I've been turning forever but never colored anything. I would like to dip my toe into coloring. Leaving aside color theory , etc. , would you be good enough to just get be started with the most rudimentary introduction to coloring wood? Some beginner things like what kind of color product, (brand?) method of application. Can I use artists colors ( I have lots of these in watercolor, gouache, oil, acrylic, milk paint, encaustic.) I don't expect a coloring course; just want to get started.
Eliot - there are a lot of directions you can go with color. I have used inks, dyes, paints, stains, milk paint, waxes, and dirt. The choices and be overwhelming. Easiest place to start, in my opinion is with dyes. I used them a lot in my earlier days. I'm an acrylic paint guy now (mostly) and some milk paint.
Select a brand of dye. I recommend alcohol-based. Pick a few colors you like. Start with monochrome (one color). Wipe it on with a rag (rear gloves and don't touch your face - says the voice of experience). Let it dry. Apply some finish. Evaluate. Look at the color compared to how it looks on white paper. Try the same color on different woods. Compare the colors. Figure out what works for you and what does not. Observe how the dye penetrates differently on end grain vs side grain. Do you like that effect?
Try another color for several tries. Same procedure.
Now consider letting two colors overlap. Rea and blue make purple, for example. Red and green? (hint - mixing complementary colors always makes poop brown). try to avoid ugly mixes. Consider a base color and dabbing another color in various places.
Look at Stewart Furini's YouTube channel. He plays with color all of the time. Lots of ideas and inspiration.
While watching a Stewart Furini video last night, I thought more about this question. Here are a couple of other ideas I use.
As a woodturner, I often end up with the four corners cut from a blank to make it round. I slice these on the bandsaw to about 1/4" thick and sand on the belt sander. I cut them to 4" x 4". I use these as sample boards. I try color ideas on them. When I find an effect that I want to remember (good or bad), I write what I did on the reverse and save them. I have several 4" x 4" x 10" shipping boxes and I file the samples in the boxes like a card catalog. If I don't care for the sample, back to the sander to refresh the face. You can cut the blanks in any grain orientation you want to try. Do this with scraps of figure and burl too. And different species of wood.
Stewart was coloring the rim of a bowl. It was one he had done previously. He remounted it and took off all the finish and started again. I've seen that he does this re-use often. I paint on plates. If I don't like my work, I mount it on the vacuum check and either turn off the painted area or sane it off. New platter ready for action.
