Staining Pine Make this inexpensive wood look like a million bucks. By Tim Johnson Antique pine often has a dark, mellow color. Unfortunately, when woodworkers try to duplicate that color on new pine by using stain, the results are usually disappointing. It’s easy to end up with megablotches and it’s hard to avoid “grain reversal,” a peculiar effect that makes stained pine look unnatural (first photo). It doesn’t have to …