Awhile back posted a bit on non-toxic stains. Gathered some
hickory nut husks, but never started on that, as too much bother. Did a
bit of tea and coffee staining, without decent results. First time I
tried boiling down coffee and tea. I don't recomment this, too long,
not very precise. Didn't stain well. Next time I used instant tea and
coffee, not very precise on the measuring. Better, but still not so
great.
Decided to give this another shot. The last time I didn't have
great results with the tea, but it did smell btter than the coffee.
Found I had some of the mixed up tea left, so decided to try again,
starting with that. Well, I don't know if it was because the tea was
old, cold, or just from the metal container it was in, but it was very
dark. Much darker than before. But down one patch with a single coat,
and another with two coats. Very dark, with a black hue. It looks
marginally better, after I put a coat of finish on, but the only thing I
can envision using something like this for would be maybe chess or
checker pieces, and maybe the dark squares on a game board. I'm
thinking just mix up a small, fresh, batch every time you use some.
I mixed up a fresh batch of tea, instant tea, half tea, half hot
water, by volume. Two patches again, one coat, and two coats. I
stopped there, because I had ran out of space on the wood I was testing
on, and it had sort of a muddy look too, I wasn't very pleased with
that.
Then I mixed up a batch of coffee, instant, half and half again. I
had gotten a different brand of coffee since the first batch, and this
didn't smell bad. Painted four patches, one coat, two, theree, and
four. I waited for the coat to dry before putting on the next. First
coast dried pretty fast. Second took a bit longer. Third longer yet.
By the last patch, the fourth coat took quite awhile longer to dry, and
seemed to be getting a bit thick. I don't know if this is because it
was thinner at first because it was hot, or what. Both the first and
second patches, with one coat and two coats, were about the effect I was
looking for. The third, with three coats was a nice reddish brown, but
not what I was after. The fourth was even darker.
Then I put on a coat of finish to all of them. The prior time I
thought the coffee stain looked better. But, surprisingly, the muddy
look to the tea went away with a coat of finish on it. The one and two
coats are very close in color, and both are pretty much what I was
after.
The coffee stain that started out so promising, just didn't cut it.
The one and two coats just aren't satisfactory. Of course, with a
different wood, they might do. The third and fourth tho, were quite
nice looking. However, they aren't what I was after.
So, it's tea stain I'll use. The tea dried faster than the coffee
too. Nice it cost just a few $ for experimenting, and I drink tea and
coffee, so no wasted stain mix. And, no prob about pouring the unused
bits down the sink, or tossing it out the door. I like that too.
I'm a person enjoying myself in a tent.
JOAT
My aim is to get through life peacefully, with as little interferrnce
from human beings as possible.
Life just ain't life without good music. - JOAT
Web Page Update 30 Oct 2003.
Some tunes I like.
http://community-2.webtv.net/Jakofalltrades/SOMETUNESILIKE/
Andy Dingley wrote:
>
> On Sat, 01 Nov 2003 21:33:45 -0800, charlie b <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
> >Tea has a lot of tannin in it so ammonia fuming should
> >darken it like fuming oak?
>
> Doesn't work.
>
> It does work, but not to a useful degree. I asked my tame tannins
> chemist and he gibbered back at me in latin and swahili, but the
> upshot is that the tannins available in tea just aren't interested in
> deposting on the timber and there's a surface tension problem too. If
> you add a drop or two of a detergent (without the additives, so just
> use Teepol or similar) then you can get it to soak into timber more
> easily. However it's still hugely variable (not even as good as
> "blotchy").
>
> Practical result is that it works as a colour wash for antiquing pine,
> but it's not deep enough, or consistent enough, to allow oak sapwood
> to be fumed and match the heartwood.
>
> But, the ingredients are cheap so go and experiment for yourselves.
>
Ex-wife #1 got into spinning and weaving which led to "natural
dyes". Pots of soaking walnut bark, saffron, yellow flower
petals, bugs etc.. most of which smelled pretty bad after a
few days but all "environmentally friendly". Problem was
the wool she dyed had to be mordanted first - read spread
the overlapping scales that make up hair/wool. The mordants
were things like sulfuric acid and potassium dichromate
solutions!
Wonder if the equivalent of mordanting would help some when
"natural staining" wood?
charlie b
On Sat, 01 Nov 2003 21:33:45 -0800, charlie b <[email protected]>
wrote:
>Tea has a lot of tannin in it so ammonia fuming should
>darken it like fuming oak?
Doesn't work.
It does work, but not to a useful degree. I asked my tame tannins
chemist and he gibbered back at me in latin and swahili, but the
upshot is that the tannins available in tea just aren't interested in
deposting on the timber and there's a surface tension problem too. If
you add a drop or two of a detergent (without the additives, so just
use Teepol or similar) then you can get it to soak into timber more
easily. However it's still hugely variable (not even as good as
"blotchy").
Practical result is that it works as a colour wash for antiquing pine,
but it's not deep enough, or consistent enough, to allow oak sapwood
to be fumed and match the heartwood.
But, the ingredients are cheap so go and experiment for yourselves.
--
Die Gotterspammerung - Junkmail of the Gods
On Sat, 1 Nov 2003 01:22:10 -0500 (EST), [email protected] (T.)
wrote:
> Awhile back posted a bit on non-toxic stains. Gathered some
>hickory nut husks, but never started on that, as too much bother. Did a
>bit of tea and coffee staining, without decent results. First time I
>tried boiling down coffee and tea. I don't recomment this, too long,
>not very precise. Didn't stain well. Next time I used instant tea and
>coffee, not very precise on the measuring. Better, but still not so
>great.
>
> Decided to give this another shot. The last time I didn't have
>great results with the tea, but it did smell btter than the coffee.
>Found I had some of the mixed up tea left, so decided to try again,
>starting with that. Well, I don't know if it was because the tea was
>old, cold, or just from the metal container it was in, but it was very
>dark. Much darker than before. But down one patch with a single coat,
>and another with two coats. Very dark, with a black hue. It looks
>marginally better, after I put a coat of finish on, but the only thing I
>can envision using something like this for would be maybe chess or
>checker pieces, and maybe the dark squares on a game board. I'm
>thinking just mix up a small, fresh, batch every time you use some.
>
> I mixed up a fresh batch of tea, instant tea, half tea, half hot
>water, by volume. Two patches again, one coat, and two coats. I
>stopped there, because I had ran out of space on the wood I was testing
>on, and it had sort of a muddy look too, I wasn't very pleased with
>that.
>
> Then I mixed up a batch of coffee, instant, half and half again. I
>had gotten a different brand of coffee since the first batch, and this
>didn't smell bad. Painted four patches, one coat, two, theree, and
>four. I waited for the coat to dry before putting on the next. First
>coast dried pretty fast. Second took a bit longer. Third longer yet.
>By the last patch, the fourth coat took quite awhile longer to dry, and
>seemed to be getting a bit thick. I don't know if this is because it
>was thinner at first because it was hot, or what. Both the first and
>second patches, with one coat and two coats, were about the effect I was
>looking for. The third, with three coats was a nice reddish brown, but
>not what I was after. The fourth was even darker.
>
> Then I put on a coat of finish to all of them. The prior time I
>thought the coffee stain looked better. But, surprisingly, the muddy
>look to the tea went away with a coat of finish on it. The one and two
>coats are very close in color, and both are pretty much what I was
>after.
>
> The coffee stain that started out so promising, just didn't cut it.
>The one and two coats just aren't satisfactory. Of course, with a
>different wood, they might do. The third and fourth tho, were quite
>nice looking. However, they aren't what I was after.
>
> So, it's tea stain I'll use. The tea dried faster than the coffee
>too. Nice it cost just a few $ for experimenting, and I drink tea and
>coffee, so no wasted stain mix. And, no prob about pouring the unused
>bits down the sink, or tossing it out the door. I like that too.
>
> I'm a person enjoying myself in a tent.
>
>JOAT
>My aim is to get through life peacefully, with as little interferrnce
>from human beings as possible.
>
>Life just ain't life without good music. - JOAT
>Web Page Update 30 Oct 2003.
>Some tunes I like.
>http://community-2.webtv.net/Jakofalltrades/SOMETUNESILIKE/
I've been staining with coffee for years JOAT but let me ask ya. how
do you get the rings out? lol.... :-]> as i fumble with yet another
leaking cup o joe..... skeez
On Sat, 1 Nov 2003 01:22:10 -0500 (EST), [email protected] (T.)
wrote:
> Awhile back posted a bit on non-toxic stains. Gathered some
>hickory nut husks, but never started on that, as too much bother.
Hmmm... Just how non-toxic would a walnut stain be, when
concentrated? Aren't the juglones in walnuts a herbicide ?
One of my favourite stains in van dyke crystals, bought commercially.
I've brewed up green walnuts and oak apples before now, but it's a
PITA to do. Van dyke is convenient to buy, easy to use and so damned
cheap ! You get a great bag of the stuff for loose change and it
lasts for ages.
--
Die Gotterspammerung - Junkmail of the Gods
Sat, Nov 1, 2003, 12:14pm (EST+5) [email protected]
(Andy=A0Dingley) says:
Hmmm... Just how non-toxic would a walnut stain be, when concentrated?
Aren't the juglones in walnuts a herbicide ? <snip>
No idea.
Van dyke is convenient to buy, easy to use and so damned cheap ! You get
a great bag of the stuff for loose change and it lasts for ages.
Nah, for now at least, I'm gonna stick with the tea and/or coffee.
If I run out, I can even get more at one of the local stop an' robs, no
prob. Anyway, the tea is giving me just the shade I was after. Only
problem is, I mixed up some tonight, and didn't mix up but half enough.
Now I don't feel like mixing up more until tomorrow. But my project is
looking good.
JOAT
My aim is to get through life peacefully, with as little interferrnce
from human beings as possible.
Life just ain't life without good music. - JOAT
Web Page Update 30 Oct 2003.
Some tunes I like.
http://community-2.webtv.net/Jakofalltrades/SOMETUNESILIKE/
On Sun, 02 Nov 2003 06:37:22 -0800, charlie b <[email protected]>
wrote:
> Wonder if the equivalent of mordanting would help some when
> "natural staining" wood?
Mordants are essential in most dying processes. One good mordant for
wood is tannin itself. Tanbark oak was grown for its bark, used as a
mordant in cloth dyeing. You can also find dyes like logwood that are
a little unreliable on most timber, but work well on oak (a nice blue)
because of the tannin content.
Lately I've been trying to use alkanet root. The traditional
formulation is to boil it up in anything oily to make "red oil" (the
stuff is _red_), then apply. Works fine, but it's so fugitive that it
disappears within a week, even when not exposed to light. I'm
wondering about trying a tin compound as a mordant for it.
--
Die Gotterspammerung - Junkmail of the Gods