I have to admit that staining cherry is a cardinal sin, but this new house has a ton of cherry cabinets, stained cranberry, in the kitchen and the bathrooms, so I have to try to match the color for some mirrors. I vaguely recall having to do this 15 or 20 years ago, but must have destroyed any record to avoid self-incrimination. I think I used a water based stain from Clearwater Color company, followed by some other stain or glaze, burnt umber maybe?, can’t recall. Is there another sinner out there who could set me straight?
I don't agree that staining cherry is a sin. It is your project. Do as you like. Cherry, of course, darkens naturally over time, but maybe you don't want to wait. Or, you want to even out some color variations.
I can't speak to your method, but I have had good results applying a one time coat of clear danish oil (Watco), let it dry about 12 hours, and then stain with oil based gel stain. The combination of danish and gel stain seems to minimize if not eliminate blotching.
(04-06-2022, 06:34 PM)blacklab Wrote: I have to admit that staining cherry is a cardinal sin, but this new house has a ton of cherry cabinets, stained cranberry, in the kitchen and the bathrooms, so I have to try to match the color for some mirrors. I vaguely recall having to do this 15 or 20 years ago, but must have destroyed any record to avoid self-incrimination. I think I used a water based stain from Clearwater Color company, followed by some other stain or glaze, burnt umber maybe?, can’t recall. Is there another sinner out there who could set me straight?
I used a formula from Charles Neil that worked pretty well a few times to cover up the sap wood in some small tambor tables I made out of leftovers. The leftovers were from different batch purchases of cherry and being leftovers were a mix of sap and heart wood (heavy on the sap wood). I wanted something more uniform.
I have a couple different versions of the formula, here's one using just two colors from the GF line:
2 parts Cinnamon
1 part Light Brown
This worked fine BUT the GF products have just a bit of binder in them so you have to move pretty quickly with the flood and wipe method to keep things even.
I think if I was to do it again I might make it more like 1.5 or 1.75 parts of the Cinnamon stain. Experiment on scrap, etc.
Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things. -- G. Carlin
(04-07-2022, 09:47 AM)Willyou Wrote: I don't agree that staining cherry is a sin. It is your project. Do as you like. Cherry, of course, darkens naturally over time, but maybe you don't want to wait. Or, you want to even out some color variations.
I can't speak to your method, but I have had good results applying a one time coat of clear danish oil (Watco), let it dry about 12 hours, and then stain with oil based gel stain. The combination of danish and gel stain seems to minimize if not eliminate blotching.
Thanx for that, Willyou…. Wonder if you coated or sealed the gel stain? Likely I would try to use Formby’s tung for the sealer, never having used Watco…
Never had a problems imitating advanced age in cherry, with a little glaze, but a house full of Cranberry completely obscures the grain and the identity of the tree, for the sake of uniformity. A bridge to far for me. Of course, uniformity is what home owners often want, so you can’t blame the cabinet maker, and most home owners aren’t woodworkers.
(04-08-2022, 02:16 PM)jcclark Wrote: I like it stained.
This is cherry with a walnut stain
Yeah, looks good, jc….. gentle enough not to obscure the grain, just shifts the hue. Looks as though the cherry hasn’t darkened over the years?
Some years ago I did a number of projects that combined cherry and walnut, partly for convenience and waste reduction, since I only have one dimension of walnut, and all dimensions of cherry. Coincidentally, I’m just this week refinishing a walnut bed frame with cherry spindles, that I did about 10 years ago. I have found that the contrasts between naturally finished cherry and walnut is displeasing to my eyes, and that displeasure has increased with the age darkening of the cherry. Hindsight is 20/20, but looking at your project, I wish I had done those spindles with your stain. I think I’ll try this. Do you recall your formulation and sequence?
(04-08-2022, 08:29 PM)blacklab Wrote: Thanx for that, Willyou…. Wonder if you coated or sealed the gel stain? Likely I would try to use Formby’s tung for the sealer, never having used Watco…
Never had a problems imitating advanced age in cherry, with a little glaze, but a house full of Cranberry completely obscures the grain and the identity of the tree, for the sake of uniformity. A bridge to far for me. Of course, uniformity is what home owners often want, so you can’t blame the cabinet maker, and most home owners aren’t woodworkers.
Yes. I usually apply a film finish like polyurethane over the stain.
I have not tried the Formby's product. So, I can't say how it would work. The danish oil (Watco) is very easy to use. Just follow the directions on the can; flood it on, let sit for 10-15 minutes, wipe off any excess that hasn't soaked in until the wood feels dry, and let the oil cure.
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