Adam King Studio Fine Furniture & Antique Restoration

In the previous post, I showed you some simple tricks to patching veneer. As we continue work on the blanket chest restoration, I'll share a secret to matching an existing finish as well as a simple formula to mix your own stains.

After all the veneer patches have been planed, scraped, and sanded flush, it's time to address the finish. The challenge here is matching the existing finish on the areas we repaired. Since this piece was refinished once, replicating the original finish isn't an issue, so all that is needed is to match the existing color. This is normally where most people would reach for their name brand oil based stain and begin doing test samples to see if they can come up with a match. Nothing wrong with that, right? Wrong.

Commercial stains contain pigments that are suspended in oil and a thinning solution. These pigments are never ground to a fine consistency before use and the result is a murky mess that is inadequate at best. It actually can impede the grain and character of the wood from really coming through the color. Why rely on a commercial company to dictate your color choices when you can produce superior stains with infinite color combinations right in your own shop? All you need are simple ingredients that you can find at any hardware and art supply store.

You will need Japan Dryer, Mineral Spirits, and the secret ingredient: artist oil colors. I prefer the Windsor Newton brand because their formula hasn't changed in over 50 years. These tubes come in a variety of colors and the pigments used to make them are ground much finer than commercial stains. This results in true colors that are brilliant and beautiful.

Combine the mineral spirits with the Japan dryer in a glass jar. The mineral spirits is a solvent for oil colors and Japan dryer helps speed the drying time from days to mere hours. If you need it to dry faster you can vary the amount of Japan dryer.

Lay out your color(s) on a palate of laminate, glass, just whatever you have handy. To achieve an antique coloring for Walnut I have found that equal parts of Burnt Umber and Burnt Sienna work beautifully. I use a scrap wood spatula to mix the two colors together.

Make sure the surface is prepared properly with scraping and sanding.

Quick Tip: It's a good idea to seal the surface with a wash coat of shellac. This allows you to remove all the color before it dries in the event the color match was incorrect.

To apply the color I simply dip a rag into the mineral spirits and Japan dryer solution, then put some of the color on to the rag and apply to the surface in long even strokes.

You could also use a paint brush instead of a rag, and I have even combined the oil colors with the mineral spirits/Japan dryer solution to form a sort of "gel stain" that can then be wiped or brushed on. This method is very versatile.

Depending on the amount of Japan Dryer, the color will be dry in a few hours. Apply a few coats of shellac and a final application of dark brown pate wax to finish everything off and leave a soft deep glow on the piece.

As you can see, this finishing method is quick, simple, and very versatile. It can be altered to any situation and the color combinations are seemingly infinite. No more messy cans of stain, no more "close enough" color matches. Now, with this technique, you can match any color with accuracy and have complete control over the application method and drying time. The result is brilliant color that enhances the look and feel of any piece whether old or new.

Do you have a variation of this technique, or a finishing secret of your own that you would like to share? I would love to hear it. Just leave your comment below.