Decorative aging of wood. wood aging

Many design styles (French, Tuscan, vintage, shabby chic and others) are characterized by the presence of antique woodwork among their elements. Paint wear, the texture of old wood give a special charm to the interiors. In their work, designers actively use antique furniture, wall panels, floors, stairs, beams, columns and other small decor. However, antiques are not cheap, which greatly inflates the cost of projects, and wooden elements from the past are not strong and durable. To solve these problems, artificial aging of the tree has appeared, and you can even do it yourself.

Aging methods

There are several ways to age a wooden surface. The choice of the desired aging method is influenced by the type of wood, the design style, the availability of the necessary tools and materials, professional skills and experience. The following types of artificial aging of natural wood are most common:

• chemical way;
• heat treatment;
• wood aging by dry brushing.

chemical method

In order to process wooden products by this method, it is necessary to have special chemical reagents, professional tools, certain qualifications and knowledge. Caustic substances (acids, alkalis or copper sulphate) are applied to the surface of the parts, after which the wood changes color, and the soft fibers are destroyed. The process itself is hazardous to health and requires increased security measures. It is almost impossible to implement such artificial aging with your own hands and at home.

Heat treatment method

The essence of this technological process is to burn less dense layers of wood by means of an open fire. It consists of several stages:

• annealing soft fibers to obtain the desired wood texture;
• surface cleaning with abrasive materials;
• applying varnish.

To implement this method with your own hands, you can use a very affordable tool - an ordinary blowtorch.

brushing

The name of this technique comes from the English word "brush", which means a brush. Brushing is based on the structural features of wood, consisting of hard and soft fibers, and the process itself consists in combing soft fibers out of wood with a metal brush and giving the surface the texture of old wood. Do-it-yourself brushing can be divided into a number of successive stages:

• mechanical processing of wood along the fibers;
• cleaning from chips and pile;
• glossing;
• staining or patination;
• varnish coating.

Despite the fact that the tool for brushing seems extremely simple, the process itself is quite laborious. When using this method of applying a touch of antiquity to wooden products, it should be remembered that hardwoods, as well as pine, yew and larch, cannot be brushed.

Artificial aging of wood by dry brushing

This process is also easy to do with your own hands, it is applicable to cabinets, tables, shelves, armchairs and other types of home furniture. It consists of several stages, and not all of them are required.

1. Creating the effect of many years of operation.

At this stage, scratches, potholes, chips and dents are applied to the surface of the furniture. To do this, you need a carpentry tool and a little imagination. Since the damage caused is irreversible, this stage of tree aging can be skipped.

1. Coloring.

For this, two variants of paint of similar shades are used. First, one is applied, and after drying - the second.

1. Surface treatment with abrasive materials or sanding.

Using fine sandpaper or sand, the top layer of paint is erased. This is done unevenly, in some places only up to the first layer, and in some places up to wood. It is important to achieve the effect of natural wear, so special attention should be paid to the edges and protruding parts. After sanding with a vacuum cleaner, chips and wood dust are removed.

1. Applying paint with a dry brush.

At this stage, it is important to choose the right tool for applying paint. A stiff, flat brush works best. The choice of paint should also be approached responsibly. It should be contrasting with previously used shades. For a light base, the best option would be dark shades of brown or burgundy paint. The technology of applying paint to the surface in this method of wood aging is the most complex. The paint is applied with your own hands with an almost dry brush, the strokes should look like a trace of numerous bristles. Crossing strokes is not allowed.

1. Rubbing the top layer.

For this, a cloth napkin is used, which smears the newly applied strokes.

1. Coating the surface with varnish.

It is best to use a clear varnish, which should be applied in one or two coats.

There are several more ways to force the aging of wood with your own hands, but they are not so effective and do not always achieve the desired goal.

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Sometimes emphasizing old age is an original solution to the problem of unsightly sashes. So, beautiful without additional expenses. Of course, the effect should be deliberate - slovenliness is out of place in any interior. do-it-yourself wood aging - methods, tools and materials are described below.

Types of artificial aging of wood

The vintage original look of the doors is obtained in several ways. Below, they are listed in order of increasing effort and cost. The operation algorithm is also described. So:

• Thermal method or firing. The process will require a blowtorch and a coarse wood aging brush. The intensity of exposure is determined by the master himself - as a result, you can get pronounced natural patterns of wood or barely visible. After firing, the surface of the canvas is sanded with large emery cloth in different places to create the appearance of heterogeneity. The door for this method of aging should be massive, plank. Appropriate fittings - massive steel handles and.

How to do it right:

Use a hair dryer or solvent. The canvas is carefully sanded, the boards are knocked down so that there are no gaps. Not bad before aging with all sorts of protections - flame retardant, moisture-retaining composition. The existing cracks are left - they will give even more flavor. Hinges and handles are removed. The method takes a little time, it is safe with the skills of working with the tool.

• Blackening. The effect is achieved by rubbing shoe polish, stain or a strong manganese solution into the cleaned canvas. Pigmentation lingers on annual rings, sections, knots, and thus, it turns out, the effect of the opening darkened from old age is achieved. In addition, the last composition helps to disinfect the canvas if traces of mold or fungus are detected during cleaning.

How to do it right:

Everything ingenious is simple! To get antique doors, the previously cleaned surface with a solvent and a spatula is covered with black ink, and then the shoe polish melted to a liquid state is rubbed with a brush. You need to rub hard. The method has a drawback - it is important to ventilate the removed door leaf for a week - the smell is unpleasant.

• Traces of bark beetle. They represent paths from the movement of the larva. You can create them on the semi-antique door with your own hands using bent nails. Having spread them on the surface, they are driven in with a hammer, leaving dents over the entire area. It is important to free the rods from the hats in order to create a complete imitation. After work, the canvas is sanded with a fine sandpaper, making sure that the chip dust gets a little into the grooves. Next, varnish.

These antique effects are very easy and fast to get. The style of an apartment or house must be consistent, otherwise the effect is inappropriate.

Work with paint and varnish

You can get aged doors in other ways. They will require more time and labor. In addition, costs will increase due to the purchase of several shades of paint. So:

• A popular dry brush method. The canvas is cleaned and covered with a base primer. Until the layer is completely dry, with the end of a dry brush, strokes of a different shade are applied. The combination of colors can be different - contrasting or moving from one shade to another. Now the layers are given time to dry. The finished surface is cleaned with emery skins to further highlight the areas of scuffs. Again, a layer of a helmet of a different color is applied. The final color is pale yellow or white, which is used to cover the door with strokes. Allow to dry again and then sand. The final layer is varnish.
• Craquelure. Such artificial aging of a tree is done in several ways:

1. - lacquer and silver. A layer of varnish is applied to the prepared surface. After 30 minutes, it is dried with a hair dryer, as a result of which cracks appear. They are rubbed with silver paint, allowed to dry completely and the resulting effect is varnished.
2. - PVA glue. With it, create an antique design. A thick layer of glue on a previously cleaned canvas is not allowed to dry completely. A layer of acrylic paint is applied over it and then dried with a building hair dryer.
3. - gelatin or egg white is another way to age the paint on the tree. The prepared composition is applied to the painted surface with a wide brush - pre-soaked gelatin or protein. Allow to dry naturally and varnish.
4. - vinegar 9%. They moisten a fresh painted surface in a horizontal position. Cracks appear immediately.

It is important not to overdo it - the doors should be aged, and not put into disrepair.

• Mechanical structuring or brushing. The bottom line is to remove the soft fibers of the wood and expose the structure of the tree. For work, a special milling cutter with several nozzles is used - a wire brush for structure, a soft one - for cleaning and emery skins for polishing.

The door laid on a horizontal surface is cleaned by a chemical or hot method, then the machine is used. You can achieve the effect manually, but it will take more time. First they work with a rough nozzle, then they clean the chips and, finally, they polish. During each stage, various compositions are applied to the canvas - stain, ink, shoe polish, so that the further transformation of the old wood goes on continuously. The final step will be varnishing.

• Chemical brushing. Suitable as a wood aging effect that does not require the purchase of a special machine. For work, caustic alkalis, acids, ammonia are used. The process takes place away from residential premises in well-ventilated places and with the use of personal protective equipment - gloves, goggles, a respirator. It consists of the following:

1. - The canvas is cleaned and sanded.
2. - wetted with a large amount of caustic components.
3. - after softening the soft layers, processed with hard wire brushes and polishing.

Using the above methods, it is not difficult to artificially age a tree. In addition to the interior, wooden fragments of furniture - legs, armrests - are decorated in the same way.

Features of the wood aging process

Various methods of aging the door surface at home require compliance with the steps and nuances. For example:

• Cleaning cloths. Occurs with the use of a building hair dryer or solvents. A spatula is convenient to clean off peeling paint. It is important to remove all visible areas, otherwise they will not get the desired effect. In addition, chemical solutions must be suitable for future staining or varnishing - incompatibility will lead to the formation of bubbles and "husks".
• The chemical method of wood aging - brushing with caustic solutions, staining, occurs only with soft woods. Pine, spruce, suitable - oak and larch are only subject to mechanical processing.
• The mechanical method is associated with the formation of chips and fine wood dust, so the canvas is periodically moistened with water and debris is swept from the surface with a soft brush. Not with hands - to avoid splinters.
• Painting - craquelure, do-it-yourself wood aging with varnish, the dry brush method - should go with thorough mixing of the compositions so that air bubbles do not form on the surface. They, bursting, form ugly pits, and the artificial origin of the canvas becomes clear.

By itself, natural wood is beautiful and new canvases are unlikely to need to be decorated with the methods described. Work should be carried out only with used interior doors in order to give them a second life and save on the purchase of a new set.

Despite the variety of glossy facades, antique wood interior elements remain in demand. The purchase of such furniture will cost a pretty penny. In the case when you don’t really want to spend money, you should not refuse the idea of ​​\u200b\u200bhaving an aged chest of drawers or a table. You can try to age the furniture yourself. Let's try to figure out what technology is used to process semi-antique wood with our own hands. After all, natural conditions age a tree for many years. And to get the result quickly, you have to age the tree artificially.

You will not find semi-antique furniture in every home. It should be used where appropriate. The design of the room should be thought out in the appropriate style so that antique products look decent.

Usually, the tree aging procedure is performed for a specific purpose, namely:

• Satisfy the taste of the dwellers.
• Save money on antiques. It is much cheaper to buy inexpensive furniture and age artificially.

Using certain methods of aging wood, you can get exclusive things. Both the entire product and its individual parts are processed. Particular attention should be paid to items such as chests of drawers, sideboards, book shelves, mirror frames. They are most often aged, since it is difficult to imagine a vintage-style interior without these items.

Aging methods

The process of processing semi-antique wood with your own hands is carried out in several ways. The main ones are:

• Chemical processing- used for hardwoods.
• Roasting or heat treatment- universal option.
• Machining or brushing- this way you can process products made of oak or needles.

Furniture for aging is selected massive, with a rough texture, so that outwardly it resembles hand-made objects of past centuries. Before processing, it is better to disassemble the furniture into individual parts. This will make it possible to process even hard-to-reach places.

To facilitate the achievement of the effect of aging wood, it is better to purchase material that is already damaged by a bug, with minor chips, cracks and knots.

If the process of aging a tree with your own hands is performed for the first time, then it is better to practice a little on separate unnecessary bars. The quality of the result depends on how well the solution, stain or varnish is applied. It is recommended to perform work outdoors so as not to harm your own health.

How to make new boards or furniture look like old products? Now you know that several techniques are used for these purposes. Let's consider each of them in more detail.

Mechanical restoration

It is possible to age a tree mechanically in products from such species as pine, spruce, larch. It is these types of wood that have a pronounced texture, the presence of layers of fibers with varying degrees of hardness.

The main task during machining is the formation of various kinds of chips, potholes, cracks in an artificial way. You can achieve this by doing the following:

1. Wooden surfaces are processed with an ax or a special grinder. Potholes of various depths and widths are randomly applied to them. The bar is hewn, while you should not achieve special accuracy and symmetry.

2. After that, we proceed to grinding the surface with a brush with metal bristles. It will be easier to do this with a grinder and an appropriate nozzle. During processing, sanding is carried out along the grain until the inflicted potholes and chips take the form of naturally formed defects on the wood.

3. Then we move on to the second degree of grinding. At this stage, we work with a brush with soft bristles and sandpaper. During this treatment, soft fibers are removed, and coarser ones remain. Thus, we get an uneven tree structure. In the same way, you can additionally highlight knots and cracks.

4. At the next stage, we work on the color of the wood. It is necessary to bring the light new wood as close as possible to the shade of the board darkened from old age. Here you can apply a stain or a dark shade of acrylic-based paint.

5. When the applied product is completely dry, we process the surface with fine-grained sandpaper. At the same time, we try to perform all actions carefully. The paint must be removed from the hills and ridges, and it remains in the potholes.

6. At the final stage, we open the treated surface with a colorless or light yellow varnish and dry it completely.

On the video: a method of mechanical aging of a wooden board.

As for the question of how to age wood on small items, such as small pieces of furniture or wooden utensils, here the process is slightly simplified. The surface to be treated is thoroughly cleaned with a brush from wood dust until the desired effect is achieved. The subsequent staining and opening with varnish is identical to the process described earlier.

Brushing should only be done by hand using a metal bristle brush until small dents and ridges are achieved.

Heat treatment

Wood can be aged by heat treatment. A feature of this method of aging is the complete absence of mechanical processes. The disadvantage is a certain danger to human health during the work. Therefore, they should be performed outdoors, while protecting the skin, eyes and respiratory organs.

Heat treatment or firing is done by exposing the wood to direct fire. Either a torch or a blowtorch should be used. It is necessary to burn to a depth of about 3 mm.

If heat treatment is carried out superficially, then the effect of aging will not be as pronounced as with stronger firing.

After finishing the heat treatment, perform the following steps:

1. With the help of a metal brush or a grinder with a bristle nozzle, they begin to scrape off the carbon layer to the desired degree of antiquity. It is not necessary to paint the surface. Soot will highlight the entire structure.
2. Sanding is done with sandpaper.
3. A top coat of clear lacquer is applied to the aged wood.

chemical method

A tree can be aged during chemical treatment by means such as alkaline compounds or ammonia. You can use household chemicals that contain alkaline components.

The essence of the process lies in the fact that when the product gets on the wood, it burns out its soft tissues. The structure of a tree is distinguished by the presence of hard and soft tissues. When processing antique wood, soft tissues are removed in various ways.

In this case, the surface layer of wood is burned out with alkali, which in parallel paints it gray.

The next step is the process of washing off alkaline residues. To do this, you can use vinegar or citric acid. A solution of citric acid is prepared in the proportion: 1 teaspoon of acid per glass of water. If vinegar is used, then it should be a 9% solution. Acetic acid must not be used. Further, the treated surfaces are well dried, polished and varnished.

Aging a tree in all the ways listed above is quite simple if you make efforts and efforts. You can give the desired effect to any surface. Can be aged as small household items, furniture or even a wooden floor.

Recently, the use of aged wood in the decoration of furniture and interiors has come into fashion. Even the simplest cheap wooden furniture will look stylish and expensive after artificial aging. This article will open up some simple and not very expensive ways to make old wood for furniture and other wooden products with your own hands.

Under natural conditions, a tree ages under the influence of the sun, wind, rain and other phenomena. And this process takes place over a long period of time. We will make the process of aging wood artificial, which will significantly reduce time and improve the final result. If the whole work is described briefly, it will consist of two stages: mechanical processing of wood (light damage, removal of soft fibers) and painting with varnishes and paint.

To age a tree, you will need:

• hard metal brush;
• circular brush;
• large and small skins;
• estimate;
• several brushes;
• antiseptic for wood;
• White Spirit;
• dark Pinotex or dark azure Belinka;
• white azure Belinka;
• big sponge.

With a set of these tools and materials, we can age a tree in five different ways. Let's take a closer look at each of them.

The first way to age a tree is to remove soft fibers and paint

You can artificially age a wooden surface with a stiff brush, which removes the soft fibers of the wood and thus creates a relief, the lines of which will be emphasized by the color of the wood.

The wooden surface is pre-sanded, then it is processed along the fibers with a circular (using a special nozzle for a grinder) or a metal hand brush, as a result of which soft wood fibers are removed from the surface.

Sawdust is removed with a special brush with soft bristles, but by no means by hand to avoid splinters.

The tree instantly changes its appearance, acquires a beautiful relief and a contrasting color, which is specially emphasized by staining in two layers.

For staining, Belinka translucent azure is used, which is applied to the cleaned surface with a brush or roller.

The tree will already have a rather attractive appearance.

After a few minutes, a sponge is taken and with its help the layer of glaze is carefully removed, as a result of which the wooden surface acquires a relief. You can leave the surface as it is and cover it with a clear varnish if you like this color of aged wood.

But if you want to add color to the style a la Provence, then another autumn thin layer of Belinka white azure is applied on top of the first layer.

After a few minutes, we carefully remove the fresh azure with a sponge, as a result of which we get a bleached aged wood, with which we create a stylish interior a la Provence. When the glaze is completely dry, the surface can be varnished with the same base as the azure, or another layer of colorless azure can be applied.

This way of aging wood is ideal for beams and other elements of wooden structures, when creating an antique style.

The second way is the relief of antiquity and multi-layer coloring of wood

With the help of this method, the tree is specially given the appearance of an old, antique thing, worn by time. For this, a multi-layered coloring of the tree is used.

Previously, the surface of the tree must be specially subjected to all kinds of minor damage: it is beaten with a hammer, pierced with an awl, torn with a saw, sealed with screws or steel rods, everything possible is done to give it the relief of antiquity.

Then the surface is primed with a layer of Pinotex. After it dries, it is covered with a continuous thick layer of tinted paint (antiseptic).

Since Pinotex has a thick consistency, it can be placed unevenly, as it is much thicker than Belinka's azure. It is used in cases where you need to create a thick bottom layer on an aged tree.

Azure Belinka is more liquid, it is easily and evenly distributed over the entire surface of the tree, creating an even surface color.

When the first layer dries, it can be intentionally subjected to minor damage: rubbed with a fine or coarse sandpaper, walked with a metal brush. The main thing is not to overdo it. The time span here should be kept to a minimum. According to experts, the most reliable effect of antiquity is given by painting with Pinotex with an uneven layer.

After a deliberate aging procedure by scratching with sandpaper or a wire brush, a translucent layer of white azure is applied to the surface so that a dark underlayer can be seen through it. It is not necessary to apply paint in an even layer.

After the top layer has dried, the upper layer of white glaze is scraped off with a metal brush with longitudinal movements, as a result of which a relief pattern of aged wood is created. Such a pattern has a very contrasting color, which is very far from the natural color of aged wood. To bring the color to a more perfect tone, it needs to be made a little muted. To do this, the white glaze is diluted by half with white spirit and the wooden surface is covered with this mixture.

The aged wood, created on the basis of Belinka blue, has a calm warm tone after final processing. Pinotex gives a more interesting decorative effect, with a deep dark base color. It is used in the creation of aged furniture, as well as in decoration elements.

The third way is brushing and white icing

This way to age a tree is the easiest and fastest. The wooden surface is treated with a metal brush, then covered with a layer of white glaze.

After the glaze has dried, the surface is again treated with a metal brush. As a result, we have a bleached wooden surface, slightly aged with a relief pattern from a metal brush.

Master class: "How to age a tree?"

Let's look at another way to age a tree with your own hands. The photo above shows the stages of work, and below I will describe them in detail.

1. You need to choose the right tree for aging. You should not choose young wood, because of the small fibers it has no decorative value. Resinous wood will be difficult and long to process. The tree should have a pronounced structure and healthy knots.

3. With a chisel, you need to make shapeless serifs on the edges of the board, as if with an ax.

4. A drill bit with hard nylon bristles can be used to remove soft wood grains. At the same time, you should not be too zealous and put pressure on the tool, pressing should be light so that the efficiency of the work does not decrease. You can also use a metal brush for processing - in this case there will be a rougher result.

5. You can add the effect of wormholes, but this is not for everyone. Using a core or a blunt nail, we make holes 1-2 mm deep.

6. Now you need to clean the surface and open it with Pinotex Uitra paint-lacquer. This coating will be resistant even to atmospheric conditions. You can also use Senezh aquadecor.

7. After the paint dries, the surface must be sanded with fine sandpaper No. 80. As a result, there will be a very beautiful effect when the depressions on the wood remain dark and the protrusions are light, that is, we highlight the volume and structure of the wood.

8. The final stage is the re-opening of the red tree.

Aging wood with fire

You can age a tree with a gas burner.

There are three main ways here:

1. Aging without prior mechanical processing of wood. That is, we simply emphasize the texture of wood by firing it. Then we pass with fine sandpaper and open it with varnish.

2. First, mechanical processing of wood is carried out - we remove soft fibers, and then we carry out firing. This method will give the tree a relief and three-dimensional look, which will certainly look chic.

3. Intensive firing of wood, which will burn out the soft fibers of the wood and subsequent mechanical processing with a hard brush.

Finally, I want to give some advice:

• Aged products from old boards will look more beautiful and effective. If you do not have such material, ask your neighbors or acquaintances, often such material can be obtained completely free of charge, and it will be much easier to work with it.
• Different types of wood will age and paint differently when using the same materials. This must be taken into account when collecting wooden structures.
• Now in stores you can buy a ready-made aged board without performing the above operations.

Wood aging is gaining more and more popularity among lovers of antique furniture. Russian manufacturers have noticed this trend. Many large factories in the Russian Federation have special lines that produce furniture using the technique of brushing or artificial aging. Not everyone can afford such furniture, but turning wooden boards into an old masterpiece at home is subject to even fragile female hands. Today we will get acquainted with 4 ways of artificial aging of a tree and learn how to apply them in everyday life.

Brushing - an analysis of the basics of popular technology

Take a wooden board and place it in front of you. What do you see? Tree pattern. Each breed has its own unique pattern, which consists of combined light and dark lines. They are created over the years as the tree grows. In winter, dark fibers with a dense structure grow, and in summer - soft light colors. Under the influence of moisture, sun, wind and weather conditions, the soft layer with light fibers is gradually erased, the board takes on an old look. To achieve the natural effect of aging wood will have to wait decades. Fortunately, there is a simple and quick procedure for brushing. As a result of thermal, chemical and mechanical impact, wood acquires a convex texture with worn edges and chips, which is characteristic of a "living tree" with a centuries-old history.

The brushing technique comes from the English word "brush", translated as a brush. For aging, a metal brush is really used. However, this is not the only tool that allows you to achieve the effect of an old tree.

After brushing with abrasive materials, the wood is covered with paint or stain, opened with varnish. Lacquer materials emphasize the new texture and extend the life of the wood. Standard paints can be combined with shades of bronze, gold, silver. To achieve maximum effect, it is important to choose the right wood. For brushing, wood species such as larch, merbau, wenge, alder, ash, oak, metoba, kempas are suitable. Spruce and pine look especially good in this technique. But beech, maple, teak, juniper, birch, alder, pear, cherry are bad examples for brushing. After processing, the drawing should be expressive and not merge, which cannot be achieved with the above breeds. So pay attention to the peculiarity of the pattern. The more expressive it is, the more interesting the result will be. The presence of chips, hollows and knots on the surface will be an additional advantage. Depending on the brushing method chosen, it takes from several hours to days to work.

What to age in the interior - we understand the issue in more detail

Aged wood in the interior is the main attribute of country style and Provence. It creates a rustic, country atmosphere in the house, close to nature. To emphasize this style, the brushing technique can be applied to the following interior elements:

• "pot-bellied" or ordinary chest of drawers;
• window sills and doors made of natural wood;
• solid wood for flooring and wall cladding;
• floor beams;
• backyard benches;
• shelves, tables, chairs;
• log cabins for wells;
• wooden fences.

Natural wood with the effect of aging goes well with other natural materials (stone, leather, metal). Brushing is often used by craftsmen who create handicrafts. Here are some more ideas from this series: a designer lamp, a notebook with rough leather and wood trim, wrought iron garden furniture

Method number 1 - a metal brush and translucent glaze

The easiest option for aging wood is to use a stiff metal brush with a handle. After intensive movements on the surface of the wood, the texture of the material appears on it, which is then emphasized by the finishing. Before aging the wood, we sand the surface with sandpaper with a grit of 150. Then we take a metal brush and go through it along the line of fibers until characteristic stripes and bulges appear. It should be noted that the manual brushing process is lengthy, so be patient. Intense movements paid off, soft fibers were removed and texture appeared on the surface. Remove the resulting wood chips with a soft brush, not with your hand, otherwise you can drive a splinter.

The tree is changing before our eyes. To emphasize its relief, we cover the surface with 2 layers of translucent glaze. Such material already looks attractive. After a couple of minutes, remove the extra layer of glaze with a sponge and open the tree with varnish. If it seems to you that something is missing, you can in the Provence style. Use white glaze, applying it after the first coat of translucent glaze. Remove the fresh glaze with a sponge after 3 – 5 minutes after application in a chaotic manner. The final stage is varnishing or transparent glaze.

Simplified to a minimum option - the use of a metal brush and white glaze. We pass over the surface with a brush, cover it with white glaze and again, after drying, brush off thick areas with a brush finish. Thanks to this simple method of wood aging, a whitewashed board with a light, long-term coating is obtained.

Method number 2 - multi-layer staining

To make wood look like real antiques, you need to work hard. One way to do this is multi-layer staining. What is needed for this, we will find out a little later, but for now we will work a little on the wood manually. Take an awl, a hammer, a file, self-tapping screws, rods and leave a mark on each tool. Small chips, cracks, scratches and abrasions will give the naturalness of antiquity. The main thing is not to overdo it.

Now let's move on to the paints, you will need:

• primer for wood Pinotex;
• tinting paint;
• white glaze;
• white spirit for dilution.

For the first layer, take a Pinotex wood primer and spread it over the entire surface. Pinotex primer is thicker than glaze. It is used in cases where it is necessary to create a thick base layer. After the first layer has completely dried, we apply tinting paint (antiseptic). Wait for everything to dry and move on to the next step. We take fine and large sandpaper, a metal brush. We work alternately with all the tools, creating a natural raid of time. Next, take the white glaze, dip the brush into it, remove the excess and spread it over the wood. It is not necessary to apply glaze densely and evenly. The lower dark layer should be visible through it. Again we take a metal brush and go through the dried surface, creating more visible gaps. Such aging of wood looks contrasting. To bring it closer to natural, the next layer needs to be made more muted. This can be achieved by diluting the white glaze with white spirit in equal proportions. Apply the diluted mixture to the surface and wait for complete drying.

Method number 3 - an electric drill with a nozzle and paint-lacquer

The mechanical method with a hand brush is reliable but time consuming. To age a tree with your own hands quickly, use an electric drill or a grinder with a hard nylon bristle attachment. We begin the work with the preparation of wood. Take a hand planer and make notches along the edges of the material. We do not recommend using the electric version of the tool, the result will look unnatural. Before proceeding to the next step, we put on goggles and a respirator to protect the mucous membrane of the eyes and nasopharynx from wood chips. Thick gloves won't hurt either. Take a drill or grinder, put on a stiff brush attachment and practice on a small area of ​​wood. Move strictly in the direction of the fibers, do not press the nozzle too tightly to the surface. If you're sure you're ready, move on to the main part. With light movements we move along the wood, remove the soft fibers.

To speed up the process and enhance artificial aging, before starting work with a drill or grinder, you can singe the tree with a gas burner. It is important not to hold the torch in one place too long to prevent the resin from igniting.

If you are not burning wood, then after using power tools, dampen the board with a brush and let it dry for 2-3 minutes. Next, sand the surface with fine-grained sandpaper, collect wood dust. It is better to do this with a vacuum cleaner to completely eliminate the entry of drifts under the skin, or carefully walk over the surface with a soft bristle brush. Before finishing, holes can be made in the board with a depth of 1-2 mm with a blunt nail.

The last stage is coating with paints and varnishes. Use paint and varnish of your choice. Tip, so that the artificially aged tree looks as realistic as possible, we paint the recesses in light shades, and the convex parts in darker ones. If you decide to paint the board in one light shade, after drying, sand the surface to bring out the dark details. After finishing the work, we fix the finish with varnish. To enhance the result, instead of the usual varnish, you can use craquelure. After drying, it cracks, the lower layer of paint is visible in the voids.

Method number 4 - exposure to fire and a hard brush

Aging wood with a gas burner or a blowtorch is widely used among craftsmen who want to get a deep effect. In addition, this is a quick option, which, depending on the use of additional tools, has its own characteristics.

If you just want to emphasize the texture of the wood, do not pre-treat the surface. Burn the board with a gas burner in separate places or completely, and then go over with fine-grained sandpaper. But pre-treatment will help to make the surface more convex and embossed. Remove soft fibers manually with a wire brush or go through with a drill with a nozzle. Carry out firing. After processing, such wood looks noble and more advantageous than the previous version due to a deeper effect on the material. Also, a special effect is obtained by completely firing the material with a gas burner and subsequent processing with a hard hand brush.

When working with fire, remember: you should not bring a gas burner or a blowtorch close to a tree. Do not hold the machine for too long in one place, work quickly to avoid fire and be sure to follow safety precautions. Before starting work, put on thick gloves, a robe, goggles and a respirator. After cleaning the surface, varnish it.