Wood Stain Tips and Tricks

I time my manicures around my house projects. If there is a can of paint or stain project on the calendar I hold off on a manicure. Even with gloves I still manage to end up with as much stain on my hands and shorts than on the most recent project. Over the last few years, I have learned a few wood stain tips and tricks.

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WOOD STAIN TIPS AND TRICKS

1. Prep the area. Wood stain is a bit fussier than latex paint. Stain likes to linger or seep through surfaces. I prefer to use retail delivery boxes for my stain projects. Unlike a drop cloth, cardboard boxes are durable and absorb the stain quicker than a drop cloth.

2. Lightly Sand the Wood If you are working with unfinished wood take a few minutes to lightly sand the surface.

I get it- you just want to get going on this wood stain project and not think about wood stain tips and tricks.

Yes, this is an extra step and it creates dust. However, it will make the next tip and trick so much easier.

3. Use a Pre-Stain Wood Conditioner Yes, there is actually a product to make your stain projects so much easier. Think of a pre-stain wood conditioner like a conditioning mask for your furniture or wood slab. You use the wood conditioner after a light sanding and before the stain is applied.

My husband shared this tip with me a few years ago. Every wood project that involves a surface area larger than a small cutting board gets the wood pre-conditioning treatment.

4. How to Stain Small Objects: One of my first decor challenges involved a dozen embroidery hoops. There was no way I had the patience to stain 12 embroidery hoops with a foam brush. Instead, I used a catering tray and added the embroidery hoops to the bottom of the tray.

I poured less than a 1/2 cup of stain and tilted the pan so the stain pooled in one corner. Then it was just a matter of corraling the hoops into the corner of the pan.

I let them sit on cardboard for a few minutes and then transferred them to an open bike rack in the garage to completely dry.

5. Play with different Stains When I began staining furniture I hit the stain lottery by quickly discovering my favorite stain. It is used in most of my wood stain projects like this one and this one. But, my husband had quite the collection of scrap wood and stain samples like oak and pecan. That’s okay. We both fell in love with Jacobean. There is no right or wrong, but if you find “the one” it removes the guesswork (and additional time) a when you just want to “get it done.”

Thank you for stopping by!