Homemade Stain: Decorative Vintage Clothespins

Hello, hello Deirdre here with today's dose of

"creating something handmade".

DIY is such a big part of today's craft industry that when I find a way to make something I may have seen in a store already put together, I get super excited.  I like the look of vintage, old worn wood items and I like to fuss things up to make them pretty.  So today I bring to you this ugly, but oh so pretty solution for turning your wood projects into magic.

This is your supply list:
(1) mason jar, vinegar and steel wool.
These are items that can all be purchased at the dollar store, the main thing to remember is the you want a jar with a lid and grade #0000 wool because the lower the grade the easier it is for the fibers to break down and have the solution turn murky and muddy looking.

After three days and the time may vary this is what I got and the darker the better.

I sat this solution outside because I did not want to have a mess in the house.

Wanting to work with clothespins, again I found these at the dollar store and you want to make sure 

that you purchase the one's that are not treated with a solution, because if there are treated 

the stain will not be able to penetrate into the wood.

Using an old plastic container I poured the solution onto the clothespins and instantly the color took.
They were not as dark as I wanted, or so I thought, but I left them in the solution for about 15 minutes.  Using gloves I removed them from the solution and clipped them to the lid of this container
and left them to dry.

When dry this is the beautiful outcome dark and rich ready to be embellished.  As you see from this picture the stain really stains, so prep your work surface with foil or newspaper to avoid stain getting on something you don't want and protect you hands.

Don't you just love how pretty they are?

You can decorate these pins any ole kinda way and they will be pretty no matter what.  

I hope you enjoyed "creating something handmade" with me and will give this project a try.  

xoxo

Deirdre Smith, Glittered Roses