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Take a walk on the wild side of finishing. I’ve got six good reasons to skip the stain and polyurethane on your next small project: bleached, blended, charred, marbled, salt and pepper, and iron [...]

Waterlox is a mainstay for furniture makers. Follow these steps to get a deep glow, a buttery-smooth surface and unmatched protection.

My finishing turntable is perfect for spraying large parts or projects. To make the device, I mounted five fixed 3-1/2” casters on a plywood panel. They’re equally spaced in a 16” diameter [...]

A simple test reveals ideal pressure for atomization. Spray guns can run off a compressor or a turbine. With turbines the air pressure is established by the number of “stages,” usually two, three [...]

Fictional ‘incidents’ give a piece a believable back story. In Part 1 I gave an overview of creating an aged look for new pieces of furniture, and discussed mechanical wear. The second prevalent [...]

Once an inaccuracy gets started, it becomes almost impossible to correct. “A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on,” said Winston Churchill (or [...]

How can something so simple be made so hard to understand? It’s probably fair to say that a majority, or at least a large minority, of woodworkers use a finish they can wipe on and off the wood. [...]

Sturdy yet collapsible is easier said than done, but this drying rack is both. It folds flat against the wall to save space until I need it. I made my rack 36 in. tall, with 8 in. between levels. [...]

Add richness, depth and color like a pro. Some wood finishes seem to have richness and depth that combine to create a special warm glow. This glow usually comes with age, due to natural changes [...]

Repair, strip and refinish to restore old pieces. Refinishing is a topic worthy of an entire book. In fact, restoring furniture includes all of woodworking and finishing because all skills may be [...]

Your decision is simplified by the process of elimination. At some point as you progress in woodworking, you begin to realize that there are many finishes to choose among; you probably ask [...]

This solvent is unique. Lacquer thinner is the thinner used for all types of lacquer (not water-based finishes, which are sometimes misrepresented as “lacquer”). These include the most common [...]