Color Washing the Barn Door

One of my favorite projects to date has been our Dutch barn door.   Anyone who sees it loves it (and I am not just saying that cuz I love it)!   A Dutch door is just so whimsical, then add the barn door styling and it is just awesome!  But one thing has bothered me.  After I originally stained it, I was pleased but not perfectly happy with the color.  (which is in case you are wondering-  Minwax Water Based Wood Stain, tinted in  Charcoal Grey)

color washing paint technique, wood grain still shows, barn door (1)

I was going for a look of naturally weathered wood but ours was just too blue for my taste.  So when I decided to update the wall where the dutch door is located for the clock project.   It was the perfect time to face re-coloring the door.

In our Texas house,  I painted the doors black and I LOVED it – with a passion!  So I knew the moment I moved into this house that the doors would be painted at least some color.  I finally settled on something  like a charcoal grey- dark but not black. (hence when I picked out the charcoal grey color above)

I picked up a gallon of  #7069 Iron Ore from Sherwin Williams, Emerald line in Satin.  (Last time my doors were semi gloss.  I didn’t love that much sheen)  Since I am painting all the doors this color, I wanted the barn door to be the same tones, but I also still wanted to be able to see the wood grain.

Okay, but a paint is not a stain, right?  Right.  HOWEVER, my sister taught me while doing a craft like 8 years ago (thanks, Noelle!) that you can wash something with paint.  That way you still see the wood grain, but you get the color of the paint.   This may not be news to you, but it works really well if you’ve never tried it.  So, if it is news to you, I will show you how I did it on our door.

 Color Washing Paint Technique

color washing paint technique, wood grain still shows, barn door #paint #barn_door

1.  Mix or shake your paint.

2.  Take a wet washcloth (not dripping but not TOO wrung out) and dip it into a tiny bit of paint.  (I used the lid of my can of paint for this, but you can use a plate or paint tray, you need very little paint). The goal is to not have that much paint on the rag.

color washing paint technique, wood grain still shows, barn door (3) color washing paint technique, wood grain still shows, barn door (6)

3. With a dry paint brush, apply a small amount of paint to a board.  Be sure to work in very small sections or one continuous board that you can wipe down immediately, so it doesn’t dry out before you can work on each area.   See below  how the dry brush doesn’t coat the whole piece just leaves a quick layer of color on the board (sorry about the blurriness of the shot!)

Color Washing Paint Technique Wood Grain Still Shows Barn Door

4. Now take your wet wash cloth and wipe the paint in the direction of the grain, to a more uniform finish.

color washing paint technique, wood grain still shows, barn door (9)

 5.  Continue working in small sections until you are done.  Remember you can always darken a piece but it is hard to take color off as easily, especially once it is dry.  So keep your layers of paint on the light side!

color washing paint technique, wood grain still shows, barn door (12)

In the picture above, the color washed areas don’t look too striking, but in the picture below you can see it made a HUGE difference in the overall color of the door.  The top half has no more blue!  Hip hip hooray!

color washing paint technique, wood grain still shows, barn door (13)

————–

Update: See more about how to use this color-washing technique in any color (like turquoise!) here

How to use paint to colorwash and stain wood any color -- the wood grain still shows through @Remodelaholic

————–

To finish up the wall, I painted the other door two “solid” coats of the Iron Ore color.  They look great together!  A match made in heaven!

50 (12)

50 (14)

 Wanna see the final updated door?  I thought so!

color washing paint technique, wood grain still shows, barn door remodelaholic(15)

What do you think of this technique?  Have you tried it?  Tell me what you think!  If you like this post, please consider pinning it, I’d be super thankful!

[pinit align=”center” url=”https://www.remodelaholic.com/color-washing-paint-technique/” image_url=”https://www.remodelaholic.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Coloring-washing-is-a-unique-painting-technique-that-allows-the-wood-grain-to-show-through-your-paint-color.-Youll-love-it-A-tutorial-from-Remodelaholic-533×800.png” description=”Color washing is the perfect finish for your barn door (or any wood surface)! Come learn how to use this unique painting technique with Remodelaholic #Remodelaholic #barndoor #kitchenideas #livingroomideas #entrywayideas #laundry”]

Coloring Washing Is A Unique Painting Technique That Allows The Wood Grain To Show Through Your Paint Color. You'll Love It! A Tutorial From Remodelaholic

 

Find more help and inspiration for your project:

Best Tips, Tricks, and Techniques for PaintingBest Painting Tips Tricks And Techniques I Wish I Had Known All Of These Before My Last Painting Project

 

Interior Wall Painting Ideas

100+ Wall painting ideas @remodelaholic #painting #walls #design #inspiration

Painting Furniture – Tips for Using 5 Different Types of Paint

Painting Furniture Tutorials By Sincerely Sara D For Remodelaholic

 

Website | + posts

Cassity Kmetzsch started Remodelaholic after graduating from Utah State University with a degree in Interior Design. Remodelaholic is the place to share her love for knocking out walls, and building everything back up again to not only add function but beauty to her home. Together with her husband Justin, they have remodeled 6 homes and are working on a seventh. She is a mother of four amazing girls. Making a house a home is her favorite hobby.

We love hearing from fellow Remodelaholics, so let us know what you like about this and leave any questions below in the comments. If you've followed a tutorial or been inspired by something you've seen here, we'd love to see pictures! Submit pictures here or by messaging us over on Facebook.

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

109 Comments

  1. I am trying to achieve a grey wash stain look on a dining room table I just stripped. I applied a water stain dark walnut..wiped off. Thinned out white
    paint with water to do a wash. Wiped off. Then added a water base weathered grey stain. The lines in the wood do not pop and the color is just blah. Any suggestions on how to get a more weathered grey look? Thanks!

  2. Hi there loving your finished product, now onto my own and concern. I just washed 100 yr old barn wood to put on a feature wall at cottage. The wood is not the Hugh I was looking for , so , by doing you tecnique, will the paint just soak in like a sponge ? Also, should I go darker than the finished color I’m looking to achieve , or true to match ? HELP its happening soon thanx in advance

  3. Did you use the minwax charcoal gray at all or just the sherwin williams? I am painting or staining my farm table and want it the exact color or your finished door. Awesome job!

    1. It was both, the Minwax and then the color-washed with paint over the top to get the finished color. Thanks for the comment, Audrey! I’d love to see pictures of your table when you’re done!

  4. I’ve been using paint for stain for a couple of years now. I love it! I love that you can take any color you want and water it down for stain. I started doing this because I wanted my kids old bunkbed set to be stained black, but didn’t have any black stain on hand. So it hit me…just water down some paint…and viola! I actually just water my paint down versus using a rag. I paint it on and use a dry cloth to wipe it off 😉 Great post! And I LOVE that door!!!

  5. I have tried the washing technique before, but not like this. I generally just add water to my paint (until it looks like you could drink it) and paint it on and rub it with a dry cloth. I will have to try this and see if it turns out similar!

    – “Awakened for Creation”

  6. I love the door!!! I’m remodeling an older Airstream. It has solid oak cabinetry. I love the wood grain, but hate the oakey finish. Is there any way that you know of to make this work without sanding the finish off? Nobody has that kind of time. I’m wondering if a stripper would be sufficient. I hate to lose the wood grain, but they have to be changed.

  7. Hi Cassity,

    I am really interested in using your method on a wood farm table that has already been lightly stained. Do you think it would work to just use this gray wash paint method overtop of the stain?

    Thank you so much!

    Madison

    1. Hi Madison,
      That’s basically what I did here — I adjusted the finished color by layering the paint color wash over the previously stained door. So as long as the table hasn’t already been finished with a top coat, it should work! This color wash will only work if there’s no topcoat or sealant, though.

  8. This technique worked very well on an old bench that my grandfather made. I wanted the bench to match the exterior door near it, but I didn’t want to lose the old wood look. Thanks for sharing your how-to idea.

  9. Hi. Was looking into staining a piece of furniture, I love the colors of the doors but I would need my dresser to be white – would color washing work or would I be better of staining it?

  10. Hi.
    I do a similar technique that works well. Take a sanded board, white wash it using a water based 1:1 ratio of paint and water. Then lightly sand back in some places so stainnwill take. I then use a grey stain and follow the same technique. It allows wood grain to come through with some whiter patches that also show wood grain. Very good finish.
    I will try your technique on one of my next pieces

  11. Before I found this post I tested a small piece of wood with white gloss paint I had around for trim work. I added a few scoops to some water and used a brush, wiping off access. It looks good. Before i commit, do you think this is a similar technique?

  12. Hello! This color is absolutely perfect! I just bought my son a dresser that is grey and has a slight yellow/green hue with the grey. So I’m looking to redo it! Would I just sand the whole thing down and do exactly what you did? It is all pine! I’m so nervous to redo something I just paid for!????