It isn’t called shou sugi ban, nor is every charred workpiece in a project called yakisugi. It’s simply a charred finish with its origins in Japan. An important lesson I...
Simple in theory, not in the real world. A reader of my blog asked me to explain what polymerized oil is. So here goes. On one level the explanation is...
How to choose and apply a long-lasting clear finish. What do fancy wooden boats and beautiful wooden front doors have in common? They both need a clear finish that can...
Not everything has to have a furniture-grade finish. If you read the woodworking magazines or look online, you often come across instructions for filling pores, glazing, toning, rubbing out, and...
Why stains and finishes sometimes dry slowly. A friend called with a problem. He had applied an ebony oil stain to oak and after the stain had dried for two...
The truth behind craters and ridges. If your finishing career has been limited to finishing projects you have made, you may never have experienced fish eye. But if you have...
Find magic in the mundane using this humble problem solver. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned as a woodworker is to never underestimate the seemingly mundane. I have...
Work miracles on wood with oxalic acid. Watering a potted plant can be disastrous if the plant lives on top of something made out of wood. We’ve all seen the...
Add centuries of wear and tear to your projects using a tested formula that’s simple and safe – no open flame! This is the furniture finish that fooled our local...
Achieve great results with the least amount of work. Think about it: What’s the first thing you do when judging someone else’s woodwork? You run your hand over it, of...
Linen and more. Three times in recent memory, articles have appeared in major woodworking magazines instructing readers to use linen for the outer cloth in a French polishing pad. No...
