and textile dye a long time ago, but I haven't found anything about using it on wood.

   ne sutor ultra crepidam:  Disputantum Semirotten Woodworking

1. 
   blewcrowe | Mar 27, 2008 09:23pm | #5

   I think the berry juice of poke is orally, fairly toxic . I wonder if it has any dermal issues.

2. 
   9michael9 | Mar 31, 2008 12:06am | #9

   Poke weed berries were popular in the late 20's and early 30's as a furniture stain.  I was used on cheap furniture and it is not a desirable stain.  If you decide to use it wear gloves or people will think you have voted in Iraq. 

4. 
   RMillard | Mar 27, 2008 08:44pm | #4

   I have used dye made from walnut hulls. It produces a nice color, but not one that can't be made with an aniline dye.

   Lye to color cherry and mahogany. This results in a nice color on both woods, but is the best for cherry. The down side is it is very caustic. Requires careful experimentation.

   Lime to color cherry and Mahogany. This is okay for cherry, but has no equal for coloring mahogany. It leaves a beautiful, stable color of great depth and clarity. Requires careful experimentation.

   Rob Millard

   http://www.americanfederalperiod.com

5. 
   forestgirl | Mar 30, 2008 10:56pm | #7

   Chris, someday I want to try beet juice and see how that comes out.  That red, at least in the canned beets, is really striking!

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-) 
   
6. 
   wiskytango | Mar 31, 2008 07:36am | #10

   Funny you should ask this. About a month and a half ago i had some red oak chunks sitting by my espresso machine. Some splashed onto it and i rubbed it in and though it would make a nice stain. I havent really done anything with it but it looked like it would work.

7. 
   saschafer | Mar 31, 2008 08:39pm | #12

   The one big issue with homebrew dyes is lightfastness. There are a lot natural substances with very nice colors that fade (or worse, dramatically change color) with exposure to light.

   Dyes are also frequently pH-sensitive; woods tend to be somewhat acidic, and waterborne finishes are invariably basic, so both can affect the color. Mordants, which are chemicals used to set dyes in textiles (so that they don't wash out), can sometimes also make dyes more lightfast. Textile artists are the people who really know the most about natural dyes.

   -Steve

    

8. 
   woodshaves | Mar 31, 2008 10:21pm | #13

   My recent unorthodox stain matching was for the moulding of my home. The moulding is pine, they were oil stained and varnished in 1984. When I replaced the floor base moulding on 2 areas it was impossible to get the same color with the same oil stain (pine darkened and manufacturer variant). The solution was first to use the original oil stain (and as expected the color is lighter) and let it dry completely. Next I took a section of moulding to a local store that sells P & L latex paint (yes, latex) and they did the color match. I used the latex diluted with water as a color wash so the pigment in it completed the match. It's a perfect match. After a week drying, I oil varnished to match the sheen. 

1. 
   sapwood | Apr 01, 2008 12:06am | #14

   If you want bright colors and still retain the wood figure, you can experiment using artists oil paint. Stick to the transparent ones. The others, especially white, have pigments. I've used them along with wiping oils like Watco. The watco will both thin the paint and make it dry in a finite amount of time.

1. 
   blewcrowe | Apr 01, 2008 05:32pm | #15

   Generally, the lighter the color of pigment, the more opacity.