ebony stain
Let the steel wool soak for 10 to 15 days after spraying it with salt water. Long enough to let a rust formation set up. Then pour the apple cider vinegar in the mixture. Stir and strain if you choose, I skipped that part. I had pretty good success with this procedure on the last project that I made. But I only used it on walnut. Not sure what it will do on other woods. It turned it a real dark black with a purple haze.After it dried I wiped it down with a thin coat of ebony stain. This turned it to a even coat of dull black. It basically evened out the color. I then put one coat of an oil finish. After it dried then put two coats fo paste wax. Hope this helps. I will try to post a picture of the 18th century gun chest that I made using this process.