Monday, October 1, 2012

Vinegar Stain to age Wood

Here it is, natural, simple, frugal way to age wood with vinegar stain!
I checked a few out and then made this.
The most basic, non toxic, eco friendly wood stain.
My stain has 1T of coffee grounds, 1 cup of white vinegar and 1 steel wool pad.
Give it a good shake and let it sit for at least 24 hours.
(put the lid on for the shaking and the following 24 hours)
***this project involved staining clothes pins, and did not used coffee grounds in the stain.
Just vinegar and steel wool pad***

  • I am also going to experiment with different vinegars since different vinegars produce different stains. 
    I read that apple cider vinegar makes a slate gray stain and balsamic vinegar makes a brownish green color.
  • Always test your stain on a scrap piece of wood. Make sure the scrap wood is the same type of wood that you are staining since different woods take the stain differently. 
  • Seal with an oil or natural wax finish to protect the wood.


  • I am working on a cool project involving vinegar wood stain and chicken wire...


    Stay Frugal,
    Daniela

    Linking to
    Coastal Charm

    15 comments:

    Amy of While Wearing Heels said...

    I'll have to share your tip with my husband. He is the wood guy around here :)

    Cristina Garay said...

    I didn't know about it! Must pin it for future reference.

    Thanks Daniela!

    Anonymous said...

    wow, that is so cool, I've never done this, you are so clever!!!!

    Kelly said...

    Well aren't you smart? I hate how strong commercial stains smell, so this is probably a great alternative (besides the price). Can't wait to see how your projects turns out!

    Unknown said...

    For real? Can't wait to see the results!

    Lynn Wood said...

    Bless you for doing this post today. I've got a little sign project I'm working on and I was just trying to figure out how to age the wood. You just handed me the perfect solution!! Thanks Daniela!!

    ~L

    Libby said...

    Yes, this is a first, hearing about this type of stain. I love the Eco-friendliness of it. I look forward to your upcoming project. Perhaps you won't make me wait as long as I made you wait for the wedding photos. lol

    Katie @ Creatively Living said...

    That is really cool! I've never heard of vinegar stain. Going to have to try it sometime.
    --Katie

    Lori said...

    Do you have to use steel wool? Can I just use a cloth if the table is already stained and I just want to touch up some water glass rings?

    thistlewoodfarm said...

    Great tip Daniela! Did you aready post this on Hometalk? I love the eco-friendly version!

    blessings,
    karianne

    Liz @ Quirky Vistas said...

    I can't wait to see what kind of results this stain gives. It looks like a cool thing to try, but I'll wait for you to go first! Ha!
    Liz

    Jessica | Petal + Ply said...

    I hadn't heard that the different vinegars can produce different colors. we just used this oxidizing technique on a cheese box which was raw (fresh) wood and it gave it a great brown weathered stain. We brushed on black tea first because apparently something in the tea creates a stronger reaction but it turned out darker then I was hoping. I actually would love a gray stain and I'll have to try the apple cider vinegar to see if it works!

    Kim said...

    How cool! I didn't even know that was a thing. Unfortunately I have a hate-hate relationship with the smell of vinegar, so I can't use it, but it gives me ideas!

    Mariette VandenMunckhof-Vedder said...

    Dearest Daniela,
    LOVE the eco friendly aspect of this wood stain! So simple and if you use it it is proven to be very good!
    Hugs to you and thanks again for always sharing your finds.
    Mariette

    Pippi21 said...

    You listed a steel wool pad, are you talking about Brillo or SOS pads or regular steel wool that have no soap in it, like the others? I didn't realize tea could be used to stain wood..interesting!