How to Restain & Darken Wood
- 1). Sand over the surface of the wood with 100-grit sandpaper on a hand block. Sand in the same direction of the grain. Scrape the built-up stain from the sandpaper with a putty knife every five minutes. Put a new piece of sandpaper on the block every 10 minutes.
- 2). Sand over the surface of the wood until the color of the wood is consistent. You don't need to sand down to bare wood. There will still be some residual color from the old stain no matter how much you sand.
- 3). Dip your sponge into the new stain. Let it absorb the stain and then begin wiping it on the wood.
- 4). Cover the surface of the wood with the stain until it is consistently wet. Let the stain sit on the surface of the wood for five minutes and then wipe it off with a clean dry cloth. Let the wood dry for 30 minutes.
- 5). Apply another coat of stain if the wood is not dark enough.