For those of you that asked about the RIT dye, here is the deal: the great thing about the dye is that you still can keep the wood grain, so it looks rustic but still a bright color. You simply combine 1/2 cup of RIT with 2 cups of HOT (near boiling) water. You have to keep it as hot as possible for absorbtion into the wood, so I reheated in the microwave several times. You should also sand with 220 grain sandpaper to help absorbtion. It goes on similar to a stain, and I applied it with a sponge brush. This table has 2 coats. I will be applying polyurethane next, but not because the RIT bleeds. I want to protect the table from my inks. If I were to leave it, anything I spray will absorb into the wood. The one thing to keep in mind if you use RIT to dye your wood is that it is not as lightfast as other wood-dying techniques. So, if you have a piece that will see a lot of sun, RIT is probably not a good option. But, since my studio is in the basement, I figured it would be just fine.
I clicked on this to comment on the great color. I had no idea you used RIT dye! I'm curious as well. Do you have to coat it with polyurethane to keep it from bleeding onto your paper, or anything? It looks fantastic!
Perfect table and love the color! Is there an advantage to using dye as opposed to paint? I can see that it has a subtlety that paint doesn't have. Any tricks to using it?
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