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 - Seize 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

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

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

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

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

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

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

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

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

-- Mike. Profisher50@yahoo.com

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.

-- Dick 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

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

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.

-- Dick 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

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

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

-- Dick Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

Thanks Dick.

Diane

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

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

Thanks Dan I will get some mineral oil then if I do the dishwasher top, I am infact allergic to walnuts. Also, after you apply the oil and sand again what wax do you use on the projects you do?

I did the handles with the boiled linseed oil already so I will be doing the Macrame’ soon.

Diane

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

The boiled linseed oil rubbed on my handles really smells, will the smell lessen in time? I’m wondering if the Tung Oil has a better smell? The Tung Oil was more expensive but I could of gotten it in a small can, the linseed oil only can in a large sized can.

The jute on this bag is really rough, I may not like the bag but I plan on finishing it to see how I feel then and I will learn how to make them so I can make another with something that will look better than this jute.

I feel I have to finished it now anyway now that I posted this as a project.

Diane

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

Diane, I’ve just seen the furniture with the waxed finish and talked to the people building it, haven’t actually had a project in the pipeline to complete it. For something small I might even consider beeswax, but I haven’t looked at commercial products.

My experience with candlemaking has me mostly thinking “wax is wax”, some might have some softeners, but just dripping melted paraffin on and then rubbing that down would probably do a nice sheen.

And I’d like to see pictures once the bag’s done. My grandfather used to do lots of macrame to fight his arthritis, and I’ve turned out my share of plant holders, so I’m interested in seeing what people come up with.

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

Dan thanks for the info and looking into this for me. Thanks too for your interest in my Macrame’ bag. I don’t know if I’d want to use wax but I didn’t like the smell of the oil I used. Maybe the other oil would of had a better smell, maybe someone can tell me if that would of been the case.

I use to make plant hangers with nylon Macrame’ rope. I didn’t like the nylon stuff back then but would give anything to have it to work with now, it was easy to work with and easy to see what I was doing. I don’t see anyone selling it or any good alternative besides using jute.

The bag instruction were not that clear in spots but I think I did everything the way I was suppose to, I don’t see how it could be any other way. I’ve had to take parts apart a few times because it is hard to see what I am doing with this jute. This bag was much harder than the simple plant hangers and belts I’ve done too.

I have the 3 V shapes on each side of the bag done and am now starting the diamond shapes. When i’m finished I plan to attach a liner to the inside of the bag. Jack mentioned putting a button closure on the bag. I saw a Macrame’ bag with a wood button closure on it with a strap done in a 6 strand weave. The strap was then divided in half and then braided as two separate braids to form the open hole to put the button through. It was very attractive so I possible may do that.

If all goes well I will post my finished project or as far as I was able to get. The bag will be big for my scanner so I may not be able to include the handles in the picture I post.

Diane

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

The smell will go away. I think tung oil would be about the same. It’s the dryers in it that cause most of the smell.

-- Dick Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

Thanks Dick. I’m glad to hear that they probably would be about the same smell wise.

Diane

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

Nice handle.

-- Jiri

Did you finish the bag Diane?

-- Res severa verum gaudium - True pleasure is a serious business.

Thanks Jiri. I just looked at some of your work, you do some nice stuff.

....Stewart, no I didn’t finish it. I hate the cording to work with, it is so rough on my hands and it sheds so bad I’m sure I breathed it in and I found it everywhere. Also, it was so hard to see where I was in the pattern that at times I had to redo mistakes. I would like to see it finished but I don’t think it is worth it. I did buy a pattern book to make bags like this if I can ever locate the cording needed. The cording needed for these bags would be smooth and much easier to work with, I just haven’t done a search to see if anyone sells it.

I looked at your work as well, I love your earrings, do you sell them by mail?

I know I haven’t been posting but I have been reading what my pals have been saying.

Diane

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

It’s good to know you’re still tuned in to LJ. As to the jewellery, I’ve never got into marketing anything. I just did those as gifts. I’ll need to check whether I have any of the made-up ‘logs’ left in the workshop.

-- Res severa verum gaudium - True pleasure is a serious business.

Oh OK, if you even decide to make any to sell let me know.

I own a lot of dangling earrings; its all I wear. I make many of them, either with beads or by taking apart earrings and adding beads to add color. I usually don’t care for the earrings I see in the stores they are not interesting to look at to me.

Diane

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/

Just a note, I can only wear, the cheap stuff, stainless steel or gold because I’m allergic to silver.

Diane

-- http://s205.photobucket.com/albums/bb276/DMarcella/