When working with wood, it’s hard to find the perfect stain … that’s for sure. There are some good ones out there as-is, but I haven’t found one that screams FARMHOUSE! So, I played around with some stain and paint and came up with TWO amazing options that I LOVE! I’ll share my easy, DIY farmhouse wood stain in this post so you can transform your wood using the perfect stain!
Do you do a lot of wood projects around your house? Doesn’t have to be fancy … maybe just wood shelves or a custom frame. I LOVE to do my own pieces instead of buying, as much as possible. Not only do I save money, I get to create something custom for my space that no one else has.
As I work on my wood projects, I always have two little volunteers to help … my 2-year-old and 4-year-old. Although, I’m sure my 10-month-old would volunteer as well if he could communicate that to me! HA! I always have to tell my two older kids that my projects aren’t quite something they can help with. I generally redirect them with coloring or something fun and then I try to plan a kid friendly project for the near future. It works … for now. It’ll be nice when they are a bit older and can really help me with some of my projects!
Stain option 1 – a true stain!
I recently finished my laundry room makeover and you can see that reveal here. I did an above the washer & dryer shelf and farmhouse shelves in this room. This is where I did my testing of stains to come up with the look I was going for.
After a trip to Home Depot, I came home with two Minwax wood stain options: Weathered Oak and Classic Gray. I already have some Weathered Oak in my home (as seen on my mantle and stair railing) and like the look, but it can be a bit light. I loved the look of the Classic Gray, but it was a bit too gray as a stand-alone stain. So, I took a scrap piece of wood to see what would look good using these two stains.
Weathered Oak Cedar Mantle 
Weathered Oak Stair Railing
Testing out the layering …
I first tried Weathered Oak, then Classic Gray. Classic Gray, then Weathered Oak. Two coats of Weathered Oak and one of Classic Gray. Three Weathered Oak and two Classic Gray …. Basically, many different variations. After they all dried, the one that I found that worked perfectly was two coats of classic gray and three coats of Weathered Oak. Although, to be honest one coat of Classic Gray and three coats of Weathered Oak was perfect as well. Keep in mind the type of wood will take stain differently, but overall this stain option will give you a farmhouse look.
See how it turned out on my shelves? It’s a beautiful mix … and layering stains is an amazing trick! Oh, and before you stain, please use a stain conditioner. It helps the wood take the stain evenly and beautifully!
Stain option 2 – a wash!
Next, if you are looking for more of a gray wash for your wood project, I have another option for you! This will make your wood look a bit more weathered. First, you’ll need a gray paint. You can start with a gray from the room your piece will be in, or decide weather you want a darker gray or lighter gray. It’s all about coordinating in your chosen room. If you aren’t too picky, you can use the same gray I am using for this example: Sherwin Williams Peppercorn.
Peppercorn is a darker gray, but with a bit of water it brings it to an awesome color on wood. First, slap some paint onto a paper plate (or something similar). Then add a couple tablespoons of water to it and stir. This makes the paint watery and easy to apply to your wood piece.
Apply and soak up!
Using a foam brush (or a paint brush or old sock), liberally apply the watery paint mixture to your piece of wood. Let it soak in about 30 seconds and then dry off. I generally use an old t-shirt or a paper towel to soak up the paint/water mixture that didn’t soak into the wood. Soaking up the extra liquid also helps your piece dry quicker!
This is what it looks like on a piece of white wood. You can always do a second coat if you want it a bit darker. Whatever works for your décor. Oh, you can always sand in some spots to bring back some of the wood look as well. It’ll be super pretty!
As always, make sure you sand before doing any stain or wash. You definitely want the wood nice and smooth to soak it up .. and to prevent any “ouchies” when applying. Although, if you want to make the wood look more weathered, you can always hit it a few times with a hammer or add some nail holes before applying your chosen staining technique.
Sum up
So, I’ve showed you an awesome stain layering technique to get a farmhouse look and a gray wash to make the wood look gray and weathered. The lighter the gray the more weathered it’ll look. Here’s a look at a super light gray I did on pallet wood. It looks pretty cool, right?
If you do the wash, you can really use whatever color of paint you want. It doesn’t have to be gray and this technique is pretty cool inside of dresser drawers too! Here you can see I did some with blue and aqua.
There are so many ways to make a project unique and your own! Let me know in the comments below if you plan to try one of these staining options.
Be blessed!
