If the wood is too dark, soak a clean cloth in turpentine or mineral spirits and rub the wood firmly and evenly along the grain. This will lighten the stain but not remove it.
Bleached walnut. Sometimes you want to make wood lighter than it is in its raw state. This is common when trying to match the wood to something that already exists. The way to do it is to first bleach out the color of the wood, then apply a stain, if necessary, to achieve the match.
Short answer: yes, household bleach will lighten wood. However, it's not the only option. Household bleach will remove leftover dye from wood, but it won't actually change the wood color itself. For my project, I only had regular bleach on hand.
If you try to apply a light color of stain over the top of an existing dark finish, you won't notice much difference. To completely alter the color of the finish, strip down the existing stain using a petroleum-based solvent. Once you've lightened the wood, you may add a lighter color of stain.
But it's much more efficient to “bury” the raised grain with another coat of finish. Then sand it smooth after it has dried. Stains lighten as they dry, then return to their damp color when a finish is applied.
Lay a brightly patterned runner across a wood dresser or table. Opt for bold bedding or wall art in a bedroom outfitted with wood furniture. Table lamps, vases, and planters in a rainbow of colors can also help cheer up dark wood furniture.
Have you ever stained a wood piece, only to find the wood stain was significantly darker than you expected it to be? Well, there's a way around that. Wood stain can be diluted with minerals spirits, water, or lacquer thinner, depending on the type of stain.
Unlike cherry, maple, and oak (which all darken in color as they age), walnut wood will actually lighten slightly over time.
Walnut is a darker wood with shades that range from pale browns to dark browns.
Walnut is lovely wood, especially when carefully air dried so as to preserve the rich chocolate, purple and black tones in the best of it. HOWEVER, It fades like mad in sunlight. Furniture is touched by sunlight. Therefore, the lovely colors of the walnut go away — and it doesn't take centuries.
Smokey Hills is a rich, graphite gray cabinet stain on Walnut, with slightly warm undertones. Smokey Hills on Walnut is available on these door styles: Adagio. Aldon.
You can bleach the walnut and you will get walnut with light color. Just make sure you do the right procedure of bleaching. But the bleached result is never consistent if used to make color finish.
If the wood is too dark, soak a clean cloth in turpentine or mineral spirits and rub the wood firmly and evenly along the grain. This will lighten the stain but not remove it.
PolyShades stain and polyurethane also allows you to easily change the color of your currently stained or varnished wood without stripping. Over old varnish you can change the color without removing the old finish or hiding the grain.
For hard to lighten wood stain, use oxalic acid, known as "wood bleach." If that doesn't work, strip off the old stain and start fresh.
As you already know, bleach isn't just for cleaning, it can also work as a lightening agent, which is often used for hair. But it can also be used to lighten the color of the wood in floors, furniture, and siding. Bleached wood is often used because it has a light, vintage, beachy, shabby chic, farmhouse look.
Using most gel stains, you can darken wood furniture, or stay the same color, without sanding off the old stain. But, I usually use General Finishes Gel Stain because the finish always looks beautiful. Don't forget to Save or Share these steps for how to stain wood without sanding.
Sand away the stain with 150-grit sandpaper.
Switch to a finer sandpaper once you reach the bare wood. Take 150-grit sandpaper and sand the stain directly, again along the grain of the wood. Continue sanding until you remove the whole stain.
Can You Use Mineral Spirits to Remove Stain? Yes! Mineral spirits is often used to remove wood stains, and it's extremely effective at doing so.
Apply a second coat of stain after the first has dried fully. This will usually produce a slightly darker coloring with the excess wiped off. Substitute a glaze or gel stain for the liquid stain. Glazes and gel stains usually contain a higher ratio of pigment to vehicle.