Add an Easy Accent to a Plain Project
I’m sure you’re wondering what the heck the “glue-resist technique” is… You’ve seen it, and probably inadvertently done it. It is where you are building a masterpiece out of gorgeous wood, you’ve taken your time building – no errors, everything is square. It is time to apply the beautiful stain you’ve picked for this project and BAM!! There is a spot of glue right in the middle of this gorgeous piece you though you were completing to perfection!! Stain doesn’t hide it, nothing will! (It happens to me all the time!)
This can work to your advantage but only before staining… Otherwise, other creative measures will have to be used!
Anyway, I wanted to add a little flair to an oak plywood box I am building and thought this technique would fit the bill! Here’s how I did it:
First, I cut all of the pieces for the box and thoroughly sanded them. Pretty, huh? I used PureBond plywood.
Then, I used my Silhouette Cameo to cut a couple of stencils out of vinyl. Regular stencils can also be used by taping them in place with masking tape.
I applied my stencils, then used wood glue to fill in where I didn’t want the stain to take to the wood. Any type of glue should work, even Mod Podge or Elmer’s School Glue.
I let the glue dry, then removed the stencil. I stained my pieces using (my favorite!!) Rust-Oleum’s Ultimate Wood Stain in Kona.
Check that out!! Isn’t that great?? Think of all of the creative things that you can use the glue resist technique with stain on – cabinet doors, drawer fronts, etc! I have plenty of plans listed on the site that this technique would work well with. Try it and show me what you did – cher {at} designsbystudioc {dot} com.
Disclaimer: All of the products I mentioned are products I own and use. I was not asked by any of the companies to make remarks about their products. All opinions are my own whether favorable or unfavorable. I do regularly stalk these companies!!
25 Comments
Not sure how I ended up here on your page, but it’s absolutely what I’ve been looking for! I have stripped 6 antique doors and 6 kitchen (cherry) cabinets. I wanted to do something subtle before aging them. This is perfect. Thank you for putting this out there!
Thank you so much! I am so glad you stumbled upon my page… It is such a fun technique! I have another technique similar to this that I’d like to try so please check back soon! THANK YOU again!
Awesome job, I love love love the way it turned out!
Thank you very much, I really appreciate it! I’m glad you stopped by!
Ohmygosh . . . what a cool technique! I love this–thank you for sharing.
Thank you, Shannon! I really appreciate it! It is really neat – especially when used on different species of wood! I’m glad you stopped by!
How did you get the glue off? I tried this, and couldn’t get it off!
Hi, Cory! The glue isn’t supposed to come off… It is what creates the “resist” so the stain doesn’t penetrate it thus creating the design. Hope this helps!
When you are done, you don’t want the glue there, do you? I don’t like the look of the yellowy goopy glue – it wasn’t clear. Goess I could try clearer, but I didn’t think I wouldn’t be able to get it off.
Maybe I’m not understanding… The glue is applied over the stencil, then the stencil is removed leaving glue design on the wood. The glue creates a barrier (the resist) so that the stain doesn’t penetrate that area. Mod Podge or regular white glue like Elmer’s may be used though I am not sure it would have the same effect, as I haven’t tried it.
No, that’s right, but I want the wood surface there, whan i am done, not glue.
Ok, no biggie. 🙂
Oh, OK, I understand! I can’t think of any other alternative… It would look really cool, nonetheless!
She could try using some matte varnish (by Beautiful or Decoart) or using some flat, dark (#4 or 5) paint base. It goes on white, but dries clear and do matte, you can’t figure out where it was applied. Until you stain… I’ve used this on peeling and chippy pieces where I wanted them to stick, but didn’t want any shine. Just a thought. Or she could just sand the stuff off.
Would be great if the glue could be peeled off or washed off. Maybe hot glue would work, if it were thin enough.
Hi, Nanette! That sounds like a great idea… Let me know how it works if you try it. Thanks for stopping by!
HI! I’ve got you pinned and came back to take another look. I want to do som,e drawer fronts before I stain them. Been thinking of this forEVAH! I’m not a stenciler, so I wanted to ask how you prevent the bleeding under the stencil, even with the tape? In the past, I’ve tried pouncing, painting, dabbing, gluing the stencil down with spray sticky stuff and a few other methods, but I always end up with bleeding. What’s your suggestion with glue? Thank you for your time!
Hi, Christine! I use vinyl and cut the design out of that. I always have bleeding issues with stencils (and am actually horrible at it!) and honestly have not figured out a way around it. Thank you for the varnish suggestion – I was thinking about that as well! Thanks for stopping by!
Since I wrote this morning, I’m thinking really thick glue. White glue dries clear, plus it could be sanded lightly and it’s invisible. Maybe thick won’t bleed. I’m going to test a few pieces. I have some unfinished oak, maple and cherry drawer fronts to play with. Thanks!
That is a great idea using the awl! I was thinking of trying out various other items such as white glue, washable glue, or even Mod Podge to see how they would work! Thank you so much for the ideas!
i wonder if you could use the stencil to paint your design then when dry put your glue over top of that and then stain, would it have the same effect?
Hi, Carol! I’m not sure but it would be worth a try! I would think that white glue would have to be used because it dries clear and not yellow like wood glue. Thanks for stopping by!
i may give it a try with paint and white glue, i’ll let you know how it works out
Beautiful and so smart! I am enjoying your site… do you have an email list?
Thanks, Christina in FL
This gave me a good idea. I opted to not do glue resist, since it would add extra opportunities for catastrophe (since I was doing lettering which was slightly finer in detail). Instead I used a Silhouette vinyl cutter and effectively did “vinyl sticker resist”. It came out pretty well for me having almost no crafting/DIY chops.
Wow! That’s a great idea – I’ll have to try that! Thank you for sharing…