# White washing over charred wood.



## mchapman87 (Dec 30, 2015)

Ok so I have a question, that may just be as simple as giving it a try. I am making rustic flags for customers and I have a request that combines half of the American Flag and Half Honduran flag. This flag includes charring to give it a rustic look. I was wondering has anyone ever white washed over charred wood? Will it mask too much of the charring or does it work just like having stained wood? I know I probably should just make a test piece and try it out, but I don't want to buy materials to do it if it doesn't work. Has anyone tried this method or have any tips?


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## bobkberg (Dec 26, 2009)

Hi,

I looked at your home page to see what you meant, so if I understand correctly, you're not really "charring" the wood, just browning it. If the wood was really charred (burned black), it would lose all strength, and couldn't hold a finish.

That said, when you talk about white-wash, do you mean pickling (Giving it a white haze) ? If so, I would suggest buying a small piece of the intended wood and experimenting. The pickling process should use a diluted white paint (interior flat latex). You may also want to try a stain conditioner (like Cabot) to prevent too much white pigment from filling open pores vs. closed pores and producing a blotchy finish.

Good luck! Let me know what you find.

Regards,

Bob


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