Toning

Today I'm finishing the drawer fronts for the rosewood island. All along, I've had difficulty if getting the different veneers to match. I've solved this problem by using a combination of dye staining and toning techniques, depending on which was more appropriate.

For veneers which were much lighter than the originals, I found staining easily darkened them and produced very even results. But some veneers did not need as extreme a change. For those I found staining was difficult to control, usually producing too dark a change, which then needed to be partially removed using a wet rag. The wiping process made it very difficult to maintain consistency across large area and from piece to piece. So for close but still too light pieces, I opted for a toner.

A toner is simply a tinted clear coat. I tint the medium with dye stains, and usually thin the mixture 5% to 10% with an appropriate solvent. Since my clear coat is water reducible and my dyes are reducible with a variety of mediums, including water, there was no concern about compatibility. Be sure all materials involved are compatible before mixing a toner.

By using dye concentrates I can custom blend the color I need. This takes some experimenting. In this case I started with a brown dye base, and added a bit of red to get the color I wanted. I kept very careful notes on the volumes of everything so I can repeat the process if I need more.

Once I had everything ready, it was time to apply the finish.

Toners are applied between clear coats, so the first step is to apply the sanding sealer and let that dry. This gives you a better idea of what the piece will look like if no toner is used. Once the sealer is dry I compared the pieces with the original sample I showed the client, as you can see there is a marked difference, but not extreme.

Based on this comparison I added a bit more clear coat to the toner mix to weaken the color. With toners, more color can be added in layers, but wiping off excess color usually means starting over.

Because many finishes have a limit to how thick you can make them before they crackle or peel, when applying a toner I use my finest spray tip, even though I'm applying a clear coat (for which I normally use a heavier tip). The goal of a toning layer is color change, not finish build up.

After fine sanding the sealer coat and removing the dust, I sprayed the toner like any other material. I pay close attention to the over lap of spray passes. Too much or too little over lap will produce stripes of color. With toner, using thin coats, you can safely go back over and darken selected areas, something you can't do with stain (which makes toners ideal for blending sap woods in species such as cherry.)

After spraying each piece, I compare it to my original sample. When spraying multiple parts its important to take the time to do this little check for EACH piece. It is difficult to maintain consistency across many parts if you don't constantly check yourself.



Once the toner is dry, check the results again. If more is needed, do another coat. Otherwise move on to your clear coats.

Toning isn't difficult, but it is powerful. It gives greater control over color and is more controllable than staining. I don't recommend pigment stains for toning, mainly because they will obscure grain more than dyes and are less compatible with various finishes.

For this project I used my spray gun to apply the toner. But for toning selected areas, such as matching sap wood to heart wood, or creating a sun burst effect, it can also be done with an air brush.