Hi:
Hoping somebody can give me some suggestions on how to stain soft maple to a smokey or dark brown colour.
I'm fairly new at woodworking and still have so much to learn.
Been told than maple stained can turn out blotchy. I've tried deluted shellac before applying various dark stains & haven't had any luck.
Going to try dying first this time, then applying a stain. Got this idea from YouTube. Have no idea if this will work. Any suggestions please??
The bedroom set was build for us, but the fellow won't share his technique. He did say that they dye the wood first. The pics show how dark of a colour i'm trying to achieve.

Thanks, Michele

Hi,
I recommend you use this dye and apply a few coats to achieve a very dark shade.

Thanks...I bought the 3 darkest shades last week & didn't have much luck. I will try applying more coats. This stain was applied over a coat od deluted shellac. Maybe that's where I went wrong.

do not put the shellac before stain, go directly on the sand-blasted wood 150

OK I will try that thanks