I’ve said before and in other guides to choose wood that has the appearance you want, and just use the finish to show off what nature has put there. That is still my stance on it. But what happens if nature doesn’t provide the color you want? What if the wood is very expensive, or isn’t available? That is where finishers can add and change color.

Pigments: Pigments are finely ground color solids. Could be wood dust, coffee grounds, commercial products, anything you want just make a test piece. Dyes: are chemical colorants. Toner: Dye or pigment mixed into your finish to change the color a small step at a time. Shading: Toner applied to selected locations.

Glaze: Color applied between seal coat and top coat. Stains: Dye or Pigment with a binder applied directly to wood. Gel stain: Thick stain, usually used for dramatic color shift. Bleaching: Oxalic acid and hydrogen peroxide. It lightens the wood color. Large shops bleach everything, then dye it for uniform color.

Burning / scorching: You can use a torch to burn some or all of a face of wood. Test first, and ensure you have a reliable way to put out the flame or your project will be up in smoke! This can create some nice textures

Ebonizing: This creates a jet black finish, it takes advantage of the natural tannins in certain woods. It is iron acetate, it can easily be made by dissolving a steel wool pad in vinegar. It does not work with all woods. You can use tea to increase tannin content in a wood, even better is Quebracho, it will allow you to turn any wood black.

Paint: Opaque, will cover wood grain and depending on the wood can also wipe out the woods texture. Milk paints are preferred for indoor furniture, they can also be used outdoor with a clear top coat.

Bone Black: I like this mixed with egg white to fill pores, it makes the grain pop on open grain woods like walnut and oak. It's free: I take a clean beef or bison bone, wrap it tightly in aluminum foil and put it in a hot grill for a half hour. It turns to fine powder in a coffee grinder! You could also buy artists bone charcoal I( guess).

The two tobacco pipes shown are both briar. For pipes Briar is the best wood that can be used, flavorless and fireproof. It has excellent figure but not color. The left photo shows natural tone briar with a red contrast stain to highlight the grain. The right is simply a brown contrast stain and a tan dye. Both pipes are from the same block.