"Dirty Cowboy" treatment- distressing with stain

Happy "at least it's not Monday" day everyone! Today's tutorial is a modified version of the "Dirty Cowboy" treatment featured here: http://www.domesticimperfection.com/2012/05/the-dirty-cowboy-treatment/. In her tutorial, she started with a painted piece of furniture, and she didn't distress. So I used bits and pieces of her process, and mixed in my on chaotic methods. 

What you'll need: 

1. A piece of furniture :)

2. Minwax stain of your choice (I used "Dark Walnut")

3. Shop towels you don't mind ruining and/or paper towels

4. Paint color of your choice (I used Behr "Jungle Trail")

5. Medium grit sandpaper (I used an 80 grit sanding sponge)

6. PolyAcrylic finish (optional)

Going into this project I knew that I wanted the end result to be distressed, but I also knew that I didn't want that raw blonde color showing through. So I started by...

Step 1: If you're starting off with a stripped, sanded, or raw piece of furniture and want your sections that "peep" through the distressing to be a different color, the easiest way to achieve that is to stain your piece first. I layered on 2 coats of Minwax "Dark Walnut" stain with my shop towels and let that sit until completely cured. 

Step 2: After my stain was completely dry, I painted a coat of Behr "Jungle Trail" directly over the stain. I know it seems counter-intuitive, but layering stains and paint is a great way to show several colors after distressing. 

Step 3: Now for the fun part! Take your sandpaper (or sanding sponge) and start with the edges, and gradually work your way in. Make sure not to sand too firmly as you risk taking off the paint and the stain which could expose the original layers of the wood. 

Step 4: After I sanded the piece to my liking, I wanted to "dirty up" the final finish. So, I used a towel to apply one final layer of stain, concentrating on the distressed areas. 

Step 5: If you want to seal your work, apply a layer of Eggshell Polyacrylic. I left my paint exposed, which will allow for more chipping and natural distressing. 

After my last layer of stain and some new knobs, the final piece turned out like this: 

This process is one of my favorites, because you don't have to be perfect... at all. It's just a matter of trial and error. If you don't like a spot or section, all it takes is another layer.

Have a great week everyone!