Varnish or wood stain for new doors? Please help

[Happydaze2]

Can anyone tell me how I achieve the look/appearance of pre-finished and fully finished oak veneer internal doors, as per these pics? We’ve bought ours unfinished and I don’t know if a couple of layers of satin varnish will darken them a bit and give them a bit of depth, as I want?

We painted ours with a couple of coats of Osmo Oil, which darkened them a couple of shades and gave a lovely depth to the finish. I think we used the clear one, but it still deepened the colour.

You could try waxing, I'd suggest Briwax. They do clear and tinted. But wax isn't suitable for surfaces that may get wet, or hardwearing enough for busy households with kids.
I think oiling is often a better choice than varnish if you are looking for a hardwearing surface- easier to touch up scratches, for a start. I oil wood floors, I find it far and away better than varnish.

What did you use in the end, we've got the same dilemma. Howdens info advises us against a wax or oil and suggests a stain or varnish.

We used a clear satin varnish and are happy with the results 😊