This modern finish is getting more and more popular for both wooden furniture and wood floors. Usually people would go for the white wash staining effect on the floors to match a lighter furniture or to achieve feeling of a larger space in smaller sized rooms.

There are few ways to achieve a white wash effect on your wooden floors. Depending on the sealant you have decided to use on the floors you can either go for wax based stains, solvent based stain or using acrylic colourant mixed with the lacquer you will be sealing.

White Wash Effect with Osmo Polyx-Oil

After the floors are sanded down to a minimum of 80G, prepare the floors for staining with a light buffing round. Apply a coat of Osmo Polyx-Oil White (3040) - recommended brush application for a thicker, better covering colour. Application with a soft pad and rotary machine will have a slightly lighter effect, but may save time if that's acceptable, as the coat applied with soft pad will be dry within an hour.

Apply another coat or 2 coats of clear Osmo Polyx-Oil in Satin or Matt finish, to your preference. These should be applied by brush.

White Wash Effect with "Ronseal White Wash"

This type of stain is applied as any other solvent based stain along the stretch of the grain. Speed of application is essential and the stain may be more evenly achieved by 2 people. See direction of Ronseal for the drying time of the product - 1 hour should be more than enough before application of the sealing coats of clear varnish.

Probably the best effect with this type of stain will be achieved with Matt finish.

White Wash Effect with Shots of Acrylic Colourant

Another tested way of doing the white wash effect is mixing shots of colourant directly into the varnish. Take a 1L bottle and fill with 0.9L varnish. Add a shots of acrylic colourant - white, these are widely available in 25ml bottles through decorators merchants such as Leyland SDM.

Add another shot to achieve more intense colour. You may also go for double coat of coloured varnish or seal the colour from the first coat with another 2 coats of clear satin, mott or gloss.

The acrylic colourants are available in a wide range of colours, meaning you can achieve not only "white" wash effect with them.

Probably the easiest way of completing the effect.