Many people are interested in building their own furniture or decorative objects, and many times these projects have wood as the protagonist.
Possibly, if you are one of them, you know that you have to choose this material consciously because deforestation threatens our planet; and that the ideal is to reuse, whenever possible, pallets or old furniture.
However, there is an aspect that is sometimes not taken into account in these projects: paint also pollutes. If we use synthetic varnishes and paints for recycled furniture, we are not completely solving the environmental consequences. The paints contain toxic components such as mercury, and a single drop of them can contaminate liters of water.
Therefore, making your own homemade varnishes, whether to paint your own models or furniture that you buy directly from the carpentry, is a very environmentally friendly idea.
Below, you will find 7 recipes for wood stains that will leave it in different shades and will also help you protect it, even saving a lot of money.
Most home varnish formulas call for different combinations of vinegar and metal. The latter can come from simple household items like steel sponges and rusty nails.
Materials
Formula 1: 1 and 1/2 cups of white vinegar and a steel wool pad (steel sponge)
Formula 2: 1 and 1/2 cups of balsamic vinegar and a pad of steel wool (steel sponge)
Formula 3: 1 and 1/2 cups of apple cider and a pad of steel wool (steel sponge)
Formula 4: 1 and 1/2 cups of white vinegar and a handful of rusty nails
Formula 5: a box of tea bags
Formula 6: a cup of coffee beans
Formula 7: acrylic paint and water*
*It is not a natural recipe, but later you will know why in some cases we recommend it.
Formulas 1, 2, 3 and 4:
1. To make any of the first four mixtures, you must combine both ingredients (either a thin layer of the steel wool sponge, or a handful of cloves, and the indicated liquid) in a glass jar; and wait for the metal to react to the acid in the vinegar.
2. The lid of the jar should not be tight and there should be some air left inside for oxygen to help oxidation.
3. Let stand 24 hours and transfer the mixture to the jar to stop the reaction (or you can just remove the metal from inside).
4. Apply it on the wood, but you should know two things: the reaction is not immediate, it usually takes 10 minutes, although there are cases in which the wood darkens the next day; and the color of the mixture will not be exactly the one that remains in the wood, but you will have to try it. In the photos, you can see that the darker mixture, the balsamic vinegar one, gives a more subdued result than the others.
Formulas 5 and 6:
To stain wood with tea or coffee (here you must choose the one you prefer for the color) you must prepare them as if you were going to drink them, but in a concentration 4 times higher. For example, if for a cup of water you use a tea bag, here you should use 4. You can use 10 tea bags in a liter of water.
Formula 7:
The above recipes result in shades of brown or gray. The furniture will be very nice and are the most recommended for the environment. However, in case you want to stain the wood in color, there is a slightly more sustainable option than painting with industrial varnishes. You can dilute a few drops of acrylic paint in enough water, and apply it to the wood in the same way as the previous varnishes.
Although acrylic paint is not completely harmless, using a few diluted drops is more sustainable than painting directly with color, and more preferable than using, for example, synthetic paint. The result is like the one you can see at the end. Another option is to make your own natural paints.
And you, what color would you like to dye your wooden furniture?