Have you ever tried to get that barn wood look on new wood and the color just looked fake? Or you find the most awesome tutorial of a piece with faux barn wood and find out that you have to buy an expensive product and wait for it to be shipped? Who has time for that, let alone excess decorating money sitting around?
I have tried a few products hoping to get the perfect barn wood finish, you know that weathered gray that doesn't look fake. Nothing has worked for me until I finally tried a homemade solution.
Have you ever heard of homemade stain? It's a simple recipe with vinegar and steel wool that turns wood different shades, just like stain. But without the strong chemical smells, or the price tag. I mean sure, a quart of minwax stain is less than $10, but what if you could make the same amount of stain for less than $5? Plus there are no VOC's and it's eco friendly! What more could you ask for?
Simply put a pad of steel wool ( I used 0000) into a mason jar (I used a pint sized jar). Pour your distilled white vinegar into the jar, making sure to cover the steel wool completely. Grab the lid to the jar and LOOSELY screw on the lid. You don't want to screw it on tightly because of the chemical reaction taking place inside of the jar. Now the hardest part - let it sit for 15-24 hours. The longer it sits the darker the stain will get.
I did this before bed one night so I could easily be patient and almost forget about it until the baby's nap time the next day.
After waiting patiently, grab the stain, some gloves, your wood ( I used Pine common board from Home Depot) and a foam paint brush or lint free cloth. Remove the steel wood pad from the vinegar - don't throw it away until you have tested the stain and know that it is the right shade for you. If you want it darker, place the steel wool back into the vinegar and wait a few more hours. Keep repeating this process until it is just right. Once you know it is just right you can dispose of the steel wool. Just a reminder -before applying the stain to all of your wood, test it out on a scrap piece of the same wood.
Apply your new stain just like you would any other stain, except you don't have to wipe this off. Simply dip your brush or cloth into the stain and wipe it on. Making sure to get it everywhere. It will look clear, like it didn't work. Don't worry! The stain has to react to the wood, this usually takes about 15 minutes to complete. Let it dry completely and then add more coats if desired.
That's all there is to it! I found it fun to see what different shades I could get by trying the stain at different stages. Once I found a shade that I liked I poured some of the stain into a new jar (without any steel wool) and kept the rest with the steel wool to see what new shade I could get in a few hours.
There are many other recipes out there just like this. They use the same principle, vinegar and some form of metal to produce different colors of stain. Try using balsamic vinegar or red cider vinegar instead of distilled white vinegar and rusty nails instead of steel wool to get different colors.
It really does give the appearance of the popular barn wood finish (without the dents, dings and holes of real barn wood). Next time I will show you how I get the dents, and dings that finish off the barn wood look.
I love to hear from you! Let me know if you're going to try it or if you already have! Can't wait to hear from you!
P.S. If you like this tutorial, please pin and share for your family and friends!
