I was in the shop turning sticks for walking canes when I decided to turn a 1.5×1.5 piece of douglas fir. After turning the first one and polishing it up, I thought I should try some dyes for the next one. But since I did not want to wait two weeks for a catalog shipment of several analine dyes I remembered I had some Rit fabric dye which I had planned to use on my old jeans to get them closer to the new look.

So I turned and sanded a test piece and applied the dye full strength. I allowed it to soak in for 60 seconds and then wiped off the excess. After a quick buff on the lathe, removing still more dye I completed the test with a clear spray overcoat. I liked it. So I went down to the supermarket and picked up a bottle of Scarlet dye and repeated the process with red. I must admit it sure dresses up Douglas Fir.