Share
Hi, I have this pine table top that I would like to stain a similar colour to my mango wood furniture.whats the best way to go about it?
Hello @Kaz170
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community. It's sensational to have you join us, and thanks for sharing your question about your staining your pine tabletop.
The most reliable way to match your stain is to bring a piece of your furniture into your local Bunnings if possible and speak with the team at the paint counter. They can compare the furniture piece directly with the available stain colours, and if you already have your new panel, they may even be able to test a few close matches to see which one produces the best result.
Stain matching can be challenging because timber naturally varies in grain and tone. Even when you find a stain that looks similar, the way different pieces of timber absorb colour can lead to noticeable variations. If your current timber piece is made from a different type of wood than the panel you are matching, achieving a perfect match may not be possible. The team will be able to recommend the most suitable options to help you get as close a match as you can.
If you can't bring your timber furniture with you, I still suggest visiting your local store and looking at the stain sample board in the paint department. You'll be able to see which stain is close to the one you are after. My best advice is to test the stain on a small corner and wait for it to dry off. If the results are positive and you have a close match, you can then commit the entire area of the pine tabletop.
If you need further assistance, please let us know.
Eric
Hi @Kaz170,
Yes, you can apply a sanding sealer to the surface before sanding the top entirely. This fills the pores in the timber and helps produce a more even stain coverage. Just to be sure, you need to sand the sealer back to raw timber after applying it.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mitchell
Thanks for replying! I am doing something similar to a pine wood vanity with plywood side pieces and door panels. Not sure if I want a rustic darker wood or a walnut wood colouring without it looking too orange.
All the research i’ve done suggests a wood conditioner prior is this sand sealer the same thing? I’ve also seen DIY mixes of shellac flakes and metho. But not sure if that’s too hard to achieve the right ratio. Should I use the Feast Waston Lime stain and varnish white before selecting a darker stain? And do I wipe these immediately?
I’ve uploaded my inspo colouring
Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community @LMMclachlan. It's wonderful to have you join us, and many thanks for your question about staining timber.
A wood conditioner and a sanding sealer are very similar in what they achieve. Both are designed to partially seal the timber so the stain does not soak in unevenly, which pine is notorious for doing. You do not need both. If you want to improve consistency, a sanding sealer is perfectly fine. Apply it, let it dry, then sand it back so you are effectively staining timber that has been evened out in how it absorbs colour. That is really the only reason to use one, not because you must, but because you want a more predictable finish.
The DIY shellac flake and metho mixes are where things start getting overcomplicated. Yes, they work, but the ratios matter, application technique matters, and it is very easy to end up with something blotchy or too sealed. Unless you already have experience with shellac, there is no real upside compared to using an off-the-shelf sanding sealer. For this kind of project, it is unnecessary complexity. If the surface is sanded well, you can absolutely stain it directly. Plenty of people do, and the only trade-off is that pine can take stain a bit unevenly. If that does not bother you or you are leaning towards a more rustic look, then honestly, you can just stain without sealing.
In terms of the Feast Watson Lime Stain and Varnish White, that product is really only suitable if you are specifically chasing a light, whitewashed look. It is a two-in-one product, meaning it stains and seals at the same time. Once it is on, you cannot then apply another stain over the top because the varnish has already sealed the timber. It will likely make the timber lighter and whiter than your inspiration image.
If you want a walnut colour without going orange, choose a walnut stain and test it first. You can control how dark it goes by how you apply it. Wiping straight off will give you a lighter result. Leaving it on longer or applying more stain will deepen the colour. You can even apply it with a lightly dampened cloth rather than flooding the surface if you want a softer, more controlled finish.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Mitchell
Thanks Mitchell! Amazing advice 
appreciate it.
