|
| Hi y'all,
So I was driving down the street when I saw two hand-carved Spanish Colonial chair frames sitting in the gutter with a sign that said "FREE". Now, these chairs were pretty water-damaged, all gray on the backs and bottom parts (rails? sorry- don't know the parts of chairs). I says to myself "no problem, heh heh heh, I'll just get some Wood Bleach and fix that". $85.00 worth of Wood Bleach later, I still have two badly stained "FREE" Spanish Colonial chairs. It seems that I need a new strategy, cheap as I am. Does anyone have any creative ideas to share on a wood finish? I will paint as a last resort, but I love the "rustic" look, so perhaps a mottled grayish weathered look would work. I believe the wood is Mesquite. I would like to upholster them in leather or suede, if that helps, and I want to use rustic "clavos" of some sort to attach the leather. Any hare-brained idea will be much appreciated and carefully considered before settling on a course of action, and finished photos will be posted for all to stare at in shock. Yours truly,
Bad Photo of Free Chair:
Worse Photo of Water/Sun Damage:
Dang, sorry the photos are so big. |
Follow-Up Postings:
|
| If you live in/near a city that has a WoodCraft store, go to the store and see if one of the staff---or one of the instructors is proficient in wood dyes. Or find a cabinet shop/woodworker who is knowlegeable. Show them the chair(s) and tell them what you want to do. |
|
- Posted by bobsmyuncle (My Page) on Fri, Jul 10, 09 at 22:59
|
- Posted by hosenemesis (My Page) on Sun, Jul 12, 09 at 20:02
| Thanks for the tip, handymac. There is a WoodCraft store within an hour's drive. If it comes to it, I may go there. I didn't know there was such a thing as wood dye. Hey, bobsmyuncle, Bob's my uncle too. Thank you to both of you for responding to my question. |
|
- Posted by bobsmyuncle (My Page) on Mon, Jul 13, 09 at 19:15
| I might have tried oxalic acid, that is often sold as a "deck brightener." I am in the middle of a project that was a "coffee stand" in a law office conference room and had numerous stains in the shape of equipment and water marks. I used the peroxide (A-B) bleach to get the residual stains out on it and it worked well. Very well, in fact, after the second application. I'd be tempted to use an oil-varnish blend (AKA Danish Oil) on the result to give a nice, in the wood, finish. That would be my taste on this "rustic" piece. Meanwhile, $300 later, you have a "free chair." :-) One of my daughters is named Renata (same root as Renee) and her daughter's middle name is Renee. Small world ;-) |
|
- Posted by hosenemesis (My Page) on Wed, Jul 15, 09 at 15:03
| Hey renatasmydaughter/bobsmyuncle, I think I'll take your advice on the Danish Oil. If I "weather" the carved areas a bit more by putting a little brown/gray wash on the chairs and then sand them a little, then apply the finish, some people may be fooled into thinking they were supposed to look that way. I'll post a photo when I'm done procrastinating... Renee |
Please Note: Only registered members are able to post messages to this forum. If you are a member, please log in. If you aren't yet a member, join now!
Return to the Woodworking Forum
Instructions
- You must be a registered member and logged in to post messages on our forums.
- Posting is a two-step process. Once you have composed your message, you will be taken to the preview page. You will then have a chance to review the contents and make changes.
- After posting your message, you may need to refresh the forum page in order to see it.
- It is illegal to post copyrighted material without the owner's consent.
- HTML codes are allowed in the message field only.
- No advertising is allowed in any of the forums.
- If you would like to practice posting or uploading photos, please visit our Test forum.
- If you need assistance, please Contact Us and we will be happy to help.