How to Choose the Stain Color for Your Furniture

Some of the sturdiest, long-lasting, classic, and decor complementing furniture is made out of wood. With such versatility, wood can be creatively manipulated to fit all your aesthetic needs. Stain is one easy way to customize your wood furniture in various ways. This method is a great way to efficiently enhance a piece from dull to extravagant. The good people at Secret Compartment Furniture make all their furniture out of wood and offer several different stains for each species of wood to be applied to all their customized pieces. With multiple factors to consider when it comes to choosing the right stain for your furniture, the selection process can get confusing. For this reason, it is important to pay close attention to details so you won’t regret your choice. Luckily for you, there are several tips to help ease the decision-making process.

1. Grain and species

Before you apply any stain to your wood furniture, you must first determine what you’re working with. Knowing the grain and species of your wood material is important because both factors play a huge role in how the stain you choose will show up, appearance wise. If a piece of wood has a tight grain (like birch), it will be a lot harder to get a stain to appear on the wood because the grain will not absorb the pigment. When it comes to species, stains come up differently. The finished product of a stain on oak will definitely be different from that of maple. This is more so due to the size of pores on the wood; the smaller the pores, the harder it will be for the wood to absorb the stain.

2. Light or dark?

While it may seem obvious, the color of your stain plays a part in the selection process, but not simply just for aesthetic reasons. Wood comes with its own imperfections and, not to mention, will gain wear and tear with continued use over time. Darker stains are great for hiding the knots and other variations wood comes with, but it will also show all the nicks, surface scratches and dust it will inevitably accumulate. On the other hand, lighter stains do just the opposite as it will hide the signs of use more willingly, but will allow natural imperfections to show through. While it may seem like you have to compromise one benefit for the other, it’s important to be informed while making a selection of staining.

3. Room decor

When considering a pigment of a stain for your wood furniture, why not consider the decor of the room it will be placed in? Does your living room have more of a country home feel that would do good with a light staining? Does your bedroom have a deep color-scheme that would be complemented by a darker stain? Think about these factors when choosing a stain to ensure your overall contentment with your choice. You don’t want to fall in love with the staining of your wood furniture, only to find it doesn’t fit into its designated room at all!

4. Should it even be stained?

Some woods are just better off untouched. Such species of wood such as birch and maple are prime examples of materials that look fantastic naturally without applying any stain to them. Please keep in mind that you will still need to have a top quality clear coat applied to protect your piece. While almost any grain or species can be adjusted to be receptive to staining, you’ll put in more work only to obtain an okay staining job. If you’re looking for a great species of wood to stain, oak and brown maple are probably your best bets as it is the most receptive to manipulation. If you’re looking for a great natural wood that basically comes ready, stick with the birch and hard maple!