What to use to match Rosewood molding?

[Brian Matthews]

Hi everyone,

The sign shop I work in has been commissioned to build a display for the lobby of the Westin up here in Calgary. The display is to have crown molding and molding around the base that needs to match the rosewood that is all over the lobby of the hotel.

Can anyone suggest a type of wood that can be stained to fake/match rosewood and is readily available in pre-made (already profiled) molding?

It will not be in the client's budget to have custom made molding created for this - we only need about 10 linear feet for top and bottom.

Any input is appreciated.


Brian

[Chris Padilla]

Brian,

You wouldn't by chance be able to get a sample of the rosewood the hotel uses, would you? Even if someone gave you a recipe, wood from even the same tree can look quite different!

I'd suggest trying to get a sample and then start playing around with staining, dyeing, etc. to find a good match. It will most likely take some experimentation to find the right formula.

[Brian Matthews]

I was going to get a sample of the wood once we get going. I was initially looking for an idea of what other (less expensive) woods might have similar grains, textures before we get to matching stains. We will be having to buy stock molding, not making any custom, so I want to know what wood to be looking for when I start talking to molding suppliers.

If memory serves correct, the wood in the lobby is stained quite dark, so maybe this is all a moot point, and anything will look close enough once stained.

Brian