How To Create The Look of Aged Barnwood
Aged barnwood is oh so pretty. I’m going to show you how to take unfinished wood and give it an aged barnwood finish in two easy steps! I also have a video of the barnwood process for you!
Aged Barnwood Flower Caddy
The area in Tennessee where we live is beautiful. There are a lot of farms around and I enjoy going on long Sunday drives just to look at the barns…yes, that’s what I said. I love old barns. There are a lot of tobacco barns in the area and the wood is all aged and weathered…and perfect. I created the look of authentic rustic barnwood on my new wood caddy.
FolkArt Painted Finishes Barnwood Tint & Wax
The process to turn the unfinished wood into rustic weathered barnwood was simple and the results were amazing.To create authentic looking barnwood I used FolkArt Painted Finishes Barnwood Tint and Barnwood Wax. The tint and wax allows the true characteristics of the unfinished wood to show through.
I started with this unfinished wood caddy/tote. Buy the caddy here….Unfinished Wood Tote (affiliate link)
Make Unfinished Wood Look Like Weathered Barnwood
The wood caddy really looks like it’s made from rustic weathered barnwood. You can see the weathered fence panel in the background and how similar the wood caddy is to the wood of the fence.
The first step in the process is applying the Barnwood Tint. The FolkArt Shortie Brush with it’s stiff bristles is perfect for applying the tint smoothly and evenly.
This is how the wood looked after applying the Barnwood Tint. The tint takes about four hours to dry.
The next step is applying the Barnwood Wax. I used a soft lint free rag and poured a small amount of wax onto the rag. I rubbed the wax on going with the grain of the wood.
Immediately after applying the wax I took a hard plastic card (credit card or something similar) and using firm pressure scraped it across the caddy going with the grain of the wood. This removes the top layer of wax leaving a small amount of wax that resembles actual Barnwood Tint. A scrap piece of wood also works great for this step.
Rustic Barnwood Finish
{Find my favorite furniture paints, spray paints, brushes, tools, etc. on the Petticoat Junktion Amazon page here.}
There are many uses for the multi purpose caddy. For the time being I decided it was the perfect container for my pretty impatiens. Who knows what I will use it for this Fall.
Watch the video of me using the barnwood finish technique on a wood caddy….
Barnwood Finish Tutorial
FolkArt Painted Finishes includes Barnwood, Concrete, Moss, and Rust. The Plaid Creators used all of the painted finishes products on our birdhouses we painted at Plaid Headquarters.
Aged Barnwood Finish
I think the JTS and I are going to be building a few small tables and I can’t wait to use the Barnwood Tint and Barnwood Wax again. I already ordered more tint and wax so I would have it on hand!
Supplies for this project:
FolkArt Barnwood Tint (no longer available)
FolkArt Barnwood Wax
As always, thanks for being here and have a great day, Kathy
Disclosure: I partnered with Plaid Crafts on this post. All words, ideas and photographs are 100% my own.
Amy Latta says
So pretty, Kathy! Barnwood is my favorite of the finishes!
Margo says
I really like this project, but the paint is supposed to be only for indoor use, so I wonder how it will hold up outside?
Gloria says
I read that you can weather wood easily by rubbing it with steel wool previously soaked in vinegar. I haven’t tried that, but it would be nice to compare the two methods. Based on what i have seen on Pinterest and such, i think the results are excellent
Gracie says
Love this look! My dad used old cypress boards for so many projects – his father had milled the wood when he was a child. I wish I had some today!
Shirley Duis says
I love this. I will use it. Thanks!
Michelle says
Kathy – I just love this project!
regina says
I like this finish. It looks so easy.
Barbara says
Kathy,
How long have you been doing your own woodcutting/building and finishing wood? This box is just perfection. If you used a jigsaw to cut out the ends, they are so smooth and wonderful. Is the secret more in the cut or the sanding? I love the look of these wooden flower/tool boxes. I am just learning how to use a jigsaw and find it fairly hard to cut circles and curves!
Kathy Owen says
Barbara, I would love to say we cut the box but n,o we got it from Home Depot. It is a kit with all the wood already cut and we put it together. A jigsaw is hard to use! We are going to attempt to build some furniture in the future, mainly tables.