Press J to jump to the feed. Peruvian walnut. not just a board or two), it should be possible to pay significantly less than retail by buying from an individual. Natural wood colors can also be based on the degree of saturation (meaning how dark a color is – high color or light pale) as well as transparency (meaning matte and glossy), divided into other groups. Dark woods are popular and relatively rare--they will always be expensive. You can find birch at many home centers, although the selection is better at a lumberyard. However, it’s hard to stain because it can get blotchy, so you might prefer to paint anything that you make with birch. Birch is readily available and less expensive than many other hardwoods. Not sure if anyone will believe me, but poplar takes a dark stain really well. Cedar is one of the most aromatic woods (hence, the cedar chest) and is strong enough to endure the elements, so it’s great for decks and patio furniture. Walnut is not terribly high on the list of expensive woods in most areas. White oak actually takes dark stain ok. Birch is inexpensive, but it’s so lovely that it’s often used for making fine furniture. It’s also relatively easy to find sustainably grown softwoods (woods grown on tree farms to ensure an endless supply of wood); this means you’re not contributing to the deforestation of the world and will always have a supply of wood for your projects. It’s also fairly soft (1 in hardness on a scale of 1 to 5), which makes it easy to work with. Many varieties of wood are available, and each has its own properties. In general, hardwoods such as maple wood, walnut wood, and oakwood all have dark brown color and softwoods have lighter colors. One of the great furniture woods, mahogany (also called Honduran mahogany) has a reddish-brown to deep-red tint, a straight grain, medium texture, and a hardness of around 2 on a scale of 1 to 5. Much less distinctive grain. Pine comes in several varieties, including Ponderosa, Sugar, White, and Yellow, and all of them make great furniture. 3. Teak has an oily feel and a golden-brown color. Always sand with the grain as sanding against the grain can create scratches, and wood dye ... 2. /u/screwikea has your answer - but I'd use a slightly darker wood. The downside to hardwoods is their price. White oak is also resistant to moisture and can be used on outdoor furniture. Softwoods aren’t weaker than hardwoods. You won’t find walnut at your local home center; you may need to special order it from a lumberyard if you want a large quantity. stain won't give that natural variation of color. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, More posts from the woodworking community. The substitutes for walnut are all more expensive than walnut. Poplar is one of the less expensive hardwoods. It takes stain very well and looks great with just a coat (or 10) of oil. The results aren’t awful, but the color isn’t uniform throughout the wood. I wish people were more supportive of stains and dyes, there's only so many natural wood colors. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Redwood is easy to work with, is relatively soft (2 on a scale of 1 to 4), and is moderately priced. 5 years ago. have you tried sourcing your lumber elsewhere? I love that stuff! Colour is the same, or a bit darker, than Black Walnut. Pine is commonly used in furniture because it’s easy to shape and stain. /r/woodworking is your home on reddit for furniture, toys, tools, wood, glue, and anything else that has to do with woodworking as a hobby or profession. are Peruvian Walnut. Example: the legs and top are Black Walnut. This wood is worth mentioning because it is very common at your local home center and it’s so inexpensive you’ll probably be tempted to make something with it. It takes paint better than stain. The grain has a beautiful “ray flake” pattern to it. Some of the more exotic species can be too expensive to use for anything more than an accent.