How do You Find the Right Dye Color


Wimayo

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I don't have much experience with using dyes. My recent experience on a project where I was trying to match the color of another piece as closely as possible, I found the process to be tedious and time consuming. There was no pre-mixed color that was just right. So, I tried mixing colors. BTW, I do understand the color wheel and what you generally end up with when mixing different colors (red + yellow = orange, etc).  Using water soluble powder dye I generally followed the following process:

Prepare sample wood by sanding through 220

Mix and record a trial color mix

Apply the mix to the sample and let it dry

Apply a finish (usually fast drying lacquer)

Let it dry and compare to original

Of course, I don't get it right the first time. So, I repeat the above.

In my brief experience, I found that you don't know the final color until you get to the last step of applying the finish. When trying to match an existing color, does anyone here have a better process?

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If your first guess is close, think about modifying the color as "pushing" your current color towards your goal.  A color wheel can be handy.  Since you are mixing your initial color you know what the components are.  If your brown is too red you can push it towards orange with the addition of some yellow.  If it is too green you can push it back towards brown with the addition of red.  There is a great Jeff Jewitt video on changing colors here.

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Thanks for the comments. However, you missed the point of my question. As I said, I do understand color theory. Maybe all dyes do not work the same way, but when the water based dye I'm using dries on the wood it looks rather flat or cloudy or dull (can't think of any other words to describe). After applying a finish, the color pops out, but getting to this point seems to require following the steps I gave above. Doing this over and over until I find the right combination gets time consuming and tedious. I'm looking for a better way if there is one.

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I know one finish schedule for Alder that's nice. First dye the wood yellow let it dry and knock down all the raised grain.After that apply generals oil based stain called Candle light. Flood it well let soak then wipe it dry.Wait several day then top coat with a clear laquer or one of generals recommend top coats.

It wil have a nice glow.

Aj

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I keep a little sewn logbook (vs a spiral bound where pages could get torn out) where I write down everything I do when I finish something, as well as any observations or problems that occurred or were addressed.  It takes extra time, but creates a handy reference for when I need to recreate something or want to try something new without necessarily starting from scratch. 

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On 1/11/2018 at 7:43 AM, Gilgaron said:

I keep a little sewn logbook (vs a spiral bound where pages could get torn out) where I write down everything I do when I finish something, as well as any observations or problems that occurred or were addressed.  It takes extra time, but creates a handy reference for when I need to recreate something or want to try something new without necessarily starting from scratch. 

Great tip. Thanks.

I try to do something like that, but I'm not as well organized about it.

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