# Some lake house pics



## nickfish (Nov 29, 2014)

Here's a lake house that I just finished last week. It was for a realtor so we are having some professional pics taken. These are just a few shots i got from my phone. The fireplace and windows are all poplar. Not a big fan of staining poplar, but the HO wanted it. I had to stain the fireplace white before staining it black to get keep the green from coming through. Would like to see if anyone else has stained poplar and what it looks like. Be gentle its my first job post.


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## BPC (Jan 1, 2015)

Poplar is a great substitute for a cherry look without the cost of cherry. They call it poor man's cherry.


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## stelzerpaintinginc. (May 9, 2012)

BPC said:


> Poplar is a great substitute for a cherry look without the cost of cherry. They call it poor man's cherry.



WHO calls it poor mans cherry? I've heard Poplar called many things, but never anything that complimentary.


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## MikeCalifornia (Aug 26, 2012)

BPC said:


> Poplar is a great substitute for a cherry look without the cost of cherry. They call it poor man's cherry.


I think alder is so named the poor mans cherry, but it has risen in price because of this.


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## wje (Apr 11, 2009)

Beauty job... I bet those stairs were a pain in the Azz to finish..


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## nickfish (Nov 29, 2014)

*a few pics the homeowner took*

Here"s a few pics the homeowner took. It was easier to take at night with no glare. I had no part in those railings, even though I think they are pretty sweet.


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## woodcoyote (Dec 30, 2012)

Poplar is the poor man's cherry. 

The reason being is that it can be stained and treated to make the finished product resemble cherry. Takes mores steps obviously, but the end result looks really nice. 

Good job on being your first time working with it! Came out nicely.

Edit: Cherry finish on poplar


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## nickfish (Nov 29, 2014)

Have you stained poplar a lot? I had quite a bit of scrap to work with to get things down. It was very hard to get an even finish. You can see in the pics that some of it was very green. I was told that if it were a clear poplar it would have stained more evenly. Anyone else run into these kind of problems? I'm just asking because I am going to be working with this realtor again. Just wanted to see if there were any tricks to making it easier.


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## woodcoyote (Dec 30, 2012)

nickfish said:


> Have you stained poplar a lot? I had quite a bit of scrap to work with to get things down. It was very hard to get an even finish. You can see in the pics that some of it was very green. .


Yes, poplar comes in different varieties, the most common being the greenish-pale color. You'll find tons of it at your local hardware/box store, more than likely that's where it came from via the contractor.

To answer your question, it really depends on what your trying to achieve as the finished look. A lot of cabinet makers etc. use poplar as a paint grade wood. Mostly due to cost and the blotchy tendencies/green hues/odd sap wood that poplar is common to have. It gives a nice painted surface, usually clean of defects (knots), sands decently and gives a good appearance for paint. Better than wasting a ton of money on maple, just to paint over it. 

There's a few things you can do to help improve your results if you stain poplar. Some can be used in combination others can be just seeing what the project requires.

1.) Use dyes/dye stains to color it. The color uniformity is greater with a dye because it can get deeper into the wood, helps with sapwood etc.

2.) Conditioner, blotch control, pre-wash. Whatever you want to call it, that also helps control uniformity of color.

3.) Depending on the color (mahogany/cherry/brownish), you can use a red-dye to neutralize the green tones. It'll turn the wood into a brown color. Just play with the dilution rates, the dried color should be lighter than the finish color you need. 

4.) Gel Stains, after the dye, you can try to gel it. Or put your washcoat on and gel it.


** Best thing to do: Have spray equipment.  **

With the ability to spray, you can achieve a beautiful colored finish and blend in the sapwood etc. Poplar will give you some good practice with your shading technique. 

In the long run you'll just have to go buy some wood and experiment to find your own path. Once you get some colors/samples down pat, write them down/log them in. You can even take samples to your realtor lady if she mentioned the job has poplar in it. She might just pick one of them from you samples and you'll already know the formula for it ahead of time. 

Good luck and hopefully that helps to some extent. :thumbsup:


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## fortunerestoration (Mar 6, 2014)

_Poplar is renowned for its ability to take paint well. It is commonly the wood stock of choice when building woodworking projects that will be painted. It is relatively resistant to decay, and when sanded, primed and painted thoroughly, should hold up well to normal wear and tear for many interior projects. If you intend to use poplar for outdoor woodworking plans, you may need to apply a new coat of paint every couple of years, depending on the project and location of the finished piece._


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## Seth The Painter (Jun 24, 2015)

woodcoyote said:


> Yes, poplar comes in different varieties, the most common being the greenish-pale color. You'll find tons of it at your local hardware/box store, more than likely that's where it came from via the contractor.
> 
> To answer your question, it really depends on what your trying to achieve as the finished look. A lot of cabinet makers etc. use poplar as a paint grade wood. Mostly due to cost and the blotchy tendencies/green hues/odd sap wood that poplar is common to have. It gives a nice painted surface, usually clean of defects (knots), sands decently and gives a good appearance for paint. Better than wasting a ton of money on maple, just to paint over it.
> 
> ...


This is all wonderful advice. You definitely know your stuff. Awsome work.


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