Wood Handled Macrame' Handbag - Wood Finishing Question

This might be a birch (Or other similar white-wood) plywood handle. I’m thinking you might want to put a sanding sealer on the wood so the stain will look the same throughout. Several light coats of a polyurethane can be sprayed on in a short amount of time to make a durable finish. (You might just apply a clear coat with out stain.) I’m not a pro, but this is what I have done for my wife who has made a couple of hand bags such as this here. She liked it that way anyway.

Wood is the starter, the Artist is the finisher. Put a wooden button on as the closer(?).

Good luck and tell how it turns out.

-- Carpe Lignum; Tornare Lignum (Seize the wood, to Turn the wood)

I hadn’t thought of a closer on it, not sure I would care for that but I will keep it in mind, and if I do do that it would be wood. I have enough jute to make a macreme’ belt of some kind depending on how much jute I have to work with, that should would look nice to have a matching belt.

I guess I have the starts of my first project!

Diane

I have a hardware store right near me I’ll have to look for their sanding sealer to get a better idea what it does. If I use polyurethane from a spray can can it chip off over time, I want handles that will look good for years to come since they can’t be redone later.

I’m looking forward to others ideas as well before I decide how I’m going to do this.

Diane

I know this project doesn’t look that interesting from whatever everyone else is doing but I have to start somewhere. I hope someone posts what I might do with these handles. I don’t even know anything about staining anything.

The middle picture shows what it is suppose to look like. I added the jute in too so you can see what the texture and color looks like.

Diane

Interesting point about not being able to refinish them.

Shellac should be fairly robust (as long as nobody spills alcohol on them…), but unlike polyurethane, shellac can be re-applied in small areas later, because the alcohol in shellac will resoften the existing shellac.

-- Dan Lyke, Petaluma California, http://www.flutterby.net/User:DanLyke

Dan thanks, that is interesting about the shellac.

I hear people use oil on wood can that be done alone and do a good job of protecting the wood?

Diane

Spray lacquer is my favorite finish for small items.

-- Phil Brown, Ontario

I don’t know anything about macrame’ but the wood looks nice and the pieces match very well. Jockmike

-- (You just have to please the man in the Mirror) Mike from Michigan -

One thing about using oil, you don’t have to worry about chipping off, & you can reapply oil whenever you want. Also oil is the easiest to apply. Most gunstocks have an oil finish.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

Thanks Dick. What kind of oil should I get and let me know if it can be used alone or if I need to stain it or other first, how to apply it and what else I need to know? Also does it dry completely I don’t want to stain the Macreme’ that I’ve done? Thanks Phil that is good to know about the spray lacquer and thanks mike I think the pieces match well together too.

I want to get the handles done soon so I can start doing the Macrame’, I have never followed a pattern such as this before but surprisingly the directions are well written with diagrams. I went through the directions and I seem to understand how to do every step. I hadn’t done Macrame’ since a kid but the last few months I have been making Macrame’ belts one after the other and have practiced all the knots I will need in this project except the square knot.

I had to do many square knots though when I made the heddles for my Inkle loom. I’m picking up a book on weaving the Inkle loom today at the library, hopefully the directions are written as well as for this handbag so I will be on my way with the loom as well.

Diane

Just use either boiled linseed oil, or tung oil. You shouldn’t have to stain unless you want a darker color. The oil will darken it a little. Minwax has a combination stain ,& finish with a lot of different tints, if you want to go that route.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

Thanks Dick, I believe I will be going with the oil and not using and tint.

This brings up another question, when I bought my dishwasher I was told to oil the wood top but I had no idea what oil to use. Could I use one or either of these oils to do this?

Diane

They recommended mineral oil for mine. You can buy that in the drugstore.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

Thanks Dick.

Diane

Diane, for surfaces that need to be food safe I’ve heard two suggestions: Mineral oil and walnut oil. Both are edible oils (barring severe nut allergies, walnut oil usually won’t bother people who just get canker sores from eating walnuts) that don’t go rancid.

I use walnut oil because it actually dries to a fairly hard surface, but I find that it does need to be re-applied regularly, at least to cutting boards and counter trim.

What I’ve heard about oil as a general finish (not just for food safe surfaces) is that you sand to a good smooth finish, then apply the oil, then sand from 400 on up as high as you want, and wax and buff it. Having seen this on various furniture this is the finish my sweety has requested for future furniture I build, and it’s really nice, but people say it takes a little more maintenance than a few layers of shellac.

On the other hand shellac can be fairly high gloss and have almost a plastic sheen, where as the oil finishes I’ve seen won’t be quite as reflective and seem a little more like an integral part of the wood rather than a finish.

All opinion and hearsay, your mileage will vary.

-- Dan Lyke, Petaluma California, http://www.flutterby.net/User:DanLyke