A Little Experiment ...
All woodworkers know about and battle with the issue of colourfastness but in marquetry it is more than just a pest, it can absolutely ruin your work. All one needs do is look at the great marquetry created by the French masters of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, today mostly dull arrangements of subtly different shades of brown.
In an attempt to start to understand the factors at work in order to try to minimize their destruction, I am embarking on what I expect will become a series of experiments. This first one will look at the effect of sealing the raw wood off completely from the atmosphere with a thick coat of epoxy and the effect of a top rated ultra-violet filter in the form of ten coats of Epifanes Marine Varnish.
I am well aware of the fact that there is lots of research online but I just want to see for myself.
I started out by glueing several strips of veneer to a piece of plywood. Then after making some kerfs to separate the segments I applied four different finishes (and left one bare as a reference). The last coat of varnish went on yesterday so today the test began. Quite a simple test but I expect quite effective, the Arizona sun.
The finishes for this test are
1) Bare (Reference)
2) Shellac
3) Shellac with Varnish
4) Epoxy with Varnish
5) Epoxy
I am hoping to discover something (anything) that might help keep my work last a little longer. Who knows? Maybe I will.
Thanks for looking in. Discussion is encouraged.
Paul
All woodworkers know about and battle with the issue of colourfastness but in marquetry it is more than just a pest, it can absolutely ruin your work. All one needs do is look at the great marquetry created by the French masters of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, today mostly dull arrangements of subtly different shades of brown.
In an attempt to start to understand the factors at work in order to try to minimize their destruction, I am embarking on what I expect will become a series of experiments. This first one will look at the effect of sealing the raw wood off completely from the atmosphere with a thick coat of epoxy and the effect of a top rated ultra-violet filter in the form of ten coats of Epifanes Marine Varnish.
I am well aware of the fact that there is lots of research online but I just want to see for myself.
I started out by glueing several strips of veneer to a piece of plywood. Then after making some kerfs to separate the segments I applied four different finishes (and left one bare as a reference). The last coat of varnish went on yesterday so today the test began. Quite a simple test but I expect quite effective, the Arizona sun.
The finishes for this test are
1) Bare (Reference)
2) Shellac
3) Shellac with Varnish
4) Epoxy with Varnish
5) Epoxy
I am hoping to discover something (anything) that might help keep my work last a little longer. Who knows? Maybe I will.
Thanks for looking in. Discussion is encouraged.
Paul