How to convince my "customers" to not stain cherry really dark.

[Larry Browning]

The last few projects in cherry I have done for family and friends have all come with the request to stain them so dark that the natural beauty of the cherry is almost completely hidden. I have tried to point out that by not staining at all, the natural beauty of cherry will really show and that it will darken over time. But no! they want it really dark. Should I just refuse to do it? Stain it much lighter than requested and tell them to be patient?

[Steve Schoene]

Well,m as they say the customer is always right. You might suggest that they might as well use poplar if they want to go that dark. And, certainly I would explain how dramatically more expensive it is to do all the extra finishing steps needed to stain cherry really dark. And, give them a large cost increase.

[Charles Wiggins]

IDK. Keep some samples and show them what a crime it is to cover such beauty? People get it in their head that something is supposed to look a certain way and it is hard to persuade them otherwise. Never mind that the stain is called "Antique Cherry" for a reason.

I guess this is one of those "pick your battles" moments, or perhaps it's a "customer is always right" moment. Maybe it should be an "I'm a crotchety old man, so shut up and take your damn gift" moment!

[Harry Hagan]

It sounds like they need to be educated. Cherry is like a good bourbon—it must be aged to realize its full potential. I’d show them a good example of cherry that has darkened over time so that they can appreciate what you’re saying.

[John TenEyck]

Larry, if you know how to use dyes you can give them the color they want w/o masking the grain of the cherry. It's certainly less of a sin than putting dark stain on cherry. Still a sin, but less of one. I'm getting ready to make a bath vanity in cherry that has to be colored some unnatural color. No amount of reasoning has worked, but I'm getting paid for it so I will do it - with dye. Your other option is to just soft maple and stain it the dark color they want. Plain sawn maple has the same grain patterns as cherry. If it's stained as dark as you say, no one will know that it's not cherry underneath.

John

[Kent A Bathurst]

With that finish, who would ever know what the underlying species is? Certainly not the proletariat that wanted that finish. Give 'me the color/finish. Use a substitute wood.

[John A langley]

Give them a piece of cherry and told him to stick it in a sunny window have them cover Half with tinfoil it will get dark in a hurry that may solve your problem

[Mel Fulks]

In showing customers color samples I find they always want to walk over to a bright light or go outside. Then they turn the sample horizontaly. I INSIST they choose color under interior light and hold sample vertically.

[Curt Harms]

Of course they do. They want a cherry finish just like the 'cherry' furniture at their favorite furniture store. What's that? You're suggesting that the wood in the 'cherry' furniture at my favorite *mart isn't really cherry but some cheaper species as mentioned above? And they use a muddy stain to disguise the fact? Heresey!!!

I'd probably experiment a little with dyes as John suggests. It can be kinda fun to play with transtint dyes.

[Larry Browning]

Well,m as they say the customer is always right. You might suggest that they might as well use poplar if they want to go that dark. And, certainly I would explain how dramatically more expensive it is to do all the extra finishing steps needed to stain cherry really dark. And, give them a large cost increase.

let's see, If I could add on another 50% to the cost to go really dark, that would make their total cost $0, because most of what I build is free to the "customer" (at least my labor is free to them)

[Larry Browning]

I'd probably experiment a little with dyes as John suggests. It can be kinda fun to play with transtint dyes.

This is exactly what I have done. At the end of the day, the result is still a dark color that hides (or at best diminishes) the natural beauty of the wood. I guess I really am not looking for a solution to this. I am just mostly blowing off steam. Even though the finished sample idea to show them what I am talking about is a really good one that I will probably do.

[Prashun Patel]

If they want it stained dark, then don't build out of cherry. I don't find cherry to stain that well anyway.

I'm in the same boat, Larry. My 'client's' tend too to like dark things.

I think it's a challenge to finish something dark well. I'd build out of cheaper wood and then use it as an opportunity to practice dyeing, toning, and or glazing.

I find the average lay person seems to assume EVERYTHING made of wood is stained. They may even wrongly assume a lot of the cherry they've seen has been stained, or that a lot of the 'cherry' they've seen is not cherry at all.

A nice finish on cherry is oil, followed by an amber or garnet shellac. It's a middle ground between yours and theirs.

[Larry Browning]

This is exactly what I have done. At the end of the day, the result is still a dark color that hides (or at best diminishes) the natural beauty of the wood. I guess I really am not looking for a solution to this. I am just mostly blowing off steam. Even though the finished sample idea to show them what I am talking about is a really good one that I will probably do.

I know, I have quoted myself!
Knowing my crew, (family and friends) If I show them samples, it will probably go like this: "Oh, that unstained one is very pretty, but all my other furniture is dark like the stained one. I like the stained one better." "But, look how it hides the beautiful grain pattern. Even though this unstained sample is several months old, it will continue to darken over time and get even prettier over time" I will say. They will respond with "I don't know why you won't just stain it dark. What's the big deal? I just want it to match my other furniture".

[Kent A Bathurst]

Of course they do. They want a cherry finish just like the 'cherry' furniture at their favorite furniture store. What's that? You're suggesting that the wood in the 'cherry' furniture at my favorite *mart isn't really cherry but some cheaper species as mentioned above? And they use a muddy stain to disguise the fact? Heresey!!!

Too true.

At a friend's new house. Very nice place on the water. I asked her - What wood did they use in the floor?

"The light color is maple. The reddish bands are cherry."

"One thing I can guarantee you - that wood iis not cherry."

"Well, the guy told us it was cherry."

"Not arguing that point. The wood is not cherry, regardless of what he said. Maybe what he meant is that the color is cherry - which may be true on the planet where he lives, because you can't get that color without dyeing the wood - that is not what cherry looks like, nor will it ever look like that, over its life span. So - you have got some hardwood, other than cherry, colored according to what he calls cherry. And - I think it looks great."

[Bob Wingard]

I will never understand the big beef with coloring Cherry ... if folks want a piece dark, it is their choice ... I have dyed Cherry with standard dyes as well as using chemicals such as Lye to make the color change. I have had tons of fun playing with dyes and learning how to use them. Dyes will never obliterate the grain of any species as will typical pigment stains ... which is one substance I WILL refuse to use. I ask what they want ... then go ahead with their desires in mind. Once you dye a piece of Cherry on the dark side, it seems to drastically slow down any natural color change. So many guys won't color Cherry for "purist" reasons" ?? ... yet they will slop on BLO and call that an oil "finish" ... BLO is about the only other thing that I refuse to use ... won't even allow it in my shop unless it's going on a shovel handle or something similar.