DIY unfinished wood stain

I have a lovely bench that my husband made for our entryway one Christmas as a gift to me. He used old wood because he knows I love the look of repurposed boards. I didn’t evenwant to paint or stain it, although some parts showed old paint and none of the boards were a perfect match in color.

I have wanted to hang pegs in the entry way for a long time also, but have only unfinished ones that have been hanging around for years. I’ve toyed with the idea of painting them or staining for a long time. I just could never commit to a color that would look good with my great bench. I came across an idea recently though, of a natural stain. I tried to track it down to the person who originally had the idea to give them credit on here, but with no luck. So here I am using this method but it’s not my idea, just a great idea I’ve found.

First here is the peg board against the bench.

Not a match! So here is the natural stain.

1 cup vinegar
Coffee grounds
Leftover coffee (just a little)
Steel wool pad (I used an old one previously used on dishes, rinsed of course)

Let the ingredients sit in a glass ball jar over night and then scrub the wood with the steel wool. I recommend gloves while doing this. My hands smelled so badly I had to wash them many times before I didn’t smell like wet rusty metal and vinegar. Gross.

Let it dry and then add a second coat if desired, I did. I love the way it matches my bench now and I had all the ingredients and wood peg board so it cost me nothing but time 🙂

Thanks for stopping by!
Johanna