A suggestion for Newbies

[M Pearlstein 14]

So I will leave it to the more experienced pros to give the advice on how to restore wood but thought that this idea may add value to others who are just starting out.

Instead of practicing on the first customers deck I went hunting around some homes that had backyard construction and came across a deck thathad been torn down. THe contractor was happy to let me take as much as I wanted.

Now not only do I have real weathered wood to practice on BUT I also plan on taking these pieces and staining them with a variety of colors to make sample boards. As part of this process I plan on masking off some of the old stain so that I cannot only show the colors but show what the board looked like before restoring it.

Hope that helps someone else who is starting out and facing the same dilemna.

Mark

[Celeste 341]

Sounds like a terrific idea to me - especially since free is especially good when you're starting out. An added suggestion......contact a local fence builder (who only builds, not finishes) then explain that you will be coming behind his work to "finish". They could possibly offer a few of their new boards to stain as samples which makes a very accurate sample for those folks with new fences they want to protect :)

Thanks for the idea Mark!

Celeste