George Vondriska

Homemade Wood Finish

George Vondriska
Duration:   4  mins

Description

Your instructor George has developed a homemade wood finish that he has been using for decades. His homemade wood finish puts a great layer of protection along with a warm, lustrous glow onto his turned pieces. He uses this homemade wood finish for bowls as well as spindle projects, and has had great success with this approach.

The homemade wood finish is food safe after a 30-day curing time, at which time you can use it as a serving dish. The finish doesn’t offer much in the way of moisture protection, so I wouldn’t suggest applying it to dishes that will require a soapy water scrub down after use, but a light wipe down with a damp towel won’t cause any problems.

The special finish involves a bit of prep:

– Find a suitable container. A condiment bottle works great as a dispenser for this homemade wood finish. If you don’t have anything on hand, you can find inexpensive plastic squeeze bottles for sale on your favorite internet shopping sites, or local home goods retailer.

– Mix ingredients in equal parts. The three products that are used in the homemade wood finish should be mixed in equal parts using the pro tip that George demonstrates. If the materials are separated when the finish is applied, your results will be unpredictable, and most likely not pleasant.

– Shake it up, baby! The ingredients will separate over time, so be sure to shake the container thoroughly before each use. You can easily see that the ingredients have separated if you’re using a clear container, so keep that in mind when you choose a bottle.

This homemade wood finish approach will be a great technique to have in your finishing arsenal.