TREAD CAREFULLY

‘It’s a dirty job but someone’s gotta do it’ sang Faith No More back in the eighties.  Staining wood is not only a dirty job, it has also got to rank up there with the stinkiest.  Phew! 

I’m using Colron liquid wood dye in Indian Rosewood to colour the skirting boards, landing window, handrail and stair treads.  

Indian Rosewood

Somehow, I’ve also managed to colour my arms thus looking like I’ve had a fight with a tube of self-tanning cream and lost.  Wood dye is easy to use and gives a lovely rich finish to wood.  However, it stinks.  Every window is open yet I’m sure half my brain cells disintegrated sometime between breakfast and lunchtime.

Landing window ready to varnish

This has been my Good Friday so far.  I’m supposed to be stuffing my face with chocolate eggs and hot cross buns not slogging my guts out, buffing wood dye into stair treads with the remains of a cotton T shirt bought in the Sue Ryder shop. 

I’m inspired by the millions of DIY blogs out there, interestingly most have been written by women.  I see the sisters are also doing it for themselves instead of waiting for their lazy husbands/boyfriends to get off their arses to fix up the house.  Well done girlies!  My other half has swanned off to Silverstone for a race meeting and I’m here wishing I’d married Tommy Walsh having spent the past 5 hours with a brush in my hand.

The modern metrosexual male knows more about moisturiser than mouldings these days.  My advice to young girls today – marry your father.  Not your actual father though, as this blog doesn’t condone incest but an old fashioned bloke who knows the right end of a screwdriver and can put up a set of shelves faster than you can say Happy Easter. 

All is now stained and a first coat of clear varnish (satin) has been applied to the skirting boards.  Here’s what the stairway to heaven looks like after a first coat of stain applied to the treads.

After one coat of wood dye

Upstairs downstairs

Handrail after two coats of wood dye