Townsend Kneehole Bureau Finishing Process & Complete Step 13

Now that the construction is complete, it is time to think about how I want the finished piece to look.
I usually have an idea in my head about how it should look.  I often get these ideas from pictures in books or from museums.

The finish usually includes dye staining the color.   In this case, I am trying to make it look a reddish brown like old leather.

I cut a piece of wood from the mahogany that I used for a sample. The samples need to be finished just as I would the entire piece.

The routine that I used was to sand the mahogany to 180 grit.  Then I wiped the wood with warm water to raise the grain.  After it dried I sanded it with a gray scotch brite pad to knock the fuzzies off. Wiped off the dust and then sprayed a 1/2 pound cut of shellac on the whole piece.  If you cut Zinsser sanding sealer by 50% you get a 1/2 pound cut.

After drying I sanding again with a gray  scotch brite pad to get it smooth.

Now I applied a water based aniline dye from  Lockwood English Brown Mahogany and some Scarlet Red to the color that I want.  As the dye was drying, I used a wet cloth to lighten the areas that were too dark.  Particularly the end grain.

After the dye was dry I rubbed the surface with a white scotch brite pad.

Now it is ready for final finishing.  Mahogany is an open grain wood and often filled before applying finish.  I do not like the look of a filled finish so I use the shellac to partially fill the grain.

Below are samples of the color that I like with 2 coats of 2 lb. cut  shellac sprayed on.

I tried many mixes of colors before settling on the color mix that I like.

Following the procedure above, you can see that  I have applied the dye and sprayed the first coat of 2lb. cut of blonde shellac.

After each coat is sprayed, I sanded the surface with 400 grit sand paper.  This levels the surface and partially fill the grain.  I do not sand the carving, I use the gray scotch brite pad on the carving.

I repeat the process of spraying and sanding until I get the amount of grain filling that I want.  In this case I sprayed 5 coats of 2lb. cut.

Then it was ready for final finishing.

I wet sand with 600 grit sand paper with mineral spirits an then wipe off the residual.  I wet sand until the finish is very smooth.  I have to be very careful not to sand through to the color.

 
After the wet sanding I apply a good paste wax with 0000 steel wool and wax and then buff to the sheen that I am looking for.

It is a lot of work but this is the result. I finish does shine but there is a glow to the surface.  It does not look plastic.

This completes the project.  On to the next.

Here is today's video: