[ricko]

Hi I am about to try col matching a leaf on a table , now I currently use general dyes/stains. do I mix the stains to get correct col , or do I put a base coat of dye down , then apply stain , kind of lost ? I no to mix in small portions and test on same type of wood and remember portions , but little confused over dye/stain /??????????? WATER BASE STAINS AND DYES BY general

 

[Steve Neul]

Hi I am about to try col matching a leaf on a table , now I currently use general dyes/stains. do I mix the stains to get correct col , or do I put a base coat of dye down , then apply stain , kind of lost ? I no to mix in small portions and test on same type of wood and remember portions , but little confused over dye/stain /??????????? WATER BASE STAINS AND DYES BY general

If you are a beginner at matching stains I wouldn't use dyes. Its very difficult to see what the outcome is on a dye until you start putting the clear coat on. Matching a color takes a lot of tinkering. Probably the easiest method would be to purchase an oil stain as close to the color you what to end up with and buy some other colors of the same brand stain to intermix with. For example if you pick a color and it doesn't look quite red enough you might buy a can of mahogany stain to mix with it. It might also help if you measure the amounts of each component as you go so if you don't have enough you could make another batch. I usually try to make a batch that is too small because if you aren't careful you could start off needing a quart and end up with 5 gallons of stain before you get the color right. Another method would be to buy a can of stain that is tintable close to the color you want that is a little light and add pigments to the stain until you achieve the color you want. The pigments can be purchased at many real paint stores in bottles like Cal-Tint. They are universal tinting colors like paint stores have in their machines to tint paint. They are very concentrated so it's not practical to measure the amounts. The slightest difference in volume can greatly alter the color. Some paint stores will sell you the color out of their machines and put them in cans for you.

Where dyes come in handy is when you think you have the color right and you stain the leaf and start to put the finish on and notice it's a little off. Lets say it a little too red. You can mix an alcohol based green dye very thin and spray a light coat over the leaf. The green will neutralize the red a little bringing the color more brown. Likewise if it isn't red enough you can spray a red dye over it to fine tune the color. The dyes are transparent and nobody will ever know you altered the color. You just have to be sure that you don't sand into that layer with between the coats sanding. If that happens you pretty much have to take the finish off to make it look right. I normally put two coats of sealer over the dye before I do any sanding.

 

[ricko]

col match

well I have a assort of general stains and dyes water base that why I want to use them, can I mix to dyes ? 2 stains ? to achieve col ? or dye and stain ?

 

[Steve Neul]

Yes you can mix dyes and stains and depending on the dye you might be able to mix the dyes with the stain. It would just be easier for you to match the color if you left the dyes out of the equation. Keep it simple. It's a pretty difficult thing to do to look at an original color and guess what pigments it takes to achieve it. I've been doing it for decades now and I still charge for 2 hours labor to match a color.