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This two-step process guarantees flawless results. No brush marks, drips, runs, bubbles, hairs, dust or orange peel—and beautiful results every time. For most furniture projects, it doesn’t get [...]

Five different types of protection exist. Here's a guide to choosing the best one for your project.

With all the high-tech, expensive tools in my shop, I still find a dozen uses for a simple, inexpensive hunk of paraffin wax. I use it anywhere I need lubrication...

Shellac is a mainstay in my shop, both as a sealer and as a finish. I mix my shellac from flakes and usually go with a 1 lb. cut, which...

They explain so much. It’s often possible to sum up a lot of situations with a rule, a principle that applies in almost all cases. When I teach seminars on...

Give ordinary wood the charm of old age. I love the look of old paint—I’ve often tried to capture it in new furniture I’ve made. I’m not trying to build...

How to choose, condition, and clean a finishing brush. It’s really tempting to buy an inexpensive brush for finishing. Say you spend $4 on a standard paint brush and throw...

Cooking wood in your kitchen can produce results that rival specialty kilns. Luthiers have long used roasted or tempered wood in stringed instruments because the roasting process pre-stresses the [...]

Wiping varnish is simply any brand of oil-based alkyd (regular) varnish or oil-based polyurethane varnish in any sheen (gloss or satin) thinned about half with mineral spirits (paint thinner). Rules...

Improve your results by understanding wood characteristics. Each species of wood has unique finishing characteristics, both positive and negative. To help you determine how to choose the right [...]

Apply a professional, quick-drying and durable finish at home. You may have heard of catalyzed finishes: pre-catalyzed lacquer, post-catalyzed lacquer and catalyzed or “conversion” varnish. These [...]

A few sample boards can save you from future finishing headaches. Finish manufacturers targeting the furniture industry and large professional finish shops provide a lot of information about [...]