Spring has sprung around our Tiny House of Steel and before we could even dodge the clouds of may flies, we finally took our trip to Williams Lumber to pick up our cedar siding! I was glad we got there later in the afternoon when traffic was light because the bundles really do vary and I had to send the guys in the yard back more than a few times to swap out some of the pieces that were pretty dinged up. Luckily, I had a little charm up my sleeve.
Next up: staining, and the results so far have been…difficult. We knew we wanted the wood to look like wood and a semi-transparent stain would be the thing to do that. Everyone seems to recommend the Cabot stains so that’s what we went with.
These were our choices with the “Australian Timber Oil” line which, I’ll admit, I was sold on just by hearing the name. The consensus (after much texting back and forth) was the “Goldilocks” of the five options; “Amberwood” was neither too light and nor too dark.
We really weren’t sure how it would come out but since the price of the quart was half the cost of a whole gallon of the stuff, I was willing to take a risk. At $40 a gallon, not a terribly expensive proposition.
I tried it on a smaller first piece and was pretty pleased with the results. So I figured we were good to go. By the third piece, I started to wonder, and doubt. The kind of thing that might, as Bob Marley would say, “complicate your mind.”
That’s what you get for “putting your vision to reality.”
To me, everything looked just way too yellow. Like we were going to have to rename ourselves the Turmeric House of Steel. So, here again is where you come in: I’d like to go over with a second darker tint. The other two Tiny House of Steel members say to leave it alone.
Either way, we’re just so glad the season of renewal is back. Tell us what you think in the comments below or email us at tinyhouseofsteel@gmail.com
Tiny House of Steel 
I would say Honey Teak and Amberwood are my favorites. I think Honey Teak if the colors are exactly the same in person. Great job on the house!
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Thanks Theressa!! Hope all’s well in OK!!
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I’m with them. I like the color!
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Ok! I appreciate your taking sides 🙂
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Leave it as is, sun and time will still darken the wood quite a bit and take the yellow down to honey .
Love to all the futur Steel House dwellers, enjoy your tiny dwelling!
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Thanks love! Miss you!!
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I think you should keep going with this shade! It looks natural and bright – why not?
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Thanks, Lori. How can I argue with people I hold in such high esteem!!
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I find that stain always looks a little too yellow for my taste when it first goes on. But it normally darkens over time and the “yellowness” fades.
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Ah, good to know. Thanks Shawn.
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I think you ought to go with forest green. Clint says you need to go dark. The light color make it look like cheap pine. The darker stain will enhance the seeder. But do not go the darkest.
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Cedar! Sorry about previous spelling. Clint says you could also do a light coat of dark stain to enhance the grain. Then sand it out, that enhances the grain of the cedar. Then go back with a lighter stain. Try a test piece tell you get it right. It looks beautiful.
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Yes! Thanks, Vero. Finally somebody on my side 🙂 It’s been steady rain here for days so it’s all packed up and won’t be getting back to it anytime soon. Will post updates! Hope you guys are doing well!
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