While replying to the other thread about aging wood with vinegar/steel wool, I thought I'd mention how I used it to reduce the reds/yellows that were messing up a custom stain match.
I made pocket doors and built-in bookshelves, and the clients wanted to match the color of the 1930's chestnut trim in their Tudor-style house. Ash gave what I thought was the best grain match to chestnut. My custom stain place did a great job of matching a piece of the original baseboard, but when I made the storyboard for the final finish it kept coming up too red; the original aged trim was really a true brown with no reds.
I thought the key would be to tint the ash gray or gray-green to eliminate the yellows that were throwing off the finish. Iron acetate will do that, but it needs tannins to react with. Ash is very low in tannin. So I added tannin to the ash by spraying it with strong green tea. After that dried I de-fuzzed it, then sprayed it with iron acetate, then the custom stain. The match came up perfectly.
And green tea makes the shop smell really nice!
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