Aging wood with your own hands. Do-it-yourself tool for artificial aging of wood. How much does it cost to age wood?

Important! When purchasing lumber, take into account their classification. To create a worn-out effect, class C is more suitable, which is characterized by an unlimited number of knots (including fallen ones), cracks and depressions. If the spirit of excessive antiquity is not to your liking, you can give preference to AB class boards. They have much fewer defects.

Once upon a time, patina was the name given to a thin oxide coating on copper products. Today it is a popular technique in processing both metal and wooden products.

The method is labor intensive, although it is carried out using special reagents. Its implementation requires extreme accuracy, perseverance and attentiveness.

If you have no experience with such techniques, it is advisable to practice on scrap wood. Designers love to use patination when decorating homes in country and classic styles.
Experts believe that the simplest option for such wood decay is rubbing wax into the relief convexities of the surface, which creates a worn effect. We will go by applying a patina.

So let's get to work:

1. Use sandpaper to thoroughly polish the surface of the board, removing as much old paint as possible.
2. Use a soft brush or vacuum cleaner to remove any remaining dust.
3. To enhance the adhesive properties of the wood, prime it (it is important to choose a primer for antique restoration) and dry it.
4. After a day, you can begin applying the patina. To do this, it is better to get acrylic paint. You must act with the utmost caution. After painting, the surface must dry within 24 hours.
5. Apply the next layer of bronze or metallic paint in small strokes in all directions. It is important not to overdo it with the amount of patina. Immediately, without allowing the applied layer to dry, rub off any excess with a piece of foam rubber.
6. When the paint begins to dry, use a dry rag to rub any bulges, which will provide an antique effect.
7. Cover the entire surface with varnish. This will give it sophistication and protect it from mechanical damage and excessive dampness.

Video: patting furniture

Important! Patination is not used on parts with which people often come into contact. The paint wears off very quickly, which gives the effect of untidiness instead of an antique spirit..

The aging effect is achieved by complex processing lumber. This technique is carried out in several stages:

This method looks original only on deciduous trees, since their wood contains tannins. Upon contact with chemical reagents they darken, resulting in a worn-out effect.

Important! If signs of fungus appear on the wood, a special chlorine-based bleach will help get rid of the problem. Please note that it penetrates 3 cm deep into the material.

The technology is characterized by its simplicity and the presence of different variations, with which you can achieve a greater or lesser degree of aging.

Be sure to sand the surface with a piece of coarse sandpaper before work. Then choose a method to suit your taste:

1. Spray the board generously with ammonia. By reacting with the material, the substance will provoke the appearance of noble darkening. If we're talking about When aging a certain area on the wall, you can unevenly distribute the reagent, which will enhance the effect.
2. Use a polymer brush to brush the board so that the growth rings clearly appear. Then cover the lumber with stain and varnish.
3. Paint the sanded surface with enamel paint and dry it. Apply a second paint of a thinner consistency to the dried layer. Let it dry and sand individual areas of the wood with fine sandpaper.
4. Coat the wood with a water-based stain. After this, partially wash off the coating in the middle zone, leaving the edges dark.

Even at home, you can make fragments of decoration and decor look antique, although in fact they will be completely new. In this process, it is important to show maximum imagination and diligence, and then your wooden objects will look no worse than those put up for sale in antique salons.

Despite the variety of glossy facades, interior elements made of antique wood remain in demand. Purchasing such furniture will cost a pretty penny. If you don’t want to spend too much money, you shouldn’t give up the idea of ​​having 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 antique wood with our own hands. After all, natural conditions age a tree for many years. And to get results quickly, you have to age the wood artificially.

You won't find antique furniture in every home. It should be used where appropriate. The design of the room must be thought out in the appropriate style so that antique products look decent.

Typically, the procedure for aging wood is performed for a specific purpose, namely:

• Satisfy the taste of the inhabitants of the home.
• Save money on antique items. It is much cheaper to buy inexpensive furniture and age it 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 such items as chests of drawers, sideboards, bookshelves, mirror frames. They are aged most often, since it is difficult to imagine a vintage-style interior without these items.

Aging methods

The process of processing antique wood with your own hands is done in several ways. The main ones are:

• Chemical treatment – ​​used for hardwood.
• Firing or heat treatment is a universal option.
• Mechanical processing or brushing - this method can be used to process products made of oak or pine needles.

Furniture for aging is selected to be massive, with a rough texture, so that in appearance 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 treat even hard-to-reach places.

To make it easier to achieve the effect of aging wood, it is better to purchase material that has already been damaged by the bug, with minor chips, cracks and knots.

If you are doing the process of aging wood yourself 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 carry out 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 take a closer look at each of them.

Mechanical restoration

Wood can be aged mechanically in products made from species such as pine, spruce, and 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 types of chips, potholes, and cracks artificially. This can be achieved by the following actions:

1. Wooden surfaces processed using an ax or a special grinding machine. They are randomly marked with potholes of varying depths and widths. The block is hewn, but one should not strive for special accuracy and symmetry.

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

3. Then we move on to the second degree of grinding. At this stage we use a brush with soft bristles and sandpaper. During this treatment, soft fibers are removed, leaving coarser ones. Thus, we get an uneven tree structure. Using the same method, 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 that has darkened with age. Here you can use stain or dark acrylic-based paint.

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

6. At the final stage, cover the treated surface with colorless or light yellow varnish and dry completely.

On 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 dishes, here the process is a little simplified. The surface to be treated is thoroughly cleaned from wood dust with a brush until the desired effect is achieved. Subsequent painting and opening with varnish occurs identical to the previously described process.

Brushing should only be done by hand using a wire brush until small dents and ridges are reached.

Heat treatment

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

Heat treatment or firing is carried out by exposing the wood to direct fire. You should use either a torch or a blowtorch. It is necessary to burn to a depth of about 3 mm.

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

After finishing the heat treatment, perform the following steps:

1. Using a metal brush or grinder with a bristle attachment, begin to scrape off the layer of soot to the desired degree of antiquity. There is no need to paint the surface. The soot will highlight the entire structure.
2. Sanding is done with sandpaper.
3. Apply to aged wood finishing layer clear varnish.

Chemical method

You can age wood through chemical treatment using such means as alkaline compounds or ammonia. You can use household chemicals that contain alkaline components.

The essence of the process is that when the product gets on wood, it burns its soft tissues. The structure of wood 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 with alkali, which simultaneously colors 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 following proportion: 1 teaspoon of acid per glass of water. If vinegar is used, it should be a 9% solution. Acetic acid cannot be used. Next, the treated surfaces are well dried, sanded and varnished.

Aging wood using all the methods listed above is quite simple if you put in the effort and effort. You can give the desired effect to any surface. Can be aged like small household items, furniture or even wooden floors.

How to age wooden furniture (2 videos)

Brushing wood (30 photos)

The recent fashion for vintage products, cars and retro-style clothing has not bypassed the design of wooden products. Antique-looking wood processing also allows new buildings to create an interior that looks as if the owners inherited the apartment from their great-grandfathers. Hosts country houses decorate the facades and interior space with old wood. Decorative false beams on the ceiling, stairs, doors and other design elements are made from artificially aged wood, giving the house a resemblance to a medieval castle or a fairy-tale forest hut.

High cost of artificially aged wooden items makes home craftsmen want to make the necessary things with their own hands, achieving both a reduction in the cost of the product and its true uniqueness. Carrying out the work of aging wood is not at all as difficult as it may seem from the outside. You just need to know about the basic ways to achieve a beautiful textured surface on ordinary lumber, which can be purchased at any company that sells building materials and wood.

How to prepare for work?

There are 3 widely used methods of aging wood:

• chemical, which is only suitable for products made from deciduous trees;
• thermal (firing) - applicable to wood of any species;
• mechanical (brushing) - suitable for coniferous trees and oak.

To work with wood, the following tools and materials are required:

• axe;
• drill or grinder with attachments;
• brush with metal bristles;
• hair brush;
• paint brushes;
• stain, acrylic paint, clear varnish, wax;
• sandpaper.

When purchasing boards or timber from which you plan to create an artificially aged item, you can choose specimens that are already damaged by a bug, have chips and potholes on the surface, small cracks and knots. After processing, they will give especially charm to the “antique” item.

Wood components.

Ready-made furniture for aging is selected to be massive, a little rough, or rustic style, similar to hand-made piece furniture of the last century. Before decorating in any way, it is best to disassemble the piece of furniture into its component parts. This will allow you to treat all surfaces without leaving any hard to reach places untreated areas that will catch the eye.

Before you start decorating an object for the first time, it is worth practicing and getting your hands on various discarded pieces of boards and any wood. The master will act more confidently, with knowledge of many nuances that may arise during work. On these same textbooks It’s convenient to select the tone of paints or stains, and evaluate in advance what the result will be.

Many operations (brushing, painting and drying after it, firing) should be performed outdoors.

Mechanical aging of wood

The most readily available materials for purchase are made from coniferous wood: pine, spruce, larch. They have a pronounced structure and pattern formed by fibers of different hardness. This makes them suitable for mechanical decoration.

Using tools that destroy the top layers of wood, you can achieve the effect of aging much faster than if it happened naturally. All abrasions, potholes and cracks can be imitated using 2 methods:

1. Using a sharp corner of an ax, make holes of varying depths and widths in a chaotic manner on the surface of a board, beam or log. Bend the corners of the block a little with an axe, without worrying about neatness or a smooth surface. After this, all surfaces treated in this way must be thoroughly sanded with a stiff brush with steel bristles. When sanding a large product, it is better to use a drill or grinder with a special attachment. It is necessary to grind until all the sharp edges that appeared when chopping with an ax acquire the outlines of natural damage smoothed over time. It is important to remember that the movements of the brush should always be directed along the fibers. The next step will be sanding to remove protruding fibers and processing with a steel brush with softer bristles than the first time. This removes some of the soft fibers, creating shallow depressions between the ridges of the harder winter wood fibers. The same brush can additionally highlight knots and cracks.
2. After sanding the light surface of the new product, you need to make it look like old wood that has darkened over time: paint it with stain or dark acrylic paint. After drying, using medium-grain sandpaper, without strong pressure, lightly rub the wood, removing paint from protruding ridges and hills. At the same time, the dark color remains in the potholes and between the fibers. For final finishing, the product is coated with acrylic transparent or light yellow varnish and dried until completely dry.

http://1poderevu.ru/youtu.be/HVDFkEZOcm4

A more “humane” way. Suitable for small products and furniture, wooden utensils and other small surfaces. Brushing is done manually using a brush with metal bristles. In this case, as in the previous case, the soft fibers are removed, leaving ridges of hard wood. Use a hair brush to sweep away wood dust, monitoring the process by eye and achieving the desired degree of surface wear. After this, the product is painted and decorated as indicated above.

Thermal and chemical treatment of wood

Thermal treatment of wood.

These methods can be called related, since the destruction of the top layer of wood occurs almost without mechanical influence. These are more dangerous methods than the previous ones, so processing should be done in the air and in compliance with safety measures.

The essence of firing is that soft fibers are destroyed when exposed to open fire. To do this, the surfaces of the workpiece are burned with the flame of a blowtorch or a special gas burner to a depth of 3 mm. With superficial firing, the aging effect will be insignificant, with deeper firing it will be more pronounced. The master regulates the process depending on his taste and needs.

After charring the top layer, use a metal brush or a drill attachment, scraping off the carbon deposits until desired color and textures. Such wood does not need to be painted, because it will already have dark and light areas. Final processing consists of sanding and varnishing the product.

http://1poderevu.ru/youtu.be/tLyLU8Cl7yc

With the chemical method, decorating wood to look antique occurs through exposure to alkalis or ammonia. To do this, you can use stove cleaning aerosols or drain cleaner. It is necessary to familiarize yourself with the composition of the product before use; it must contain alkali. Particular attention should be paid to safety precautions when working with it.

Once on the surface of the tree, these chemical substances they “burn out” some of the soft fibers, simultaneously painting the wood gray. After treatment, all surfaces are washed with water and coated with a weak solution. table vinegar or citric acid (1 tsp per 200 ml of water), removing any remaining alkali.

When using vinegar, pay special attention to the fact that it should be 9% table vinegar and not acid.

Dried products are brushed and painted, if necessary.

http://1poderevu.ru/youtu.be/ZkHaOFjT7Ao

Processing wood using the listed methods will help the owner to decorate the interior of the apartment in an antique style without investing a lot of money and without spending a lot of time on it. The availability of materials and tools for processing allows both an experienced carpenter and a beginner, and even a woman with imagination and skillful hands to engage in this type of creativity.

Artificially aged wood is a unique finishing material. Practical, inexpensive, fully retaining its strength characteristics, but at the same time possessing original beauty and antique charm. The scope of application of such wood is wide: interior design, furniture manufacturing, finishing of facades, gazebos, stairs, even fences are made from it. The most important thing is that wood processing does not require special knowledge or experience, and anyone can do it. Let's take a closer look at how to age wood on your own, and what you need for this.

Artificially aged wood

Wood aging methods

There are three effective ways to age wood - mechanical, chemical and thermal. Depending on the chosen method, the end result has certain differences.

The mechanical method includes two types of processing - brushing and patination. Both types can be used together or separately, depending on the material and the desired result:

• brushing - the surface is treated with a wire brush to remove soft fibers and expose tree rings. As a result of this treatment, the top layer acquires a pronounced relief, which is further emphasized by applying glaze compounds. This method is the most labor-intensive and is used mainly for hard wood - pine, larch, spruce, oak, walnut;

Wood brushing

• patination – surface treatment with coloring compounds followed by polishing. It is applied for soft rocks, as well as wood with a weak texture - maple, cherry, beech and others. Wood wax and stain can be used along with paint to give a brighter design.

Patination

The chemical method involves treating the top layer of wood various compositions, changing the color of the fibers. Ammonia and products containing alkali, such as stove or drain cleaner, are suitable for this. This method can only be used for species containing tannins, that is, deciduous. Chemical treatment of coniferous wood will not give the desired effect.

The thermal method involves burning wood with a gas torch or blowtorch. The type of tree does not matter. They do not burn it too much, just so that the texture of the fibers appears more clearly, and then remove the carbon deposits with a metal brush. Next, cover the surface with stain or varnish to give the wood more decorative look. In general, the process is not complicated, but it requires caution and compliance with safety precautions.

Burner-aged wood

Brushing technology

Brushed wood

Tools and materials for processing

During the work you will need:

• hand plane;
• chisel or small hatchet;
• steel brush;
• Angle grinder with brush attachments;
• sandpaper, coarse and fine;
• paint brushes;
• dense sponge;
• tinting antiseptic for wood (for example, Pinotex);
• white azure;
• soft bristle brush.

Wood brushing machine with two support rollers

Brushes for three-stage wood processing

Necessary materials

Rough cleaning should be done with a steel bristled nozzle, but for finishing would be better suited nylon and copper. Eat special nozzle, which is called "Piranha". It is a polymer-abrasive brush that can effectively remove soft fibers from the surface and leave hard ones. The grinder can be replaced with a drill; such attachments are also available for it. As a last resort, you can get by with hand tools, but this is time-consuming and tedious.

Piranha brush

The wood should be dense, strong, not damp. Resinous boards should also not be taken, as the resin makes processing difficult. The presence of knots is welcome, as they make the design more pronounced and decorative. If you have no experience in such work, take a small piece of unplaned board or timber, up to half a meter long.

Wood processing

During such work, a lot of fine dust is always generated, so it is best to do it in the fresh air. If the weather does not allow it, take care of the possibility of ventilating the room and be sure to prepare a protective mask or at least goggles.

Step 1. The workpiece is laid on a flat surface and processed with a hand plane. It is better not to use an electric tool, as it leaves small transverse stripes, which reduces the naturalness of the design.

Wood processing with a plane

Step 2. Using a chisel or the corner of an ax, you need to make random, shallow and shapeless chips across the entire surface to give the material a rougher appearance.

Step 3. Now you need to remove the soft fibers with a wire brush. The brush should only be moved along the grain, pressing the tool firmly against the board.

Brushing

This is what wood looks like after brushing with a wire brush.

Advice. To reduce dust formation, it is recommended to slightly moisten the surface of the workpiece with water. But before sanding and impregnation, the wood must be dried.

This is what it looks like after intermediate sanding with a polymer brush.

And this is how it looks after final sanding and polishing with a sisal brush

Step 4. When the relief begins to appear, the manual brush is replaced with an angle grinder with a metal brush, and work continues. The nozzle should be positioned perpendicular to the surface being treated, movements should be made strictly along the fibers. If you don’t need too rough a texture, immediately take a Piranha brush or a nylon-bristle attachment and do not press too hard on the tool while working. Go around the perimeter of wormholes and knots in the tree to emphasize the contours.

Wood processing

Process the ends of the board

Step 5. Use a soft brush to sweep away the resulting dust, and then begin sanding. You can sand the wood manually or using a grinder, the main thing is to remove protruding fibers and sharp protrusions. Finally, clean the workpiece from dust again.

Step 6. Now the material needs to be given color. To do this, the surface is first coated with Pinotex primer, which is applied with a brush along the grain. You can use both stain and dark azure - any coating with color that will not hide the texture.

The photo shows an example of the coloring composition used

Step 7 After applying the composition to the workpiece, give it a few minutes to absorb, and then carefully wipe off the top layer with a sponge. There is no need to rub hard, just smoothly move it 2-3 times along the fibers. After this, all the recesses will remain darker than the protruding edges, and the relief will appear more clearly.

Avoid drips

A distinctive feature of good quality stains is that they reveal the texture of wood

Rub the composition into the workpiece

After drying, the painted surface looks like this:

Then there are two options: leave this color and cover the wood with a transparent varnish, or add another layer and give the material the appearance of old bleached wood. The second option is suitable for processing elements in the Provence style. To do this, you need to wait until the impregnation is completely dry and apply a very thin layer of white glaze with a brush. After it has dried, the wood is lightly sanded with the finest sandpaper, cleaned of dust and coated with colorless varnish.

Do-it-yourself aging of wood

This method is also used: after brushing, the workpiece is covered with a dense layer of white glaze, dried and brushed again with a metal brush, but now not so intensively. Finally, a layer of clear varnish is applied.

Applying white paint

Brush sanding

Brush sanding

To do dark wood, and not bleached, instead of white glaze, the surface is thickly covered with stain or Pinotex, and the layer is made uneven. Next, use a brush or sandpaper, depending on the finish you want. Sanding produces light, blurry abrasions, but after brushing, rough grooves remain and the wood looks more brutal.

Aged wood, well-emphasized ax grooves

How to do patination

Primary processing is carried out using the technology described above: soft fibers are removed, relief is given and the surface is polished. Only after this the workpiece can be patinated.

Step 1. Take any wood primer and carefully apply it to the wood with a brush. The primer should penetrate well into all grooves and recesses. Allow the workpiece to dry.

Apply primer

Step 2. Apply the first coat of paint. Acrylic paint is best suited because it is not prone to peeling, adheres well to the surface, and does not leave streaks.

We apply paint on the photo composition of smoky color)

You can choose any shade of paint you like

Application of white paint, example

The choice of color depends only on your preferences; you can take any shades, the main thing is that they are rich and contrast with the patina shade. The paint is applied with a brush, evenly distributing the composition in a thin layer. The base coat must dry completely, so take a break from working for a day.

Take a break from work

Step 3. Sand the workpiece with fine sandpaper. Wipe off the dust and apply a layer of patina with a brush. It is best to choose a patina for wood in the color of bronze or gold, with a metallic tint. Here it is not necessary to distribute the paint evenly; on the contrary, the difference in coating density will only emphasize the aging effect.

Grinding

Sanding emphasizes the texture of the wood

Wood after processing

Step 4. When the patina begins to set, you need to take a dry cloth and wipe down individual areas. After the paint has dried, the wood is coated with clear varnish.

Applying varnish from a spray gun

Effectively aged wood

Types of patina for wood

Thermal aging

First of all, take care of safety precautions. When burning wood, there should be no flammable objects or liquids nearby, and it is better to generally carry out such work in the fresh air. Be sure to check the serviceability of the burner or blowtorch.

Step 1. The workpiece is placed on a non-flammable surface or placed vertically, after which it is fired with a burner. The material is processed as evenly as possible, the top layer should be charred approximately 2-3 mm in thickness.

Processing wood with a torch

Technique for burning wood with a blowtorch

Thermal aging method

Step 2. After cooling, the charred carbon deposits are removed manually with a brush or using a grinder. The intensity and duration of this treatment depends on the desired texture.

Sanding burnt wood

Step 3. Having formed the desired relief, take the grinding attachment and process the workpiece again. Here it is important not to overdo it and not remove excess, otherwise the aging effect will be insignificant.

Step 4. Since the color of the wood changed during firing, dark and light areas appeared, there is no need for painting. Now all that remains is to coat the material with colorless varnish or protective impregnation.

Thermally aged wood

Chemical aging method

The use of chemically aggressive substances requires special care and precision in work. Must use protective gloves, and the room should be well ventilated. The workpiece is pre-treated with coarse sandpaper and wiped from dust. Then apply alkaline agents or ammonia with a brush and leave for several hours. To slow down drying, you can cover everything on top with film. Under the influence of ammonia and alkalis, the surface acquires a gray tint, characteristic of old weathered wood.

Chemical aging method

When the color of the workpiece has completely changed, it is rinsed with water and then wiped with a vinegar solution (a tablespoon per glass of water) to remove the remaining alkali. If ammonia was used, a vinegar solution is not needed. After drying, the wood is brushed, sanded and applied protective covering. There is no need to paint such material, because then there is no point in chemical processing, and it is easier to do everything mechanically.

Artificial aging

External use of aged wood

Such decorative material Great for decorating rustic-style facades. First of all, this is the German half-timbered style: the original wall decoration involves the use wooden beams rough texture, giving the building a characteristic appearance.

Country-style finishing also allows for the use of aged wood: the cladding itself, shutters, and entrance doors, as well as decorative elements.

Railings, steps, support pillars at the porch - all this can also be made using the described wood processing methods. After practicing on small pieces, you will be able to special effort cope with any surfaces. Of course, large-volume elements, such as house trim, are not so easy to process manually, but there are special machines on sale for this purpose. The most important thing is to have the desire, and then everything will definitely work out.

Video - How to age wood

Video - Patination of wood

Video - Aging wood by firing

Video - Chemical method of aging wood

When choosing a suitable room design, it has become fashionable to give wood products an antique effect. There are several technologies that will visually add age and make decorative details uniquely handmade.

They are easy to use, so you can do it yourself, saving money from the family budget.

Why is this type of processing needed?

The entire human world around us is filled with electronic assistants, artificial materials. Under these conditions, it is not surprising that among city residents it has become popular to use wood in interior design in order to get at least a little closer to nature.

By processing an antique board or timber, the owner receives an exclusive product, because each tree has its own unique relief.

In addition, aging technology significantly increases the strength of raw materials, in contrast to the natural influence of the environment and time.

And by coating the wood with protective solutions and varnishes, its service life is extended; in addition, the paint or varnish prevents insects from entering and prevents the process of wood rotting.

This type of decorative finishing is used for ceiling beams, flooring, and furniture.

However, it is important to understand that not all lumber is suitable for this type of work. The aging technique cannot be used for the following types of wood:

• cherry, pear (other fruit types);
• maple;
• alder.

Therefore, for antique wood processing, it is better to purchase hardwood, which is perfect for:

• nut;
• ash;
• larch;
• pine.

And having completed high-quality tinting products, you can get an imitation of an expensive type of wood, using budget-priced pine or ash as a basis.

Important! Old trees require more careful processing because they have many layers with different densities. Therefore, in order to accurately determine the age of the raw material, you need to pay attention to the number of rings on the cut: the more there are, the older the tree.

What aging methods should you pay attention to?

You can create antiques from furniture using three methods, these include:

1. Brushing wood. A type of mechanical processing in which aging of the relief is achieved through the use of abrasive tools - metal brushes.
2. Wood burning. Thermal effects on raw materials allow you to change the pattern and color of the fibers. The main means are gas burners and blowtorches.
3. The use of chemistry for aging wood. The material is impregnated with solutions of alkalis or acids, under the influence of which the cellulose is destroyed unevenly, thereby changing the topography of the wood.

But wood patination is also distinguished, when special paints, waxes or stains are applied to the raw material in several layers, which, when absorbed, visually age the surface of the product.

Craftsmen who will practice such imitation with their own hands for the first time are recommended to practice a little on pieces of boards or timber in order to clearly understand all the nuances of the process.
It should be noted right away that if it is necessary to process ready product, then it would be correct to initially disassemble it so that the entire surface has a uniform coating.

And to create an original masterpiece, you should pay attention to wood slightly damaged by insects and the external environment, where there are knots and chips, because in the end such a product will look luxurious. Therefore, it will perfectly complement the kitchen, veranda, living room in the “Country” or “Provence” style.

Thematic material:

• How to paint a gazebo
• Impregnations for wood processing
• Protecting wood from rotting and moisture

Mechanical method

This type of aging is called wood brushing, since brush in English means brush. It is this building element that performs the bulk of the work.

With the help of brushes, soft layers are removed from the surface of the wood, and the material acquires relief. However, the desired effect will only be achieved if the stripped raw material is treated with paint or varnish, emphasizing and giving contrast to the design.

Important! For brushing, it is necessary to choose wood with a clearly defined fibrous structure, otherwise the entire processing process may come to nothing.

To carry out this aging method, you need to have the following tools on hand:

• Bulgarian;
• electric drill;
• hard and soft metal brushes;
• sandpaper;
• paint brushes;
• stain;
• acrylic paint;

And in order not to cause harm to health, all operations must be performed in an open space, adhering to safety regulations.

Important stages of brushing

Mechanical aging simulation consists of 3 main steps. Among them:

1. Chernova. An attachment made of a metal brush in the shape of a circle is installed on the grinder. The surface is processed along the grain, and the hand pressure should not change so as not to damage the relief of the material.
2. Finishing or grinding. An electric drill is equipped with a brass brush; an angle grinder with a less rigid metal brush is also suitable, but the rotation speed of the tool must be reduced. The entire surface is processed, as a result of which various burrs and roughness must be eliminated. And to make the wood pleasant to the touch, it’s better to go over it a couple more times with sandpaper.
3. Painting and polishing. The final step, thanks to which the product acquires the expected antique look. A layer of stain is applied to the material, then carefully washed off with a rag, due to which only the soft parts of the raw material acquire color. If desired, you can add paint in bright colors. After drying, the wood is polished and varnished.

An option for aging products can be the use of craquelure varnish. After applying this varnish, cracks appear on the surface into which paint can be rubbed and the raw material acquires a contrasting pattern.

Wood burning

Impact high temperature fire on raw material allows you to achieve the effect of antiquity in a short time.

It is better to use a gas burner as a tool, since a blowtorch will produce a lot of smoke, which can damage the surface being treated.

Operating procedure:

1. The material is burned with a burner to a depth of 3 mm evenly over the entire area. At the same time, you should watch carefully so that the tree does not catch fire.
2. The charred layer of raw materials is removed with a metal brush.
3. The surface is sanded with sandpaper.
4. In this case, painting is not necessary; you can simply apply a clear varnish to the product.

But you need to understand that burning indoors is prohibited and life-threatening.

Chemical method

If you decide to use this processing method, you should immediately stock up on rubber gloves and a protective face mask so that toxic fumes from the solutions do not cause poisoning.

Alkalies, such as stove cleaners, are suitable as the main substance. The tree is covered with a solution in several layers and left for about 12 hours, no longer, depending on the substance and type of wood. Then it is thoroughly washed with a vinegar solution. Its concentration is no more than 1 tsp. for 200 ml of water. When the surface dries, it needs to be sanded. Apply to the treated material acrylic paint or varnished.

How much does it cost to age wood?

The average price for brushing ranges from 350 to 1 thousand rubles per 1 m2. The cost of services depends on the region, breed and size of the material. For example, processing 1 m2 of unpainted hardwood boards will cost 50–100 rubles more than the same lumber from pine or spruce.

If the client wants to immediately order painting of the raw materials, then the cost of the work can be safely multiplied by 2. The consumer can find photos of the services offered on any website of the company of interest.

Of course, the prices for such imitation antiquities are high. So you can stock up necessary set tools, patience and make an antique masterpiece made of wood at home, the quality of which will not be inferior to factory analogues.