Wood Finishing Fundamentals

This weekend class is for everyone who has been confused, frustrated, and otherwise unsure about how to choose from the vast array of finishing products, and how to apply them. The goal is to carefully explain the building blocks of all wood colorants and finishes so that students can confidently make informed choices by knowing “what’s in the can”. The class format is a mixture of lecture, demonstration and hands on activities with an emphasis on the science, craft and art of wood finishing.

The first day is devoted to color, with an exploration of dye and pigments and how these two very different materials can be used separately and together to achieve effects including color matching, enhancing or “popping” the grain, and harmonizing the colors within a board or on an entire project. To focus on the optics of color, students will complete a classic color wheel to see the relationships of the various colors and how they interact, and how the color “temperature” of the light affects the way we actually see color. Students will also gain experience in using the four different methods of applying color: dyeing, staining, glazing and toning, which provide a nearly endless set of possible colors and decorative effects with both oil based and waterborne colorants. There will also be discussion and demonstration of using asphaltum (tar) as a glazing and ageing agent, and the many chemical or “reactive” treatments that can be used to alter the natural color of various woods.

The second day is all about the huge number of different finishing products available on the market, and the goal is to understand that they are all composed of the same basic components, and that they fall into groups or “families” that have similar working properties, but do not always work well with products from other families. Students will practice several ways to apply shellac, and employ the proper applicators and techniques for oil based, and waterborne varnishes, as well as the very popular hard wax-oil formulations. Using prepared panels, students will practice various techniques for rubbing out a cured finish, both to lower the sheen or to enhance the gloss.

This is a theory and practice class, not one which teaches specific formulas or recipes to achieve a specific look, but rather to give students a way to develop a simple, repeatable finishing schedule with the confidence that they can use commonly available products to achieve high quality results time after time. A suggested reading list will be provided and a number of charts and handouts will also be available.

Class fee: $375

Material fee: $50 

Mike Mascelli bio