I'm going to be doing some DIY projects and want the look of walnut wood (without the cost). I've watched a program before where MDF was used and then a walnut veneer applied - it looked great. Does anyone know where I can buy walnut veneer (I'm thinking home depot?) and the approx. cost? Is it difficult to apply?
Thanks!
K*
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If you haven't see the stains already, go to the paint dept of Rona or HD and check out the wood stains. There are lots of different shades and walnut is one of the darker browns. You can also mix stains to get a different shade if you like. Then go take a look at the birch plywood (most stores carry it). It's a realy nice smooth, fine grained wood just like walnut and it stains up very well so you could have the look you want without spending oodles or making it difficult.
just to be sure I'm thinking of the right type of wood:
[url]http://www.roomservice.ca/episodes/episodes.php?epid=72&selroomtype=2[/url]
and
[url]http://www.roomservice.ca/episodes/episodes.php?epid=82&selroomtype=2[/url]
this is walnut right? is there another way to achieve the look of this wood (without buying walnut)? For example what type of stain + what type of wood?
I've heard walnut is rather expensive. Anyone have any idea on approximate price point?
Chances are you can forget HD for walnut. Veneers are pretty much a specialty item. A couple of years ago I shopped for veneers for a project and found oak was often the most readily available . It comes in rolls about 12" wide that can be ironed on. If you can find the display where the 1" veneer trim is kept often the larger roll is around there.
For other woods it depends on how much you need. Lee valley carries some smaller pieces (like 6" X 2') of various kinds but the best place I found where I live was a shop that actually specialized in veneer. I found they had just about any type of wood I wanted, various sizes, and priced very reasonably. If you called someone who makes or repairs furniture they should be able to tell you where that type of place is.
I never did actually get around to trying to apply it, but the real thing (not iron on) is apparently quite finicky. The veneer can be very thin (like cardboard paper thin) so you have to be careful about glues and matching can be an issue. The place that sold me the veneers did give me instructions and I think I found some on the Internet as well.
One thing is for sure, veneer was a lot cheaper than I thought it would be. Meanwhile for what I was doing I ended up scraping the idea and using a nice birch plywoodd. That stuff can stain up to look like just about anything. It's a really nice wood to work with and although more expensive than MDF, not too much more. It's nice to work with and not as finicky as dealing with veneer..