Stained Magazine Holder

A while ago I mentioned this faded magazine holder I got for $5 at the thrift shop. (Original price: $57!)

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This sat in my room for a week as I went back and forth over what to do with it. I finally decided to stain it for a few reasons:


1) I've never stained anything before and I wanted to try it!


2) To prove I'm not one of those "all wood needs a coat of paint!" people that DIYer's and decorators are often accused of being.


3) It's for my sister who's living room is currently in between decor as they will be moving soon....so I wanted to keep it simple.


I was going for a deep, dark tone so I got this from Home Depot: 

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I got the smallest can available and of course to skip a step, I got the one with the polyurethane already in it. I don't have a lot of spare time on my hands... efficiency is paramount! =)


I was so excited to get this stain party started that I rushed home, gave it a quick light sand and went at it!

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So... if you're thinking this looks no different than the before picture, you'd be correct! I might be new this staining thing but I'm pretty sure something should happen...


I picked up the can and read, "stir well". Yes. I admit it! I didn't stir the can! You'd think that would be obvious. Oops. Haha

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Ok, so you might not be able to tell, but believe me, this was about about 2 shades darker!


I love how the magazine holder comes apart. Makes it SO easy to stain!

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I was hoping for a much deeper stain but this was definitely a step up from the original. The stain really brought out the beautiful grains which I love!

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Here it is after 2 coats. Staining is such a long process. I'm far too impatient!  (Recommended drying time: 8 hours between coats)


Before and after:

I realize I chose the wrong stain colour... it's not quite the deep dark tone that I was going for but it's still a step up from the original!

What are your thoughts on the staining process? Love it or hate it?


And what do you think? Should I go darker? Sometimes I look at it and think it's fine but most days I think....it needs to be DARKER... like ebony dark...


Happy Weekend Everyone!! =)