Metal brushes for aging wood. Basic tools and equipment for brushing wood

Among modern finishing materials, natural wood remains a relevant decorative element. Popular styles interior design Provence, loft, colonial, require that wooden elements The furniture looked as if our grandmothers had used them. The paradox is that the older the tree looks, the more successful and noble the owner of such an office or living room appears.

What does the term wood brushing mean?

In the natural environment, wood is gradually subject to mechanical wear, the surface texture changes unevenly, loose layers are washed away, while dense layers remain. The result is an aesthetic picture created by nature and time. But try to find it now wooden furniture aged naturally.


Masters resort to artificial aging technologies wooden surfaces. Available in English language word "brush" - brush, bristles. It gave its name to the term brushing as one of the methods of aging furniture and interior items.

The essence of the technique is to enhance the texture of the natural grain of wood by combing out loose fibers and then treating them with special antiseptics.

Brushing wood is one of the aging technologies that emphasizes the natural beauty and noble texture of the material.

How does the brushing procedure work?


The essence of the technique is quite simple: the surface is wetted chemical composition. Soft fibers absorb liquid. At the next stage, loose parts are selected with a stiff brush. Solid fibers remain, which form a unique pattern. To enhance the effect, the surface is additionally treated with dye.


The result is an interesting stylized texture, with a slight touch of aristocracy and charm.

What tools and materials are needed for the job?

If you decide to age a buffet, chair or mantel yourself, then first prepare a set of tools. To use the brushing technique you will need:

  • sandpaper of different grits (coarse-grained is suitable for roughing, fine-grained for final polishing of surfaces);
  • two or three metal brushes of varying degrees of hardness;
  • stain (to give individual elements additional decorativeness);
  • paints for tinting;
  • varnish matte or glossy for finishing.

For large volumes of work, a stripping milling machine is used, which automates most of the aging processes. Replaceable attachments allow you to perform grinding, polishing, and brushing in stages.


Using a power tool speeds up the brushing process

At handmade the product looks more aesthetically pleasing, looks like a piece product.

How to age wood yourself

Brushing wood with your own hands is done in several stages. Typically the sequence of actions is as follows:


When tinted with ordinary stain, an interesting two-color texture is obtained.The composition is applied in a thick layer, the excess is quickly removed. Areas with soft fibers have time to dye, but hard layers do not have time to absorb the pigment and remain light.

7. After drying, the finishing stage begins: the workpiece is varnished.


This easy-to-use technique allows you to transform an ordinary interior into an elite, expensive, stylish one.



Chalet style interior

A mantelpiece, ceiling beams, headboards, and a sideboard made of aged wood will emphasize the taste of the owners.

City dwellers, who have lived their entire lives in the metal dungeons of the concrete jungle, are gradually losing interest in faceless urban interiors, preferring classic, vintage and rustic styles characterized by emphasized individuality. An integral component of these interiors is wood - a popular finishing material, thanks to which they acquire uniqueness and original beauty. However, there are some tricks here too - if country and eco-styles are often complemented by wood in its pristine natural form, then within the framework of vintage and even classic styles an aged tree would be more appropriate, having a more attractive and noble appearance. Almost any interior element can be made from it: it can be a vintage lamp, a wooden chest of drawers exuding comfort, or the classic use of wood in the interior - making window sills and doors. Under natural conditions, the aging process of wood takes more than one year; intricate patterns on its surface form slowly and unevenly, which makes aged wood a rare and expensive material. However, technology does not stand still, and over time, a method of artificial aging of wood, called brushing, was developed. Interest in this method of processing wooden surfaces is shown not only by lovers of luxury vintage furniture, but also by owners suburban areas who decided to diversify their interior decoration country houses. Considering the relevance of the problem, in this article we will look at the essence of the process of brushing wood, the main types and tools necessary for it, and also tell you how to brush wood with your own hands.

Aging of wood: basic information

If you carefully examine the appearance of the wood when cut, you can see a peculiar pattern - annual rings, in which dark and bright hues. This pattern is based on the alternation of hard (dense) and light (loose) fibers, the latter being more susceptible to time and aggressive influences. climatic factors, which leads to their gradual wear. This is how the formation of annual rings occurs, which over time not only acquire density and contrasting shades, but also visible volume. This is the basis of the natural aging of wood - a process that takes many decades. Thanks to the lightning-fast development of innovative technologies, a unique opportunity has now emerged to artificially speed up the aging process of wood. This can be put into practice using the brushing method, which gets its name from the English word brush. In Russian there is a similar term, which is referred to as “wood structuring”.

What is wood brushing: the essence of the method

Brushing is a method of artificially aging wood, which involves the use of specialized tools and techniques. The brushing technique is based on the mechanical processing of wood with special metal brushes, with the help of which the softest upper fibers of the material are removed. Thanks to this technique, the hard surface of the wood is exposed, on which the texture of the material and the structure of the growth rings are clearly visible, and a beautiful relief is formed, emphasizing aesthetic appearance finishing material. However, the brushing process does not end there. To emphasize the relief and make the structure of the wood even more distinct, it is highlighted with a color that gives richness to natural shades. To do this, the surface treated with a metal brush is unevenly painted, while the depressions formed as a result of the removal of soft fibers are painted in darker shades, and the surface texture is painted in lighter shades. Thanks to this technique, the wood relief becomes as noticeable as possible.

Important! In order for artificially aged wood to acquire maximum resemblance to a material that has aged in a natural environment, experts recommend painting material that has previously been brushed in grey colour. Without waiting for the paint to dry completely, it is smeared from the relief surface. Thanks to this technique, it will seem that products made from artificially aged lumber have stood in the open air for at least 10 years.

Important! If natural aging negatively affects operational characteristics wood, weakening its structure, then thanks to artificial aging carried out by brushing, the material acquires additional strength.

The artificial structuring method can be used in the processing of both hard and soft wood. The main requirement that wood to be brushed must meet is the presence of a clearly defined texture and clearly visible layers of varying hardness. Such materials include oak, pine, walnut, larch, wenge and ash.

As for alder, cherry, birch, teak, maple and beech, the brushing method will be proven ineffective for these species, since distinctive feature These trees have a fine-fiber structure without pronounced layering.

Advantages of artificially aged wood

  • Wood that has undergone artificial structuring acquires an original appearance that meets the latest fashion trends;
  • Brushed wood becomes resistant to rotting and various insects;
  • By brushing wood with your own hands (the video presented in the article will simplify this process), you can independently make a lot of exclusive things that will not only last long time, but also emphasize the exclusivity of any interior;
  • By performing decorative finishing on common and fairly cheap lumber, you can create an artificial imitation of exotic types of wood, the cost of which significantly exceeds the original price of the raw materials.

Wood Brushing Tools

At first glance, the process of artificially structuring wood may seem complicated, but even an inexperienced craftsman can do it if he has a certain set of tools at his disposal that will save time and effort spent on work. In addition, it should be noted that brushing wood can be done either manually or mechanized way, which is largely determined by the tool used. Depending on the method by which wood brushing is carried out, the tool can be of the following types:

Tools for manual wood brushing

  • Hand wire brushes, characterized by varying thickness and stiffness of the bristles, are used for primary wood processing. The stiffness of the bristles is determined by the length of the wire; the longer it is, the softer the bristles. When choosing a brush for brushing wood, try to give preference to tools with the stiffest metal bristles. If necessary, it can be trimmed using a grinder, which will make the pile even tougher. When using a brush to brush wood, it is necessary to move its bristles along the grain in exactly one direction. Thanks to this technique, you can remove soft fibers from the surface of the wood, leaving hard fibers intact;

  • Hand chisel- a tool with which you can apply deep longitudinal grooves of various curvatures in wood fiber. When used skillfully with a chisel, you can achieve maximum realism of artificially structured wood by applying enough deep cracks, creating the effect of cracking of the material;
  • Sandpaper with coarse grain is also used in the process of brushing wood and allows you to emphasize the texture of the material, making the natural pattern more clear. The technique of using sandpaper is similar to the technique of using a hand brush - it is also moved with pressure along the fibers, as a result of which grooves are formed on the surface of the wood, the structure of which is similar to the structure natural fibers. By correctly selecting the abrasive grain size and using sandpaper with different grain sizes, you can achieve various depths and the severity of the furrows;
  • Bulgarian, equipped with special brush attachments for brushing wood - another tool that is used for brushing wood. At the same time, on initial stage For rough surface treatment, nozzles with metal bristles are used, and for final processing, nozzles with copper and sisal bristles are used. Currently, a special nozzle for brushing wood “Piranha”, which is an abrasive-polymer brush, is in wide demand. Using this device, you have the opportunity to selectively remove fibers, focusing only on soft fibers and not affecting hard fibers.

Important! When working with an abrasive-polymer brush, you must ensure that the surface of the wood being treated does not burn when working at high speeds. To avoid this, you need to purchase a speed controller.

Important! After performing the initial surface treatment, experts recommend using a kerosene burner, with which the material is fired. remember, that gas-burner not used for these purposes. Burning the wood surface with a kerosene burner promotes:

  • removal of small wood fibers;
  • drying the top layer of wood;
  • highlighting and emphasizing the natural structure of wood.

Process automation: machines and brushing machines

On a production scale, the amount of work is many times higher, and therefore there is a need to automate the process, which involves the use of special machines. This helps simplify the work of producing aged wood, and also reduces time costs, allowing large volumes of work to be completed in a short period of time.

If you want to purchase special machines for brushing wood at home, it only makes sense if you plan to do a large amount of work. Let's look at the most common models of specialized equipment for brushing wood.

  • Cleaning router or the so-called wood brushing machine FESTOOL RUSTOFIX RAS 180. Three brushes are supplied with this device:

1. The first steel wire brush, which is used for primary wood processing;

2. A second synthetic bristle brush, intended for intermediate sanding;

3. The third - made of sisal is used for polishing the treated surface.

Sanding machine Makita 974 can also be used for brushing wood, however, in the process of working with it, difficulties may arise associated with processing corner areas. In this regard, at the joints between walls and floors, it is necessary to additionally use an angle grinder equipped with attachments;

  • Grinder Felisatti AGF 110/1010E can be used to process both relatively smooth and uneven surfaces. Metal and nylon brushes are supplied with this device. It has an analogue - the Interskol sanding machine, which will make sanding wood much easier if you follow the instructions presented in our article.

Brushing Wood: A Step-by-Step Guide

If you are not a guru in the field of wood brushing, the master class and advice from our experts will help you study this wood processing technique in more detail.

Let's take a closer look at the wood brushing process.

  • Before you begin the initial processing of the material, lightly moisten the selected workpiece, which will prevent the formation of wood dust during the work process. Prepare a working tool - a hand brush. For effective implementation work, make sure that the tool responds minimum requirements- the brush should efficiently remove soft surface fibers without disturbing the structure of hard fibers. Selecting the hardness of a hand brush for brushing wood empirically, use it to rough-process the material. During operation, the hand brush should be moved along the direction of the grain.

Important! If you decide to automate the process and perform brushing using grinder or a grinder equipped with special brushes, remember that the movements of the tool attached to the grinding ground are also made along the fibers, and the selection of the rotation speed must be carried out in advance on a small sample of the material, since for different varieties wood given technical parameter may vary significantly.

  • After you have completed the initial hard processing of the wood, replace the working tool with a polymer attachment with an abrasive coating, using which you can grind the material, removing any remaining soft fibers from its surface. Once you have gotten rid of unnecessary roughness, evaluate the volume and quality of the work done, making sure that the quality of structuring meets your expectations. If you are not satisfied with the result, experts advise making the structuring more distinct by deepening the previously made grooves on the surface of the wood. On at this stage For the first time, you can think about the decorative design of the surface of the material and, using a chisel, add additional indentations and grooves, giving them the appearance of cracks that appeared naturally.

  • The next stage is the final polishing, for which you will need a sisal brush. If you plan to do it by hand, prepare sandpaper with a fine-grained abrasive surface, with which you will get a perfectly smooth surface of the workpiece. After this, the resulting workpiece must be dried and cleaned of dust, thereby preparing it for subsequent painting and varnishing.
  • For decorative design For brushed wood, experts recommend using golden or silver paint, during the application of which the particles of the coloring pigment will clog into the microcracks of the wood, due to which glare will appear on its surface in sunny weather. If you want to give the material a unique luxury and presentable appearance, patina it (painting the deepest cracks with darker paint).

Important! You can use stain as a coloring composition. To do this, apply it liberally to the surface of the material and quickly remove the excess. Thanks to this technique, soft fibers will absorb paint, acquiring more dark shade, while the hard ones will remain light.

  • After painting the wood, polish it again, which will smooth out all the unevenness that appeared after painting.
  • After thoroughly washing, cleaning and drying the workpiece, you can coat it with varnish. To do this, you should use a specially designed parquet varnish, thanks to which the material will retain its original appearance and performance characteristics for a long time.

Chemical brushing of wood

Unlike mechanical brushing, wood brushing using chemicals is considered the most rare type of artificial structuring. Despite the fact that the use of chemically active compounds facilitates the brushing process, their widespread use is limited by the need for special knowledge and skills of a master working with chemicals. In addition, difficulties may arise in purchasing chemicals.

For chemical brushing of wood, acids (sulfuric and hydrochloric), alkalis and other caustic chemicals (ammonia) are used. After they are applied to the surface of the material, they corrode the soft fibers, and all that remains is to scrape off the unnecessary wood.

The sequence of work for chemical brushing is as follows:

  • The surface of the material is polished and dirt is removed;
  • To the surface to be treated thin layer apply a chemical used for brushing;
  • During the work process, it is important to monitor the evaporation of the chemical and, if necessary, reapply;
  • After the chemical has softened the outer fibers, the workpiece is washed under running water and use a soft brush to remove chemical residues;
  • Then the wood is thoroughly dried, after which they begin to paint and apply varnish.

Wooden products, for the manufacture of which brushed wood was used, will become an original addition to classic and vintage interiors, fitting perfectly into the main stylistic concept. Aged wood in the form wall panels, massive ceiling beams and columns will make any, even the most laconic interior, refined and aristocratic.

Brushing wood video

The method is based on the difference in hardness of the layers that make up solid wood. The cross section clearly shows growth rings, which are formed by fibers with different physical characteristics. In products, these layers form a pattern characteristic of each type of wood.

When the soft layer is removed, areas consisting of hard fibers become embossed, clearly appearing on the surface and giving the wood a particularly decorative appearance. Under natural conditions, this happens over time, when soft fibers are removed as the product is used. Brushing allows you to visually age the wood and give it texture in a carpentry workshop.

Do-it-yourself wood brushing: artificial aging of wood

This wood structuring technology is suitable for use with soft and hard woods that have a clearly defined texture and obvious layers of different hardness:

  • pine
  • oak
  • larch
  • ash
  • nut
  • wenge

Wood species with a fine-grained and indistinct structure are unsuitable for brushing, since they do not have the necessary layering. These types of materials include wood:

  • maple
  • alders
  • birch trees
  • cherries

The use of brushing technology allows you to create original textures that look ideal in products for interiors different styles. Structured wood is actively used in manufacturing floors, furniture, elements decorative finishing. Natural wood fits perfectly into any design, adding original touches to it.

Wood structuring equipment

Brushing is the most accessible and easy-to-perform method, allowing you to quickly visually age natural material. This process can be carried out in a home workshop using a minimum of equipment.

This is one of the few technologies that allows you to achieve excellent result, using exclusively manual labor. For this you will need:

  • metal brushes of varying hardness, which are used to roughly remove soft fibers from the surface of the workpiece
  • sandpaper of various grits for rough sanding and final polishing
  • stains and other means to give wood maximum decorativeness
  • varnish for opening the product at the end of the brushing process
  • The selected workpiece can be slightly moistened so that wood dust does not fly around the room. The first pass is carried out with a metal brush, the rigidity of which is selected depending on the hardness of the wood. The “bristles” should not damage the hard fibers of the material, but at the same time should successfully remove the soft ones. The movement of the instrument is carried out in the direction of the fibers, at a speed sufficient for effective scraping. Increasing the rotation speed of the brush can lead to baking of the wood, so it is necessary to select best option for each sample. When working hand tools This problem does not arise, but more effort has to be applied and much more processing time has to be spent.
  • By replacing the nozzle with a polymer brush with an abrasive applied to it, the part is initially polished, during which roughness and fragments of fibers remaining on the surface of the wood are removed. Having removed all unnecessary things, you can evaluate how deep and high-quality the structuring was done, and, if necessary, further deepen the resulting grooves. At this stage you can add decorative elements in the finishing of wooden products. Using a chisel in different places recesses of arbitrary shape are selected from the workpiece. After rough sanding, they can be corrected and given the maximum possible natural look old cracks formed in the material.
  • The final polishing is carried out using a sisal or hair brush, which gives the part a finished polished look, fully revealing all the decorative texture of the wood. At manual processing The finest grit sandpaper is used to create a perfectly polished surface. Having smoothed the structured texture of the product, it is prepared for further painting and varnishing. If the wood was wetted before work, now it must be dried and completely cleaned of dust.
  • To give it a special decorative look the part can be painted, patinated, gilded and other finishing options. Using stain will age the product due to the formation of contrasting textured patterns. Abundant application of the composition with quick removal of excess allows you to paint over areas with soft fibers that absorb paint, and leave light areas of hard fibers that have not had time to absorb the pigment. Looks especially impressive gold paint, clogged during application into microcracks and depressions against the background of the natural color of the wood. Such reflections of gold will give the product an original decorative effect. After treatment with coloring compounds, the surfaces are polished again to get rid of the roughness that arose during painting.
  • Varnishing is carried out on completely dried and cleaned wood. When making brushed parquet, for opening it is necessary to use a special parquet varnish so that finished coating could serve his allotted time.

All photos from the article

The term wood brushing, unknown until recently, is becoming increasingly popular today. Most people are interested in this method of processing wooden surfaces. different people, starting with specialists in the production of luxury furniture and ending with summer residents who decided to decorate certain wooden crafts in the surroundings of a country house.

So, what is brushing and what are the features of its implementation? In addition, what equipment is used for such processing of wooden surfaces and what are the characteristics of the finished result?

Basic information

Brushing wood with your own hands or using special mechanized equipment is a process during which soft fibers are partially removed from the surface of lumber, while harder fibers remain unchanged. As a result of this processing, the impression of old wood is created.

The term “brushing”, less common “brushing”, is a transliteration of the English word “brush”, which means “brush”. In Russian there is a term of similar meaning, “structuring a wood surface.” In both cases, the natural structure of the wood remains intact while the soft fibers are cleaned out.

Important: The optimal structuring result is demonstrated by rocks with a pronounced structure.
Species with an undefined structure, such as beech and maple, are not suitable for brushing.

The lumber processing technology includes the following stages:

  • rough structuring, during which soft fibers are selected with a wire brush;
  • polishing the resulting texture with a soft brush or polymer abrasive;
  • final polishing of the texture using a sisal brush.

Structuring wood with your own hands or using mechanical devices provides best result, if the lumber used was harvested in the spring. It is in the spring, thanks to the growth of growth rings, that soft, loose fibers are formed, which, without special effort cleaned manually using a stiff brush.

Since wood structuring is based on the removal of soft fibers, it is advisable to use hard wood species such as oak, cherry and larch as the starting material.

Important: Most often, wood structuring is offered by companies engaged in the production of parquet and floorboards.

Brushing floor coverings, as is fashionable to do today, should not be done for two reasons:

  • Firstly, dirt will accumulate in the relief texture, which will not be easy to wash out.
  • Secondly, the grooves of the relief, unlike flat surface, will jam under the weight of the furniture.

Artificial aging of wood is not difficult

Brushing is one of the most accessible techniques that allows you to artificially age wood in such a way that it looks as natural and realistic as possible.

The maximum resemblance of the result obtained to a truly old tree is ensured by painting the brushed wood gray, followed by smearing the still wet paint from the relief surface. At the right approach to artificial aging, lumber products will look as if they had stood in the open air for at least 10 years.

In order for the wood to look naturally aged, in addition to structuring the fibers, the texture can be highlighted with color. To do this, the surface treated with a wire brush is cleaned and then unevenly painted.

The depressions from which the soft fibers were selected are painted more dark color. We cover the texture surface light shade and thus making the relief more noticeable.

Tip: The simplest and at the same time effective way to highlight the texture of wood is to paint brushed wood with stain and then smear it with a foam swab.

Wood brushing is the process of artificial aging of the surface layer of lumber. The origins of this name are in English word brush, which means “to clean” or “brush”. In Russian, the same process is called wood structuring.

In natural natural conditions the tree ages gradually. It is subject to weathering, and wear occurs unevenly - the looser layers age and fall out, while the denser ones remain. As a result, it forms beautiful picture, drawn by time itself.

Man constantly learns from nature. So here, having looked at the history of the creation of the natural aged structure of wood in nature, he decided to take it into his arsenal and achieve a similar effect for more a short time. Unlike the natural process, which weakens the wood, the artificial aging procedure, on the contrary, increases the strength of the wood. All loose layers are removed, leaving the hardest ones. Treatment with special compounds protects the tree from rotting and damage by various bark beetles.

Brushing wood is a technique for decorative finishing of wood. The design idea is not limited by anything, and the idea of ​​​​giving a good-quality item an aged look has found its followers. Now this is a fashionable trend in decor, extremely in demand. It allows you to create a complete imitation of the road exotic breed wood, using ordinary, affordable wood. Brown or grayish-green with gold veins and pores, oak parquet with tinting white, sky blue or azure with platinum-colored pores - all options are subject to this technology.

Give space to your imagination, just don’t overdo it! Advice experienced designer will be useful to those who do not know the sense of proportion.

Brushing technology is used in the production of furniture, in finishing the interiors of shops, restaurants, cafes, cinemas, and in private apartments. Brushing boards is widely used in the manufacture of parquet - with the help of sanding, uneven coloring and varnishing, parquet flooring will acquire its own individuality and a touch of mystery will settle in your apartment, a kind of flair of antiquity.

Brushing furniture in antique interior design

The technology for brushing wood is simple, but labor-intensive. If you need to use this technique on a small object, say a wooden box, then you can independently perform all the operations to decorate it, and at the same time enjoy the creative process. If you plan to completely process parquet or large furniture, then it is better to contact a company that provides such services and performs these procedures using professional equipment.

What types of wood are good for brushing?

It should be noted that not every type of wood accepts this type of decor. It is most preferable to use soft or medium-hard wood: oak, ash, walnut, larch. The structure of the tree must have a pronounced fibrous structure, otherwise the whole meaning of processing is lost. The fact is that the whole effect is based on tearing out soft fibers located between the annual rings of wood. This emphasizes the existing structure and makes it brighter and more contrasting. When the existing structure is homogeneous, it turns out that there is nothing to identify. However, it is possible to create the necessary surface on any wood, the only question is cost and time.

Important! The brushing process itself will not accomplish the task of aging wood. Without the use of wood coloring operations, the work will have an unfinished appearance. And painting with stains and other means requires a creative approach and artistic taste from the performer.

Mechanical method brushing

The full cycle of wood brushing consists of the following operations:

  1. Initial treatment with wire brushes to remove some of the soft wood fibers from the surface layer;
  2. Sanding the structured surface with an abrasive polymer brush or coarse sandpaper;
  3. Painting with stain and other dyes, the result of which should be that same “antique effect”;
  4. Surface polishing, sometimes multi-layer varnish coating. In this case, after each layer has dried, the surface is thoroughly cleaned with thin abrasive sandpapers.

When brushing wood, all work can be done with your own hands, or using an electric angle grinder (grinder) or drill. You will need to purchase different attachments in the form of metal (steel, copper or aluminum) brushes and abrasive synthetic brushes; other devices for grinding and polishing wood.

Rough wood processing

When cleaning the surface of wood from soft fibers, it is recommended to move a wire brush in the direction of their growth. The speed of movement of the brush should also be the same on all parts of the surface.

Try to ensure even pressure on the brush so as not to make too deep holes and damage the pattern of the annual rings themselves. The scratches that appear on them stand out from the general series and worsen the result of the work.

To obtain a deeper effect of wood aging, some resort to crude methods of creating the necessary relief. Thus, even making various dents and nicks with an ax can have a highly artistic meaning. Of course, such processing is appropriate only on large interior parts.

To obtain the highest quality result, pay attention to the choice of the position of the lighting source - the light beam should be directed across the fibers. Only in this case will you be able to see all the subtleties of the acquired wood texture.

Wood blanks to be processed must be dried to a moisture content of 15-16%. This is necessary so that there are fewer fibers on the treated surface in the form of raised, but not torn fibers.

Sometimes you can do without a wire brush. You will need to use a universal abrasive brush made of polymer-abrasive materials. The principles of operation of abrasive synthetic and metal brushes are the same, but when working with the latter, the result will be delicate processing of wood, with less pronounced roughness.

Sanding a textured surface

Grinding removes the remaining “shaggy” material, in the form of lint from wood fibers and create a surface that is pleasant to the touch. You cannot sand the protruding parts on the surface very hard, because they can break off during use. Grinding is carried out using a universal abrasive brush or sandpaper.

Adding an antique effect with paint

After we have successfully created the desired surface relief of the wood, simulating time treatment, it is necessary to enhance this effect with the help of staining. Agree that fresh wood with signs of wear will still look new if you do not change its color.

The play of colors can change our workpiece beyond recognition. With the help of a simple painting procedure, if done professionally, ordinary wood will have a solid and presentable appearance.

Most affordable way painting a brushed surface - applying stain and then washing it off. The paint will be absorbed into the soft layers of wood instantly, but the hard areas will not have time to paint. Due to this, the natural pattern of the wood layers will appear and the material will receive an interesting texture. You can add gold paint (or another of your choice), after applying which you need to run a spatula along the plane of the wood. This will remove excess paint; it will only paint over pores and dents.

If brushed wood is used to cover floors or countertops and shelves, it would be advisable to fill all pores and dents with special transparent putties. This will prevent dirt from getting into the pores and cracks of the material.

Finishing - polishing and varnishing

In order for the decorated surface to be fully ready for use, it must be thoroughly polished, wired or varnished.

The effect of old wood is achieved through the use of a special craquelure varnish, which promotes the formation of small cracks on the surface. Paint or coal dust is rubbed into these cracks, which ultimately produces a beautiful, unique pattern.

Chemical brushing method

Chemical methods for brushing wood can be used to facilitate the mechanical removal of fibers, or are carried out without additional mechanical influences at all. The meaning of chemical exposure lies in the ability of some active chemical solutions soften or corrode wood fibers. It is possible to use acids, alkalis, and any caustic compounds. When using compositions with a high concentration of active components that decompose wood fibers, you can do without finishing the texture with brushes; you will just need several stages of applying and rinsing off the product.

The chemical brushing method is accompanied by the release of pungent odors, so it is better to carry out the work in the fresh air.

After creating the surface relief using chemistry, further decoration is carried out in the same way as with mechanically brushing.

Safety precautions

The work of brushing, although not particularly difficult, requires a lot of effort and time. For quality performance decorative processing you will need to purchase expensive paints, stains and other products. Vapors of solutions at chemically, the smell of paint and varnishes is especially harmful to our health - we should buy respirators, however, even if machining There are many points from which we must protect ourselves:

  • Wear gloves, use a respirator and safety glasses;
  • If work is carried out using electric machines, follow all safety requirements that protect against electric shock and damage from rotating mechanisms.
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