Finishing Cherry with un-even color due to sunlight

[Matthew Curtis]

I have a cherry wine cabinet that I made and several of the pieces have darkened at different rates than other areas due to being in more direct sunlight.

How do I get an even color, or will it happen on its own with time? If so how much time? Will setting the entire piece in the sun even the color out? Does it need to have an even color before finishing?

Thanks

[David Hawxhurst]

placing the cherry in the sun will speed up the darkening process some. placing the lighter side in the more direct will help. if the piece is not finished yet you maybe able to sand the darker areas to lighten them a bit. if the cabinet is made from multiple pieces of cherry from different trees they will not darken at the same rate and may not be the same shades after darkening. overall cabinet will darken and even out some what over time.

[Bob Wingard]

Add about 1/2 teaspoon of Lye crystals to a quart of water ... mist it on ... let it work for a few minutes ... rinse it off ... neutralize with vinegar. Instant aging, it just accelerates what is going to happen over time.

If you aren't happy with the results, simply wash it down with some household bleach & water.

Lye can be dangerous to work with, but in these concentrations, it will not be an issue.

[Paul Saffold]

I'm not sure if the lye treatment will work if the wood has already been finished.

[Bob Wingard]

OOOPS !!! He never said it was finished, so I assumed it wasn't ... probably a bad guess on my part.

Well ... just make the Lye a BUNCH stronger ... that makes it into a wonderful stripper !!! KIDDING !!! !!! !!!

[Matthew Curtis]

nope not finished

[Brian Kerley]

You can lightly sand the darker parts and they will lighten up. Then, you can put the entire piece out in the sun to get a consistent aging.

[Tony Zaffuto]

I had the same problem recently with a cherry table I made. My wife placed a circular dish on the table and though it wasn't in direct sunlight, it got a very distinct ring on it. The finish was Waterlox original and I took the table outside for 2 days, in very bright, direct sunlight, and the ring pretyy much disappeared. Obviously this is finish dependent.

[Kevin Bourque]

Set the whole thing out in the sunlight. After 3 weeks or so the darkening process slows down and the light stuff will catch up with the darker stuff.

[Prashun Patel]

Matthew-
I wouldn't worry too much about it. Cherry gets like that. If you have objects on it even after finishing, they'll likely leave patches of light spots. In the end, it all evens out.

I would give it a fresh sanding with yr highest grit, wipe on a little boiled linseed oil as the first coat, and let it bake in the sun for a day. Then I'd finish.

[Matthew Curtis]

thanks for all the help. good thing i am in no hurry. just a fun summer project.

[glenn bradley]

Cherry is not alone in this behavior and Prashun's recommendation sounds like a good idea. I have a mahogany bookcase that would leave lighter and darker "ghosts" as books were added and removed. I just kept putting the books different places and it eventually caught up to itself and evened out ;-)