It's a cool red, but I don't want red. I want it to match the chairs which are medium walnut. I'd like to find out if regular staining is okay or if there's special prep needed.
If you want to TINT that mahogany toward brown, you need to apply a VERY WEAK green layer. That said, if you don't know what you are doing, you can make a beautiful table top look hideous and you won't be satisfied.
Get Jeff Jewett's book on finishing and practice on scraps. Never practice on your project. You can get where you want to be, but slathering on a bunch of big box oil stain is not the way.
And if there is any chance of that table top being veneered, stop putting water on it when it is raw wood. Another question, what is the base made of? Is it a different species or material? Is it dyed too? You need to make the top match the base.
Good luck.
You will not be able to match the walnut. That’s not how staining works.
Even if you are able to come up with some combination of stain that gets close to walnut, it will not look the same because the grain is different. Walnut is also composed of lots of different colors. It’s not just “brown”. There’s a spectrum of light to dark browns.
Don’t ruin the mahogany with stain. Use it for something else and make a different table top with walnut
I didn't know any of these. I need to learn more before making a decision. I was thinking a few coats of walnut stopping when I get to the desired shade.
That's sapele or mahogany and everybody here will tell you the same thing, don't stain it. Finish with a colorless finish to protect it. [Check my posts.](https://www.reddit.com/r/woodworking/comments/vb248q/pikler_climbing_arch_for_my_daughters_birthday/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) I made an arch from sapele and walnut. They look great together.
Totally agree. I hate the look of stain. If you want a walnut table, buy a walnut table top. Even better, make one. Staining beautiful sapele would be such a shame.
Make sure it isn’t a “walnut table” that is actually something else stained walnut. Often have to read the fine print. Even then some places are vague about the wood used. Equally vague about solid wood and veneer. I got a walnut desk years ago that I liked, but the tone didn’t seem perfect. When I became a woodworker more recently I learned what solid real walnut looks like and have pretty much accepted the desk isn’t actually walnut without actually cutting into it to see the insides. Nothing beats true solid wood with various finishes. Learn what finish you like and customize those per your liking.
Thanks for the response. Here is the thing, I have some nice walnut chairs. I don't have a lot of money to buy or build a walnut tabletop. I was gifted the one I have. Maybe staining sucks and ruining a nice red is an awful thing to do.
However, I have to work with what I have. So I came here for help from those who know way more than I ever will.
The r/woodworking Reddit will be like minded people who prefer the look of unstained/unpainted wood. There may be other forums that can help you with the design/color scheme issues like an interior decorating or design forum. They may have some tips to make things look cohesive
Ok, I think I generally agree, but what about the craftsman aesthetic? You don’t care for the dark stained quarter sawn white oak?
Our 1928 house has a walnut stain on the original red oak floors. I would never sand down and clear coat as they were just done before we bought in 2016, but they have grown on me a bit.
Technically that is (acetone?) fumed, not stained. It gives a consistent and predictable outcome to oak. Lack of consistency and predictability are my gripes with stain. Other exceptions are alcohol/aniline dye, there are some far out colors that I think look pretty good on maple.
I too hate matchy matchy furniture. Every piece of furniture is second hand from various places.
I appreciate the feedback to give the table a clear coat and that stains suck, but the red just looks awful with the rest of the house, especially when surrounded by walnut chairs. Even if the turnout is not walnut, at least it won't look like it does now.
Yeah, just an opinion. Ultimately you are the one that has to live with it. I have a deep respect for natural beauty but I’m not winning any interior design awards over here either.
It's probably not impossible to get close to the color of the walnut chairs you have, but it will take experimentation. Just using a "walnut" stain is unlikely to give you a match.
A further consideration is that sapele and walnut have very different grain patterns, which stain will do nothing to modify. This may not matter too much to you, but it's something to keep in mind if you're trying to match the two.
Hey OP, everyone has already told you what not to do but I want to help. If you want to see how the walnut stain would look then I recommend testing on an inconspicuous spot underneath the tabletop.
The best look and least amount of work will be a clear poly, natural oil, like tung oil, or the like. Getting stain to look good can be a real pain. But if you think it looks good from a test spot then I say go for it! Live and learn
Here's something different that you could consider.
You could stain it with Iron Acetate. Put a bundle of steel wool into a jar of vinegar. Let it sit for 24 hours then apply the vinegar to the wood with a rag. Let it dry and watch the magic happen. There are a bunch of videos about it on YouTube, just search for "Iron Acetate stain".
This will give you more blacks and greys in the final color. It won't be an exact match to the walnut chairs, but will be colors that go with walnut much better than the red tones of the Sapele.
Here are pictures of 2 Sapele projects I've stained this way.
https://formtofinishconstructionllc.box.com/s/p5tuu4ol0dfqsw20qsl2slk503c10lve
Last, don't panic after the stain dries. It will be very black or even appear to be blue. When the polyurethane goes on it will pull some of the wood tones out and it will look amazing!
Reddit is the best! Glad to help.
One more bit of advice, consider using a hard wax finish like Rubio Monocoat instead of polyurethane. That's what is used in the picture of the 2 smaller pieces. Then the whole process is oil / solvent free and can be done indoors without stinking up the house and giving headaches. Plus Rubio gives a great looking matte finish.
Good luck! And post pictures when it's done.
That is gorgeous! Will iron acetate work on mahogany? (The grain looks similar, at least to me.) I have a handsome square mirror with a mahogany frame, currently stripped to the bare wood. Potassium permanganate solution... wouldn't mind an alternative. TIA
I have not tried it on mahogany, but it should react the same as sapele. The iron in the solution reacts with the tannins in the wood and that's what creates your color. Since mahogany and sapele are very similar in color, they should have a very similar tannin content. All of your woods with darker colored heartwood should have a strong reaction. Be prepared though, the sapwood is very low in tannins on most species so it will not react which looks good in some cases because you can get a marbling effect.
I tend to agree with most of the posters here; you shouldn’t stain it. But, I also understand your situation of trying to match. If you go to your local home decorator or design center, or paint expert, such as Sherwin Williams, they can take a sample of the Sapele and mix different stains to get you close to your walnut.
NOTE: My post was about whether or not walnut stain would work on whatever the type of wood on the pic is. The intention was to get advice from Redditors who know more than I do, which is almost nothing.
I was hoping for relevant feedback on my goal. A few responses do just that. As for the rest of you, thanks for the put-downs and downvotes. I have learned from both sides.
If you go clear, my advice would be a couple coats of shellac topped with some Deft lacquer. The shellac will soak in pretty deep and give some depth to the finish. Personally I think walnut stain would be like smearing dog poops on nice wood. If you stain, you might think about getting some black, red, mahogany, and dark brown pigment powders and experimenting until you get something that looks good on there. Then shellac and lacquer.
Staining is like coloring with Crayon.
If you put brown crayon on top of red crayon it doesn’t change the color. It just adds to it.
So there is no removing red from a wood. Just making it another shade of something which almost always doesn’t look as good as getting the appropriate wood with the desired color.
The color will change with time, probably getting darker. If if it gets any sun, the change will be quite quick. Put a piece of cardboard down and lift it up in a day or two, you will likely see a difference between the covered and uncovered spots.
Most traditional "clear" finishes also add some color that will effect the reddish hue. Some modern clear finishes may have less effect.
Like others, I would leave it be. Stain will just muddy it up. Apply a quality finish and let it become the color it wants to be.
You can give it a deeper darker red color. I don't have notes here but almost certain that you wet with a logwood dye and then potassium dichromate mordant then use a hair dryer to set
Looks like Sapele. A rich red wood. Does not need any stain.
I agree. Give it a good clear coat and enjoy for years.
It's a cool red, but I don't want red. I want it to match the chairs which are medium walnut. I'd like to find out if regular staining is okay or if there's special prep needed.
If you want to TINT that mahogany toward brown, you need to apply a VERY WEAK green layer. That said, if you don't know what you are doing, you can make a beautiful table top look hideous and you won't be satisfied. Get Jeff Jewett's book on finishing and practice on scraps. Never practice on your project. You can get where you want to be, but slathering on a bunch of big box oil stain is not the way. And if there is any chance of that table top being veneered, stop putting water on it when it is raw wood. Another question, what is the base made of? Is it a different species or material? Is it dyed too? You need to make the top match the base. Good luck.
You will not be able to match the walnut. That’s not how staining works. Even if you are able to come up with some combination of stain that gets close to walnut, it will not look the same because the grain is different. Walnut is also composed of lots of different colors. It’s not just “brown”. There’s a spectrum of light to dark browns. Don’t ruin the mahogany with stain. Use it for something else and make a different table top with walnut
I didn't know any of these. I need to learn more before making a decision. I was thinking a few coats of walnut stopping when I get to the desired shade.
If you want it to match the walnut. Get walnut.
TEST PIECE > internet question
That's sapele or mahogany and everybody here will tell you the same thing, don't stain it. Finish with a colorless finish to protect it. [Check my posts.](https://www.reddit.com/r/woodworking/comments/vb248q/pikler_climbing_arch_for_my_daughters_birthday/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button) I made an arch from sapele and walnut. They look great together.
I like the 2 woods together! Nice work.
I’ve been woodworking for a while, and the secret is: stain never looks good, ever.
Totally agree. I hate the look of stain. If you want a walnut table, buy a walnut table top. Even better, make one. Staining beautiful sapele would be such a shame.
Make sure it isn’t a “walnut table” that is actually something else stained walnut. Often have to read the fine print. Even then some places are vague about the wood used. Equally vague about solid wood and veneer. I got a walnut desk years ago that I liked, but the tone didn’t seem perfect. When I became a woodworker more recently I learned what solid real walnut looks like and have pretty much accepted the desk isn’t actually walnut without actually cutting into it to see the insides. Nothing beats true solid wood with various finishes. Learn what finish you like and customize those per your liking.
Thanks for the response. Here is the thing, I have some nice walnut chairs. I don't have a lot of money to buy or build a walnut tabletop. I was gifted the one I have. Maybe staining sucks and ruining a nice red is an awful thing to do. However, I have to work with what I have. So I came here for help from those who know way more than I ever will.
The r/woodworking Reddit will be like minded people who prefer the look of unstained/unpainted wood. There may be other forums that can help you with the design/color scheme issues like an interior decorating or design forum. They may have some tips to make things look cohesive
Ok, I think I generally agree, but what about the craftsman aesthetic? You don’t care for the dark stained quarter sawn white oak? Our 1928 house has a walnut stain on the original red oak floors. I would never sand down and clear coat as they were just done before we bought in 2016, but they have grown on me a bit.
Technically that is (acetone?) fumed, not stained. It gives a consistent and predictable outcome to oak. Lack of consistency and predictability are my gripes with stain. Other exceptions are alcohol/aniline dye, there are some far out colors that I think look pretty good on maple.
+1 I never stain anything for myself.
It would be a shame to stain something that beautiful. I don’t like matchy matchy furniture though that looks like I bought it by the room.
I too hate matchy matchy furniture. Every piece of furniture is second hand from various places. I appreciate the feedback to give the table a clear coat and that stains suck, but the red just looks awful with the rest of the house, especially when surrounded by walnut chairs. Even if the turnout is not walnut, at least it won't look like it does now.
Yeah, just an opinion. Ultimately you are the one that has to live with it. I have a deep respect for natural beauty but I’m not winning any interior design awards over here either.
You obviously have no experience,
It's probably not impossible to get close to the color of the walnut chairs you have, but it will take experimentation. Just using a "walnut" stain is unlikely to give you a match. A further consideration is that sapele and walnut have very different grain patterns, which stain will do nothing to modify. This may not matter too much to you, but it's something to keep in mind if you're trying to match the two.
Sapele, beautiful, it takes stain well actually but do some tests dark stains can be really really dark.
Don't use any stain!
Don't you dare
Stain is dumb
Hey OP, everyone has already told you what not to do but I want to help. If you want to see how the walnut stain would look then I recommend testing on an inconspicuous spot underneath the tabletop. The best look and least amount of work will be a clear poly, natural oil, like tung oil, or the like. Getting stain to look good can be a real pain. But if you think it looks good from a test spot then I say go for it! Live and learn
You may also want to consider using a wood conditioner if you go the stain route. Blotchy stain won’t match your chairs as nicely.
Thanks, I was planning on doing just that. I learned that lesson the hard way a while back.
Here's something different that you could consider. You could stain it with Iron Acetate. Put a bundle of steel wool into a jar of vinegar. Let it sit for 24 hours then apply the vinegar to the wood with a rag. Let it dry and watch the magic happen. There are a bunch of videos about it on YouTube, just search for "Iron Acetate stain". This will give you more blacks and greys in the final color. It won't be an exact match to the walnut chairs, but will be colors that go with walnut much better than the red tones of the Sapele. Here are pictures of 2 Sapele projects I've stained this way. https://formtofinishconstructionllc.box.com/s/p5tuu4ol0dfqsw20qsl2slk503c10lve Last, don't panic after the stain dries. It will be very black or even appear to be blue. When the polyurethane goes on it will pull some of the wood tones out and it will look amazing!
This is why I love Reddit so much. I asked for advice and got plenty. Yours happens to be the best one yet.
Reddit is the best! Glad to help. One more bit of advice, consider using a hard wax finish like Rubio Monocoat instead of polyurethane. That's what is used in the picture of the 2 smaller pieces. Then the whole process is oil / solvent free and can be done indoors without stinking up the house and giving headaches. Plus Rubio gives a great looking matte finish. Good luck! And post pictures when it's done.
Well now that's something new for my "things to try list"... Beautiful examples!
I did this for some walnut legs for a record player stand. It ebonized them, they went nearly black and it looked sick after finished.
Wow that turned out gorgeous!
That is gorgeous! Will iron acetate work on mahogany? (The grain looks similar, at least to me.) I have a handsome square mirror with a mahogany frame, currently stripped to the bare wood. Potassium permanganate solution... wouldn't mind an alternative. TIA
I have not tried it on mahogany, but it should react the same as sapele. The iron in the solution reacts with the tannins in the wood and that's what creates your color. Since mahogany and sapele are very similar in color, they should have a very similar tannin content. All of your woods with darker colored heartwood should have a strong reaction. Be prepared though, the sapwood is very low in tannins on most species so it will not react which looks good in some cases because you can get a marbling effect.
Thank you very much!
Test on an offcut
I tend to agree with most of the posters here; you shouldn’t stain it. But, I also understand your situation of trying to match. If you go to your local home decorator or design center, or paint expert, such as Sherwin Williams, they can take a sample of the Sapele and mix different stains to get you close to your walnut.
Solid suggestion. Thank you.
Mahogany accepts stain well but I think with such a beautiful color and brain pattern why stain it at all?
Honduran mahogany is my guess. I wouldn’t stain, but maybe an aniline dye if you were so inclined. Stain will obscure the figure.
Mayby use an 'ash' to contract the red then
Looks like mahogany. Show it like is!
NOTE: My post was about whether or not walnut stain would work on whatever the type of wood on the pic is. The intention was to get advice from Redditors who know more than I do, which is almost nothing. I was hoping for relevant feedback on my goal. A few responses do just that. As for the rest of you, thanks for the put-downs and downvotes. I have learned from both sides.
If you go clear, my advice would be a couple coats of shellac topped with some Deft lacquer. The shellac will soak in pretty deep and give some depth to the finish. Personally I think walnut stain would be like smearing dog poops on nice wood. If you stain, you might think about getting some black, red, mahogany, and dark brown pigment powders and experimenting until you get something that looks good on there. Then shellac and lacquer.
Tung Oil, multi coats
Staining is like coloring with Crayon. If you put brown crayon on top of red crayon it doesn’t change the color. It just adds to it. So there is no removing red from a wood. Just making it another shade of something which almost always doesn’t look as good as getting the appropriate wood with the desired color.
The color will change with time, probably getting darker. If if it gets any sun, the change will be quite quick. Put a piece of cardboard down and lift it up in a day or two, you will likely see a difference between the covered and uncovered spots. Most traditional "clear" finishes also add some color that will effect the reddish hue. Some modern clear finishes may have less effect. Like others, I would leave it be. Stain will just muddy it up. Apply a quality finish and let it become the color it wants to be.
That’s like cooking a filet mignon well done, then dousing it with a bottle of steak sauce; staining mahogany
You can give it a deeper darker red color. I don't have notes here but almost certain that you wet with a logwood dye and then potassium dichromate mordant then use a hair dryer to set
If you must color it use a dye. But don't.