My father in law is going to give me the HARDEST time for this post. He LOVES oak. He loves it so much. He should marry it. I have had at least 25 conversations with him about the “precious” oak in his home. Listen, it’s not my house, so whether or not they change it is their choice, not mine. But, my MIL {who I introduced you to HERE} keeps asking my opinion about how to update their home. I tell her what I would do and it always begins with, “I would change the oak.” My FIL just rolls his eyes because he loves it. I usually tell them that I would paint it all white actually {like I did to my cousin’s cabinets}, but today I’m going to teach you how to STAIN oak. It is super easy and with the right products, you can have a beautiful dark stained oak in no time.
I’m going to be completely blunt and brutally honest here….If you have any oak in your home this color, you need to change it. I’m not trying to be mean, but it definitely dates your home, and believe it or not, it isn’t hard to change.
I don’t have anything against oak {the wood}. In fact, I think it is quite pretty with the amazing wood grains and such. It’s just the honey oak color that screams 1975 that isn’t my favorite. Side note, I actually CHOSE oak for my wall-bed project, so maybe that proves it to you that I actually don’t have a personal vendetta against it.
This specific clock was a project for a friend, so feel free to think about the old oak items you’ve seen at the thrift store, or heaven forbid the honey oak cabinets that you might have in your bathroom or kitchen…
For those of you who would like a quick overview of the process, I made this fast and furious video.
Items needed for this project:
General Finishes Java Gel Stain {yes the brand does matter}
General Finishes Top Coat {satin sheen} {yes the brand does matter}
2 old socks {one for the stain, one for the top coat}
Citri-strip {if your oak is really glossy I recommend stripping off the top coat, but if I was doing a bathroom or kitchen project, I would NOT spend the time to do this. I’m just being completely honest. I would only do this if it was going to take 15 minutes vs 15 hours.}
Vinyl Gloves to put on under the sock so your hands don’t look like you have leprosy after you get done. {Or if you are like me, you look like you’ve been painting or staining something 90% of your life, so what’s the point.}
Turn on some rockin’ 90’s music and let’s get started…shall we!?!
Check out the beauty of this bad boy. My friend Heather’s husband was obsessed with keeping this thing. Why? I’m not really sure. Maybe he loves oak like my Father in Law.
Step 1: Strip off the shiny top coat. Listen up though, if I would have had a big project to do, I would have skipped this step. I only did it because it was fast and it took me less than 20 minutes to quickly strip off the top coat. Follow the instructions on the bottle. After you get done stripping off the top coat, you need to thoroughly clean off the excess product before moving onto step 2.
Step 2: Lightly Sand with 220 grit sand paper. If you know me, you know I love 220 grit sand paper. Maybe I should marry IT?!@? I talk about it a lot in my spray painting tutorial posts, and my painting furniture 101 post. Again when I say LIGHTLY sand, that means take only a minute or two to rough up the surface of your project.
Step 5: After your stain has dried, wipe on your topcoat with your other old sock.
Doesn’t it look pretty!?! It just finishes the look in my opinion. Let dry completely in between coats. I did two coats of top coat.
Now Heather’s husband is welcome to display the clock again!
Thank you to this and this tutorial for guiding me on this process.
Think of the possibilities.
Ready set, CHANGE THAT
UGLY OAK!
Thanks for your tips.. and I agree. That yellow look is OUT! I have gross yellow stained oak stairs in my entryway. You have motivated me to change that! I’m determined now..lol. There are 7 steps and I don’t think I will need to use the stripper.. there are only 3 coats of stain on them now (of that ugly stuff). Do you think the 220 grit sandpaper would be good enough for sanding stairs?
My home has UGLY oak throughout. Granted, it’s not as “honey” or as light as the oak you speak of in this post. But to me, oak is oak is oak. It is a very well-made home, built in ’92. The cabinets throughout the house (kit/bath/laund) all have cathedral style, raised-panel doors, and all interior doors are six-pane raised panel Colonial style. Well made. Yes. But it kills me that I’m stuck with all of this oak. We plan to move in three years, give or take, and my husband thinks painting white would be a) a mistake; and b) a waste of time; c) a gamble.
I’m showing him your blog post.
I’ll continue suffering silently. Just glad that I feel validated now that I’ve read this post. Thanks for sharing.
My husband feels the same way about our oak cabinets in the kitchen and bathroom…I have yet to persuade him to let me paint them – we are thinking of moving too and he feels that this is a selling feature since they are real wood!! LOL – granted ours aren’t quite as yellow-y as these you have shown…I’m not sure I want really dark cabinets either…I am book-marking this post for future reference – thanks!
Brooke, what if YOUR cabinets were oak, but ALL of the trim throughout your house (door facings, woodwork, interior doors, window facings) were oak as well.
Do you paint ALL of this white? Labor intensive project worth it for resell value?
Your opinion is appreciated. 🙂
Paint all of your trim white, you will never regret it and it will make a nice contrast with wall color and make rooms look less chopped up.
Ugly oak paneling !
My breezeway looks amazing now.
I cut textured (w/stripes) wallpaper to fit each vertical indent in the paneling (5″ widths) and used wallpaper glue to adhere it. I even put this textured wallpaper on a ‘very’ inexpensive ceiling. The entire room was
painted white with a satin finish. A M A Z I N G ! The project is 7 years old and still looks great.
Yes, this was very labor intensive … but with a television in the room … some movies … and the need to DIY
… it got done. Many people think I have expensive wood paneling. I have stopped explaining
my use of wallpaper.
I have also cut medallion textured wallpaper into square panels and glued them to plain interior doors and painted them white. Very nice !
… Now I am going to update an old, inexpensive kitchen cupboard resurfacing job. I cut the sandpaper to
fit my mini sander this morning. This time I am going to use stain. More later …
I feel the pain of anyone having to live with oak cabinets, trim, everything. That was my case when I lived in Seattle. The house was beautiful and I loved the floor plan but there is oak EVERYWHERE!! I was not allowed to change it in anyway. Oh how I wanted to paint all that trim! I live in Pennsylvania now. I don’t have one lick of oak in my house except old pieces that have been painted. I wish I had known about this gel stain 10 years ago. (I might still have been living in Seattle!)
Ugh, my parents have soooooo much oak through their house and my dad sounds like your FIL. He gets his feathers all ruffled if I mention anything about it. I want paint it ALL white!
I have stairwell handrails to do.
I did my handrails right when we moved in to our new 1983 split entry home. I knew those honey-oak handrails and my ugly brass chandelier had to go. I used this method and while it took me several days (as I wanted it really dark, espresso-colored) it turned out beautifully. I spray painted the chandelier with a metallic oil rubbed bronze to match and now the entryway looks so much better.
Good luck — it’s easy, though messy! It will so be worth it!
I have pictures of my handrail project here: http://blog.dulcedesigns.net.
Michelle, what shade stain did you use on your stairs/handrails?
I got those TOO!
He MIGHT agree to let me stain this abundance of wood trim and such throughout the house darker, but he won’t agree to painting.
But I’m thinking: Darker stain? What’s the point of all that work if it doesn’t really accomplish my reason for wanting to change it in the first place, i.e., TOO MUCH WOOD!
🙂
T – I would recommend you paint all the oak trim in your house white. Most buyers want a home that is not dated and oak trim just screams “I’m old”. They also want a home that is move in ready, so they will not want to do this work themselves.
Kimberly, thank you for your feedback. I’m sharing this with my husband. I would love to ask this question of a realtor regarding the pros/cons of painting wood trim throughout in terms of resell value.
Let’s put an end to this male-dominated misconception once and for all.
I’m with all of you in the “my house is full of oak” category. It’s taken some time, but I finally convinced my husband to let me start painting the cabinets and the trim white. Check out this blog…this was my inspiration and really sold me on painting everything white. Her before and after pics are awesome! http://www.livelovediy.com/p/our-house.html
I stained my oak cabinets and skipped the deglosser step. Big mistake. Granted the stain was a different brand than what you used, so that might have made a difference, but I sure wish I would have used it in the first place.
This could not have come at a better time! I used cabinet transformations on my horrible oak cabinets, but am going to try this on my kitchen table. Love everything you do! Happy painting and staining 🙂
I think this comes in both water and oil base? What did you use? Thanks! I want to experiment a little before tackling our cabinets.
It is oil base. Click on the links in the post and it will take you directly to the exact products that I bought. Good luck!
I already have the water based finish. Can I use that instead?
Yes you probably could. I would try it first in an inconspicuous place to make sure it doesn’t react negatively.
Oh thank goodness I am not the only one that is sick and tired of oak. I hate it!!! I live in KS and am looking at houses right now and every freaking house I look at has oak. Even the newer ones. As if this is the only wood out there. I too, love the painted white look.
I just can’t stand an all oak kitchen. They are all the same.
If I had a white french kitchen with dark wood floors I would be in heaven!
Ditto.
Do you think this would work on floors, too? Or too risky?
I would contact General Finishes and ask. I’m not sure, and they would definitely know. Good luck!
I did this to my oak bathroom vanities, and I LOVE General Finishes stain. SO easy to work with.
Britt
I used those same products to refinish my bathroom vanity. It is beautiful! My husband was SO impressed. I stained and finished all our woodwork when we built our house. It was a huge pain. General Finishes is so much easier to use, or maybe it’s the gel products. Either way I’m a believer.
Would this process work on stairs? How would I go up and down to do the staining and top coating without leaving prints?
Yes I’m sure it would. You would start at the top, stain all the stairs on the way down and wait until it is completely dry before doing another coat. It would be tough because your stairs would be out if order for days. But once the stain was dry you could walk on them to the top and put on another coat going down again. Then the drying process would begin again before a 3rd coat could be applied. Same as the topcoat. It would be tough but I’m sure it would be beautiful!
I painted my old stairs years ago started on top and did 1,3,5,7….. when completely finished did stairs 2,4,6….so we could normaly go up and downstairs while drying.
Fantastic IDEA!!!
Ingrid, do every other step. This way you’ll still be able to use the stairs while they dry. ;0)
What if you don’t have time to strip, how do you stain on TOP of the topcoat?
You can, but you definitely need to sand a little first to help the stain adhere. Plus I would do a small test area. But most tutorials I have seen do not strip first, they start with sanding. Good luck!
Thank you for this tutorial! I just ordered the stain gel and topcoat to redo my glider.
This is AWESOME! I have been avoiding buying thrifted oak furniture because I wanted a wood piece but not THAT wood piece. Now I know how to make them beautiful! Thank you!
I just did this exact process this week to stain my oak banisters. I LOVE them!! It’s a long process waiting for each coat to dry, but so easy to do and worth the wait. Funny story…when I went to the only store in Salt Lake City to sell the General Finishes stain, the guy knew exactly what I was looking for when I walked in and asked where the stain section was. He said they get a ton of “Pinterest people” coming in and looking for it. haha Now onto staining my coat rack and maybe the bathroom vanities. Honey oak color be gone!
What store sells general finishes in salt lake city or Utah county?
Enter your zip code here: http://www.generalfinishes.com/retail-products/find-retail-wood-finishes-store
Wow! This is awesome! I have so many old oak pieces in a guest room that I can’t stand looking at. I was going to paint them, but now I think I might just stain them!
My home has oak cabinets, oak doors, oak trim, oak everything. Everyone who comes in my home comments on how beautiful my house is and says it looks like a BH&G magazine. I am not saying this to brag or pat myself on the back, but oak doesn’t have to be ugly!!! I used a lot of black and dark cherry furniture with an almost-black leather sofa. Changing the oak is out of the question…there is far too much of it. But it can look beautiful and fresh and modern when paired with the right things!!! There are other solutions than just “change it”.
Dixie,
I would love to see pictures of your home. Send them to me if you want at allthingsthriftyassistant at gmail dot com. I believe you!
I am not a photographer, so I’m sure the lighting and staging won’t be right… but I will get some pictures as soon as I clean up a little! 🙂 I love your blog, by the way! 🙂 Thanks for taking time to reply!
Oh thank you thank you thank you! I have an oak desk that is that honey color and I just hate it. I didn’t want to paint it, but this would be PERFECT.
I am redoing my stair banister. The rail I want to do a darker stain and the spindles white. I have been sanding but do you suggest I use the citri-strip? And any primer before the white that you’d suggest? Thanks for your help! I love your blog!
It depends how glossy your banister is before you start. If it is REALLY glossy I would use citri=strip, but if not I would just sand with 220 to rough up the surface a bit and get sanding. I would try it on the back side of the banister in a spot that won’t be too noticeable and see how it looks. That way you know what it will look like. I bet you won’t have to strip it.
What a great idea! I love repurposing items instead of buying new! We’ll be featuring this over at Someday Crafts tomorrow!
I have an almost identical ugly clock. It was the first thing my now husband bought for our apartment (which had previously been my apartment) when we moved in together. I hate it. He loves it. It’s been hidden in a box in the basement for four year. I’m going to have to give this a try!
would or could you do this on furniture such as a dresser/armoire etc. I have found some beautiful sumter furniture at the good will all intake but it is that ugly oak color. My son has a dark brown wood bed from Pottery Barn. Buying the good will oak furniture and staining it the same color would save me a lot of money. Is the doable.
Thank you
Paula
Hi Paula! Yes this would work!! Good luck!
thank you. I am not going to strip it —as you mention –it would take to long. I know I have to use the 220 grit sand though prior to using the gel stain.
Thanks so much!
Paula
thank you. I am not going to strip it —as you mention –it would take to long. I know I have to use the 220 grit sand though prior to using the gel stain.
Thanks so much!
Paula
thank you. I am not going to strip it —as you mention –it would take to long. I know I have to use the 220 grit sand though prior to using the gel stain.
Thanks so much!
Paula
Very nice transformation, Brooke! I look forward to seeing more.
-Bruce
Hi I am wanting to stain a large oak table along with 6 oak chairs. Do I have to strip or sand it? It does have a pretty heafty gloss finish on it so I’m not sure the stain will stick if I don’t do anything. But I’ve never done this so I don’t know what I am doing. Any advice helps! Thank you!
I would degloss it and sand with 220 lightly first. Good luck!
Hi,
My kitchen table is ugly oak!!!! Do you think I should stain it like you did to the clock or would you recommend painting?
Thanks so much!
Either one would be a great idea!
Hello,
I followed your instructions while staining my vanity in a guest bath. I did one coat last night at 8pm and another coat this morning at 8am. The finish feels very sticky, even before applying the 2nd coat. Im not sure what I did wrong on this one. Can yoiu please give me some advice? Im panicing a little bit 🙂
Leslie,
I think you need to wait a little longer between coats then. Maybe the room it’s in doesn’t get enough ventilation to dry quick enough. Don’t panic, just let it dry longer before you re-coat again. It will be ok. Then make sure you let it dry long enough before you put on the poly.
Hi Brooke,
I am a wood coatings specialist, who works for a national paint and wood coatings company. You should not apply stain without wiping it off. Stain is made up of tiny ground pigments or rocks. Those “rocks” are a barrier between the substrate and the clear finish coat, so you want to achieve the color with as little pigment on the surface as possible. Applying stain, especially in multiple coats, without wiping can result in poor adhesion and failure of the top coat. It may not happen right away, but later if bumped into or dropped, the top coat will shatter, or it will eventually start to delaminate. If you check the tech data sheet on the product you are recommending you will see that it does state to wipe it off. There are stains that incorporate dyes to color the wood faster and since they are disolved in the thinner they leave little to do barrier. I am not saying use dye stains alone, as those are seldom color fast. The use of a stain which has both pigment and dye is prefered to achieve the color the fastest with the least barriers to adhesion. Wiping and allowing adequate time to cure between coats will also prevent blushing, or milking up of the clear coat.
I have a spilt ranch and downstairs I have a shelf along the middle of the walls and it carries around the whole two rooms. I believe its noty pine and its a mid light stain. My taste is dark wood….can I use the 220 sand paper and the describe stain in blog for my noty pine . The prior owners of the home painted down stairs a peach tone and now I know why…because the stain on the noty pine has peach tones to it. So when I changes the color it looks horrible against this noty pine. I told my husband I should paint the shelf and the window trim and baseboard all white. He said are you crazy covering up all this natural beautiful wood. So of course now I am looking to change the stain color to a dark satin color…so I can be happy too 🙂 and please my husband at the same time. Please help help help
Yes, I so agree. The trend now, especially in our area (NY) is to do dark hardwood flooring. One of the great things about oak is that it is easy to stain. And, when you go darker in the color, the graining is less noticeable.
In case it’s helpful, I wrote this article about changing the color of your hardwood floors: http://theflooringgirl.com/blog/hardwood-flooring-can-you-change-the-color-of-your-hardwood-floors.html
PS: please use this comment instead. Above I posted the wrong link. I hope it’s okay that I posrted the link. If not, delete that portion of the comment.
Oh, and BTW, we are also seeing lots of people painting their oak cabinets white and then going dark on the hardwood floors.
DON’T USE 220 GRIT SANDPAPER IF YOU WANT IT TO GET DARK!!! Use 150 at most.
I always appreciate when people post their how-to projects. But one HUGE issue that arose when I tried to stain a dresser is using 220 grit sandpaper made it impossible for the wood to take the stain in any significant amount. The directions on the gel stain say don’t go any higher than 150. After 3 coats and a lot of internal debating, I decided to just start over doing it the right way.
Reading other websites and general finishes website, they say that if you go higher than 150 the wood won’t accept the stain well since 220 is “polishing” the wood. At which point you’re basically just painting it on.
Do you HAVE to sand at all? I have a giant kitchen of the ugly oak and want to just start staining – it’s from the 1980’s – so pretty old. Do I still have to sand before staining? TX
I would at least rough it up with 220 grit sand paper before staining. I would try it in an inconspicuous place and test it out. 🙂
Oh my gosh, this is just what I have been looking for! I have ugly oak staircase!!!!!! Two to be exact, with lovely matching handrails, that go on forever! So, my question is I really don’t have to strip 35 steps and yards and yards and yards of handrails? I can lightly sand and stain? There is carpet on 75% of the stairs and they just did the end caps in oak. I want to replace with a seagrass runner and stain the end caps to look more up to date…
I googled General Finishes Java Gel & General Finishers Gel Topcoat Wipe On Urethane and Sears came up. I like how you put on here how we can enter our zip code too…thanks for all of this great info. I’m going to give it a try….I’ve had 3 spine surgeries in 14 months and can not go thru too much labor to change furniture. This seems like an easy process!
With all do respect. While I did not see the finish product, I have to say I don’t think the three coats in the video look very good. You can definitely tell it’s gel because of the variations in the colors. Sorry but I wanted to be honest. If you don’t take off the original and allow stain to penetrate it looks more painted on in my opinion.
Wow, you’re pretty awesome. We have the same modern-type taste. I love the fork and knife table and your whitewashed furniture. I could never find the time or energy to do all that you do. I LOVEEEEEEE your staining oak tutorial. THANK YOU FOR THE HOW TO!
After reading over your blog like a million times, I decided to stain my Grandfathers Clock. that was my project for today, I am so pleased with the outcome I can’t stand it, the clock was a maple color on pine and I re-stained it in Antique Walnut. it has turned out to be a clock I’ve always wanted now, I just hated it before and was afraid to do anything with it, I told myself if I messed it up I would just paint it black, its beautiful, I am ready to re-stain a set of six chairs to go with a table I just purchased, now I will not be afraid to try this General Finishes on other things , thinking kitchen!
Hey Carol,
I know this is an old blog post so you may or may not even see this. I would love to see your grandfather clock before and after pics if yo have them. I have a house full of yellow oak cabinets, all the trim and the dining table and china hutch which we bought with the house. I am in the process of changing out my kitchen, but I paid someone to do it cause I am chicken! However, I plan to tackle the table and hutch on my own. If I mess it up then my husband will have to let me buy a new one! LOL! Can you please send me a pic? teamfreedom.shelly@gmail.com
Hi Brooke,
I have just begun staining our kitchen cabinets and have applied 2 coats of General Finishes Java so far. While I love the product and the application process has been fantastic, the color is much closer to black than I anticipated. What is your thought on applying a coat or even two of brown mahogany over the Java? I was thinking that might bring the cabinets to more of rich chocolate color…
Thanks,
Kim
Although I have never done it, if you are looking for a lighter color I would definitely try it. Just do it on the inside somewhere to test. Good luck!
Hi Brooke,
I want to refinish my blah honey oak cabinets. Do you think it would take to much time or should I call a professional ? Love the way the clock came out!!
Karen, This is a great option for you! I would do it myself, but yes it takes a lot of time. Search “Oak” on my search bar and see the other projects I’ve done!
I have darker 80s oak doors plus ttim and want to stain them black and paint all the trim white. The doors are very shiny. Do I need to treat them before staining? Not sure if black is the way to go either. Advice please!
The products I used in this post are very dark and look almost ebony when you are done. I would definitely recommend the products I used and nothing else for your project. I would sand it slightly with 220 grit sand paper beforehand. If you are using a different product, you would have a different set of instructions beforehand.
I have some ugly oak paneling in my kitchen on the bottom half of the wall. I just tried to stain it to walnut…but so far it doesn’t look right. I used a stripping spray that took the shiny veneer off and then sanded with my palm sander. Then I used Mini-wax satin walnut gel stain…it looks way too sloppy…when I add a top coat of polyurethane, will it look as nice as your clock? LOL. Your help would be HUGELY appreciated!!!
Thank you!
dotdonahue@aol.com
Hi Dorothy, did you follow my instructions? Did you use the same products? Let me know and I can try to help.
Hi there! So happy to have stumbled upon your AMAZING site!!!! I was reading your post about the banister gel staining and this one too. I am going to attempt to do my stairs, but was wondering if you would use the citristrip on the top hand rail part where it is super glossy? I know you said in this post you wouldn’t if it took a long time, but just curious if would produce longer lasting results? I was just nervous about chipping too? Have you or anyone else had issues with that? Thanks so much!!!!
Honestly it works great without it. I promise! As long as you sand it a little bit beforehand and seal it with a few coats of poly after, it will last a very long time!
THANK YOU for this blog! Found it by googling how to stain oak dark and followed your instructions to the “t”, even used your links to order the supplies. I stained an oak dresser and headboard and they turned out fantabulous! I made the rookie mistake of putting on too much stain the first time but it all evened out with the first application of the topcoat. I was then going to leave it but ultimately decided to do a 2nd topcoat after sanding and it gives a much deeper, more polished look. This is a very forgiving technique and easy to do. I highly recommend it. Thanks again Brooke!
Thank you for taking the time to comment! It makes my day when I read them! xoxo
Painting wood (that isn’t truly ugly like pine or balsa) is a crime and you should be ashamed of yourself for suggesting such immorality!
That said, the darker color (STAINED, not painted) *does* look nicer.
My house is ENTIRELY oak. My bedroom furniture, my bathroom cabinets, my kitchen cabinets, the living room fireplace. After ten years of living here, it’s driving me nuts! It has to go. I’ll definitely be following these instructions soon.
I want to stain my kitchen cabinets. Do I need to remove the doors first? Or is it OK to leave all the hardware and hinges in place and stain around them?
I would definitely remove them. Check out my post about painting kitchen cabinets. Search for it in the sidebar, and you will see the process.
Hi. I have an oak desk. Bigger than your clock, smaller than a kitchen. Would you suggest I strip it, or just sand it, if I’m going to be staining darker (it’s a natural oak colour now; In going for a dark walnut or maybe mahogany.) Thanks!
I would just sand it if it were me. 🙂
Can you use this method on any type of wood?
Yes. I would definitely try it in a discreet place first. I have heard of people who use this on white cabinets and they say it works great.
I watched the totorial and read all the comments but I never saw the ciolor of the gel stain. I would like to use the same. Can you identify it? Thank you.
Java is the color. 🙂
Hi Brooke, I love the tutorial! I never knew how easy it would be to stain my kitchen cabinets that are oak. My only question is this – I don’t really want them as dark as the “Java” color you used, so would your instructions differ at all if I decide to use the “Brown Mahogany” color stain, by the same company? Thanks for your help! 🙂
I’ve never used that color, but I’m willing to bet it would be the same!
Do you wipe off the excess stain every time, and is the wood supposed to be streaky at all after 3 coats? I’m using Antique Walnut for my color and it is really dark, I’m afraid its going to be to dark for my kitchen, if I were to change my mind on the color is there a way to strip off the stain and start over without sanding?
Will this work on table, chaird, buffet set and corner piece? If so do I use the 220 grit sand paper?
Thank u so much for your post, very insightful & im inspired to get started on my furnature!
Will this work on table, chairs, buffet set and corner piece? If so do I use the 220 grit sand paper?
Thank u so much for your post, very insightful & im inspired to get started on my furnature!
YES! And YES! 220 grit sandpaper. 🙂 Good luck!
Hi – This looks great! I noticed you said that if the project was big you wouldn’t strip the shiny coat… Can I do a bookshelf without stripping it first?
thanks!
Yes you can! Just try it in an inconspicuous spot first. 🙂
I hope its not too late to ask a Q and I should probably read every post here – but do you think this would work on a piece of furniture with a lot of carved details? We have this solid oak bar that is my husband’s from before we were married – we both no longer like oak (I never did!) and he says just get rid of it but I know he really wants to keep it.
I’d like to darken it to more of a dark walnut… Is this possible?
I bet it would work if you were super careful and used a toothbrush or something to get into all of the nooks and crannies. It’s worth a try before getting rid of it!
Did you end up staining your bar? I want to stain mine too and was wondering how yours turned out? Thanks!
Depends on the piece. I found (cheap) an oak drop leaf table with great moldings, etc. called a “credence table”. It was made in the 1920′,s, based on similar tables from the 1600’s. Despite what some think, dark oak was NOT the only preferred color 300 years ago. Light oak was appreciated too. I left most of the table as is but did some of the trim in black, as was done originally. Looks great. Then there’s oak furniture from circa 1900-1930 which was also intended to be golden/yellow oak in color. By all means, do as you wish, but a shame to darken antique oak furniture in some instances.
As an aside, our circa 1903 apartment had its original dark oak floors, wainscoting, doors, window frames, and fireplace mantles, until the 1990’s when out landlord, God bless him, decided to strip all the oak, which now looks news. So much for “character”.
Hi! i was wondering if is possible to stain a dining table with this product. Do I need to sand it down first or I just apply this coat? My dining table is from Ikea and is similar color and I love how the clock turn out. It look amazing!!! Thank you for your great tutorial! ?
Yes you definitely can stain a table with this product. Just make sure that you seal it really well afterwards. Check out my post about staining a banister. It may give you a better idea about the product.
Thanks for the guide. Followed the process and used the exact product which was great. I’m generally really happy with it but there’s just one quite large patch that hasn’t taken the stain as well so it looks a bit patchy. It was originally waxed old pine but was really washed out looking and has not been waxed in over a decade. I have put the top coat on but now want to improve patchyness of it. Do you know if I can sand this area back and start again? Kept putting more stain on and it didn’t help but think I should have sanded it more. Any help gratefully received
Yes you can sand it down and reapply. It’s hard to know how products will react to old pre-finished surfaces, but I think if you sanded down that area and carefully blended it with the sides you can get the more refined look you are looking for if you are careful.
Ugh, my husband LOVED oak. He would get this glazed look when he talked about it. I got a glazed look too — when vomiting. I painted a lot — sold most.
I have an antique table that is oak — has a varnish on it. I want to try to get it off and stain that. I hate to paint it as my MIL spent weeks stripping the 50 coats of paint. Every now and then, I see a speck deep in the wood. I just cannot paint over her work (God rest her soul, lol). But her SON(?), I can throw that sh!t out, lol.
I have seen that you don’t have to strip polyurethane when using poly shades, minwax brand, have you done anything like that? I have 4 ladder back chairs that I want darker but stripping them would be horrible. Any suggestions?
This would totally work!
Very helpful, I am going to attempt to stain a bed headboard, foot board and sideboards from ugly oak to a cherry wood finish. Wish me luck.
Good luck!
Hi, I just read your DIY instructions on how to stain oak. I just purchased a solid oak Home bar and want to stain it much darker (expresso) and I liked the color of the wall clock you stained. Can you tell me what color you used? Is this brand sold at Home Depot or Lowe’s?
It’s called Java, and no it’s not. You can buy them on Amazon though.
I have a very glossy oak dresser. Will the stain work if you dont strip it?
Very beautifully done. That wall clock is looking so much better with dark brown. I will try this technique with an old coffee table that I have in the garrage.