Thank You Card #3: The Grand Finale (A finish that really makes this mahogany POP!)

So now its time for the grand finale, a finish that really brings this piece to life. through some test piece and some inspiration (thanks to this woodworker) I began to dye some piece with some general finishes dyes. When i first put the Vintage Cherry Water based Dye Stain on the mahogany i knew i had a winner. It might be hard to see in these pictures but it really brings out the beauty in Mahogany.

So the first step (after much sanding) is to apply a coat of the Vintage Cherry. I also had to come up with some creative thinking to reach inside the top detail.

So now to seal in the wood I applied one coat of a 2lb cut of dewaxed shellac (i used Bullseye seal cote). this will seal in the water based dye and also will help us out as you will see later.

now that the shellac has dried i put masking tape on the piece and laid out my message on it. this is one benefit of the shellac in this case as the tape is sitting on the shellac instead of the raw wood with the dye.

Now to route the message. again i used the roto-zip. the masking tape now will prevent tear out on the finished surface and name it so i can see the line. why now rout first and stain later? you’ll see.
here i also had to do some quick thinking to finish the message.

now just another quick coat of seal coat dabbed in the message and you’ll see again what that is for later.

now here is where i tie everything together. I used a detail brush to put some general finishes pitch black glaze in the message. now to answer the questions.
why not rout first and finish later? i needed the masking tape so if i slipped with the brush it would be fine.
why the coat of shellac? glaze isn’t made to go on raw wood

so last just another coat of shellac to seal in everything.

this is the end. I will probably put on 2 or 3 coats of Arm-r-Seal and then it will be done. i will probably have it posted on Wednesday or Thursday and might have a little post for when i send it away. make sure to check as i will also post an entry once i have the project posted. thanks for looking everyone.

Special Thanks to

and to Mr. Charles Neil for making this project possible!