# distress a fun way to get the Stress out



## MastersHand (Nov 28, 2010)

Waiting for the huge job to get going I thought I would take an opportunity to organize and redo My secretaries office. I asked her what she would like? She said "Oh I like beat up looking like you tore down an old barn and reused the lumber 
You know dings and wormholes" I smiled and said " No problem let the fun begin" Here's a easy way to make a beautiful old look. Mill and prepare your parts the same as always. Next when everything is ready for the spray room. Take a look around the shop and pick up things for the madness. I used a awl,3" screw,flat head screwdriver, razor knife and a small hammer. 
The awl is for the wormholes. Just Peck away wherever you want. You Really can't go wrong just let your inner artistic child takeover. Next the flat head screwdriver and the hammer put the tip of the screwdriver on your piece and give it a knock with the hammer. Also lay it on edge and give it a smack.
Now the 3" screw which by the way can be any length. I like longer so you don't smack your finger with the hammer. Lay the threads of the screw on the piece and give it a smack. Randomly wherever you want. Now it's time for my favorite part. The razor knife uh oh. Take the razor and pull it on the piece. Try to always go with the grain for this and come all the way to the end. When you stain and finish the piece this looks like a very realistic split or crack. Stain let dry minimum an hour. Spray sealer sand 220 when dry and top coat. Sorry I can't tell you brands that I use. Pictures show your accomplishments and you will be very surprised what you can do. Use this as a stepping stone and let your mind race with ideas. 
The last picture is a different type of distress that I love but that's for another time


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Nice job. I can see where that would be a real stress reliever. I don't know if I could do it to a project that i was working on unless I was going for the antique look. Great looking effect though.
Ken


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## hands made for wood (Nov 2, 2007)

I'm already wanting to try my hand at a project needing some 'damage' done to it! hahaha Thanks so much for the little tip, and ideas for different ways to ding it up!

Now forgive me... this is kinda a newbie question but what is the name for the style of 'door front' you use in the unfinished drawer front... How are these doors constructed? Any help would be great


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## mickit (Oct 5, 2009)

I'm sure (I know) I have a couple of PP beetles out in the woodpile I could loan you, but I demand royalties on any profits:laughing:
Sure does look like a great stress relief tool though. I cut down(and hauled off) a bunch of banana trees today...boy do I feel relieved.


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## Tony B (Jul 30, 2008)

Some thoughts to add to that
1). Don't get too carried away or it will look too manufactured. 
2). Look for places that would receive natural wear such as outside corners of doors, drawers legs, tops etc. 
3). Beating with chains also works. 
4). You can also use some chemical magic such as
A). Painting a surface red, then paint black on top of that. Lightly sand through the black to expose the red on areas of wear. Any contrasting colors will work. 
B). I also use Cracle Lacquer. The photo from the OP looks like an acrylic type product - not sure..
C). Glazes using diferent techniques


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## mckinnon100 (May 5, 2011)

You cant beat old and distressed. Like a valuable antique. 

http://www.reclaimed-doors.co.uk


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## sawdustfactory (Jan 30, 2011)

+1 to TonyB for the chain. Also burn some spots...tried a cheap woodburner and it looked to precise so I heated the end of a broken wrench with a torch and scorched the piece. Dremel tool with burr also creates good worm tracks. Paint and sand and paint and sand and paint....well you get the idea. Here is a lazy susan I made for a client.


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## johnnie52 (Feb 16, 2009)

Logging chains and burlap bags filled with nuts and bolts do a nice job of making something new look old. Just stand back and beat the living day lights out of that really nice black walnut table...


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## mckinnon100 (May 5, 2011)

sawdustfactory said:


> +1 to TonyB for the chain. Also burn some spots...tried a cheap woodburner and it looked to precise so I heated the end of a broken wrench with a torch and scorched the piece. Dremel tool with burr also creates good worm tracks. Paint and sand and paint and sand and paint....well you get the idea. Here is a lazy susan I made for a client.


Sawdustfactory,

I love your table. Wanna share how you got it looking so old and antiquey.

Thanks


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## Visions (Jun 16, 2011)

A good tip I got from my buddy (Charles Neil) is to go find some asphalt with some small rocks and pebbles on it, lay down whatever you want to "age" and walk on it. It really makes for a nice, inconsistent pattern that looks far less man made than beating on it usually will. 

I have seen many, many artificially aged pieces, and unless the person doing the aging is extremely talented, the dings and dents and such usually take on a distinct pattern, no matter how hard you try not to.
Using the asphalt trick eliminates that, as you have no control over where the pebbles will be.

One table I aged just got left in my shop for a few weeks and used as a bench, and I gave little concern to protecting it from getting marked up. It ended up looking really nice, as there was no pattern and all the marks were from actual use and working on the table.

Another method I used on a small pine sitting bench was to spray adhesive some 60 grit sandpaper to the backs of the legs and the butt of some old jeans and do the same to a pair of gloves. Then I repeatedly sat down and stood up, using my hands to brace myself as I got up and down, and also scooching around a bit while I was sitting, basically so to mimmick the wear and tear from years and years of people using the bench. Then I just used some finer paper to smooth it out a bit and make it look more natural. I spent a good amount of time on it, but it looked incredible when I was finished, like it was truly old with rounded edges where you would touch with your hands and a bit of a dip where you would be sitting. It was actually quite comfortable as well.

Applying a nice dark glaze after aging also adds a nice look to some pieces as well, giving it a sort of old, dirty look.

Aging furniture is very fun, and if done properly, can result in some very nice pieces as well. The best part though, is you don't have to worry about dinging it up during assembly or transport to it's final destination.


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## sawdustfactory (Jan 30, 2011)

> I love your table. Wanna share how you got it looking so old and antiquey.


Mckinnon, I used a variety of techniques to distress. I used a claw hammer, a ball peen hammer, chain, a bag of bolts and anything else laying around to place various dings. I also used a Dremel tool to create worm and bug holes/tracks. I used a wood burner and also heated an old spoon with a torch to create bigger burn marks. I applied the finish in stages. I distressed some before the base coat of red, then distressed a little more and sanded some. I then did the black coat, distressed more, sanded more. Another red coat, more distressing... and then one more time. Final coated with several coats of satin waterbased poly. Very fun to do and believe it or not that is the first piece I have ever distressed. Let your imagination run wild.

Edit: misread your post McKinnon. If you were asking about the table, it is a 100+ year old table that was used in a church for over 75 years. I just did the lazy susan on the table.


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## byrd (Nov 17, 2010)

Before I was a cabinet maker, I was the finisher for our shop and have used about all of the things listed above and like others have said just watch out and dont have a pattern. Go to a good antique show and study the original painted stuff since it seems like it took the most abuse and you will see that there will be parts of a 150 year old cupboard that still has nice edges on hidden or out of the way areas. The cabinet makers use to bring there jobs over to the finish shop and leave so they wouldnt have to see me start beating up a piece, but they always like the finish product.


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## mckinnon100 (May 5, 2011)

ah its surely a pleasure reading about your experiences with wood. I am learning lots. I hope to put some of my own pictures up soon. I just need to reduce them to under 200k each. At the moment they are 3.7mb !!!!


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

A way to make worm holes easily is with a pistol with rat shot and I have used a shotgun with bird shot but you have to back off a good ways for that, I found out the hard way about standing too close with a shotgun.:whistling2:


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

mckinnon100 said:


> ah its surely a pleasure reading about your experiences with wood. I am learning lots. I hope to put some of my own pictures up soon. I just need to reduce them to under 200k each. At the moment they are 3.7mb !!!!


Here is a link to a good free resizing program.

http://www.irfanview.com/


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