zehutiman

I'm trying to protect the luminescence that accompanies the eyes of my birds eye maple, but want something slightly darker than what I get from Tung oil, linseed oil or natural-colored varnish.

When I experiment with a darker stain, not only do I get some blotchiness, but the eyes of the maple get too dark, and the luminescence disappears.

Anyone have any suggestions? Much appreciated.

Mo

widekerf

I had great luck with analine dye and shellac. After planing or scraping to desired finish, apply an altogether TOO heavy a coat of dye to the surface. After the surface is completely dry, fine sand the surface again (maybe 400 grit or finer). The idea here is to remove the excess dye from the softer portion (the light part), but not so deep as to cut into the figure and remove that too. Done with care, this leaves the grain and figure lightly dyed and accented. When you are satisfied with the clarity of the accent, finish with your favorite shellac. The eyes and grain just leap off the piece nd have a 3D apperance. The dyes also come in every color of the rainbow, and then some. Experimenting with something odd, say a green, blue, red, or yellow can even draw the eye to the figure more. As odd and unnatural as thes colors may sound, they are wit experimenting with.

zehutiman

Widekerf,
Thanks for the suggestion. I'm definitely going to try it.

Mo