What's a good place to get a good quality interior wood stain? I don't want outrageous prices, but I will pay a little more to get someone who knows what their talking about, and has a good product.

The only place I know of right now, and would probably try is Sherwin Williams...

 

Home Depot? Maybe Sherwin Williams?

 

They'll have what ya need.

Also, IMO, just about any stain works. As far as quality....I would have to say stain is stain. Then again, it also depends on what project you're working on.

 

Depends on what you are looking for. Minwax makes a decent product which can be bought at both Sherwin Williams and Home Depot. Do NOT use the Minwax that has the sealer built into it called Polyshades. We use ALOT of stains and all of them are from Sherwin Williams. We either use the Wood Classics line for the simple stuff or Sher Wood BAC wiping stain for the ones we have to have custom matched.

Your best bet would be to find the "Commercial" store for Sherwin Williams in your area rather than just go to the retail locations. The Commercial locations have people that acctually know how to use the product rather than just the selling points for it. They also have the ability to match colors better than the retail locations, and when it comes to stains they can REALLY out match a retail store. Bring them a sample of what you want the end product to look like, a sample of the type of wood you are going to be staining and they will make a stain for you that matches in every way except grain. This is just my $.02 but it comes from 12 years of spending $200,000+ a year with Sherwin Williams.

 

Well, we're looking for stain for the kitchen cabinets, interior doors, and all the trim in the house.

I want someone who knows what their talking about, because the cabinets are oak, and the doors I've been looking at pine. I plan on making my own trim from common sizes, but pine is the cheapest, and available in many sizes. I also want someone who can color match the darkest color of our wood floor...

Home Depot I was told had the best weatherproofer, so I bought it. It appears to be some good stuff, and I bought 2 gallons of Valspar from Lowe's for some exterior trim, but I wouldn't say either place really had anyone that knew what they were talking about...

 

Imagine that. The Wal-Marts of home improvement....those *** clowns dont know jack


(I hate the Home Depot).

 

But, they deliver.

 

That's a negative ghost rider, the pattern is full.







Not to me anyway.

 

I think of them as any other store these days. Car parts or appliances, you buy what you need, they are only there to sometimes help you find it. The internet is there to help you with any questions...

 

Sounds like SW is what I'm looking for. I'll see what I can find in that commercial store. Do they sell to the public?

 

Yes they do, its just a seperate store that isn't set up like the retail stores they are more of a "to the point" on the inside.

The only problem I see you running into is you will need 2 different stains to obtain a uniform look. You will need one stain for the oak and one for the pine as being different woods they will take the stain differently. For the oak I would highly suggest using a wood filler on it before you apply the stain as it will give you a more uniform grain finish between the oak and pine. I will let you know before you start you will not get a furniture finish on any of this. For Furniture quality finishes that we do we use 7 and 8 step processes along with conversion varnishes, pre-sealers, multiple coats of different color stains, ect. all in a controlled atmosphere to minimize dust.

I would bring S&W a sample of the wood floor, and a sample of both the pine and the oak and let them have at it. Once you get the stain bring it home and play with it for a while trying different things until you are 100% satisfied with the end result. For dark colors it is best to brush the stain on and let it sit till it dries and not wipe it off, but you have to leave it sit for a couple of days otherwise the sealer will lift the stain and give you a streaky look.

Once you get into it if you have any questions just shoot me a PM and I will help you out as best as I can.

 

Thanks!

BTW, we aren't looking for a furniture finish. The house is meant to be and look log cabin rustic. We want a good durable finish, but not looking for anything glossy or shiny. I will follow your suggestions though, and get samples for them. I had planned on taking them the flooring, but hadn't thought about samples of the wood to be stained. Getting the pine will be easy, but not sure about the oak from the cabinets. May just have to take in a small cabinet, and let them try it on the bottom or something.

We don't mind if the cabinets don't perfectly match the doors in grain, texture, etc... as long as the tint is the same.

 

You may want to try staning some small samples of each wood. My experience is that the oak will not absorb the stain as easily as the pine, resulting in a lighter tint, even with the same stain. If you stain, it may highlight the difference in the two woods, which in itself could look good, but just wanted you to be aware, no surprises.