Furniture, Wood and Cabinetry Finishing - finishing furniture

I have a new birch cabinet and would like to finish it using a wash or pickling method. I do not want to paint the cabinet before washing, because I want the wood color to show through. Do I need to prepare the wood in any way prior to starting? Do I water down the paint? How will that effect the wood if I don't like the finish and decide to refinish using another method?
If I'm not happy with the result, can i strip it and stain? Can i stain over the wash if it has not been sealed? The effect I want is a very light pickled look in a color. I would appreciate any help.

The piece needs ot be sealed before going any further. I would use shellac. It goes on quickly , dries quickly and will protect the wood itself should you decide to change the finish later.

Choose a latex paint in the color you want. You can either use a glaze with the paint (most home centers have them in their paint department) or you can simply water down the latex paint to achieve almost the same look.

The shellac sealer will prevent the paint from reaching the wood, so you can easily strip and stain if you don't like the finishes product.

Also, working the a latex paint over shellac will allow you to remove just the paint (before it dries) if the result isn't to your liking.

Assuming you don't get too heavy handed with the shellac, you can stain over the wash - but why would you want too?