Replies

1. 
   Gretchen | Jan 06, 2006 03:57pm | #1

   Our daughter and her husband used to make furniture. They used a dark stain as their glaze--wipe on, wipe off.

   Gretchen
1. 
   SteveSchoene | Jan 06, 2006 08:34pm | #2

   Stain can work, but the possible drawback is that it can set up more quickly than the usual commercial glaze, which has a relatively long working time.  You could add some BLO to an oil base stain.  This should retard its cure for a while, but if you add too much  or leave it very thick, you will get a very soft glaze which isn't a good thing since it presents a possible long-term adhesion problem when you put a harder top coat over it. In any case, be careful when applying the first coat of top coat that you don't pick up pigment from the glaze.    

   Test on some samples, as close to the original as you can get them. 

2. 
   beachfarm | Jan 07, 2006 01:48am | #3

   The best glaze is the pigment that settles to the bottom of oil stain cans. Finally... a use for Minwax! :)

   Dig that goop from the bottom of the can and spread it around (don't be shy). Wipe the excess off with a rag damp from mineral spirits. You be the judge of just how much "grime" goes on the piece.

   Lonnie Bird mentions this in a recent FWW article, but it's nothing new.

   Depending on your choice of final coatings, you may or may not want a wash coat of clear shellac over the glaze.

3. 
   boisy | Jan 10, 2006 07:49am | #4

   I use Minwax gell stain....instaed of scooping all the pigment out of a regular can and disgarding the rest...use a gell stain. It already has "substance" to it and spreads great....has a pretty good working time as well.

4. 
   Bart | Jan 12, 2006 07:54pm | #5

   I just found a recipe in Wood Carving Illustrated that I'd like to try.  It is 1 quart BLO, 1 oz. turpentine, and 1/4" length of burnt umber tube oil paint.  Can't vouch for it personally, but it's something else to try on scrap.

1. 
   Cedarslayer | Jan 16, 2006 08:28pm | #7

   Order some pigment from uspigment.com, They sell to the clay market usually, but they are inexpensive and pigment rules. A pound of pigment goes a long way. Get some yellow ocre, burnt umber and spanish red for the classic shades. I use Boiled Linseed Oil for darker shades, but safflower oil is better for light shades as it does not darken. If you want a light color use titanium oxide or iron oxide yellow. Light shades use more pigment generally. I like to use copper sulfate too. It starts out blue and then stabalizes as green later. Oil paint is pigment added to safflower or BLO anyway, so you will save money and have more artistic control this way. These are the colors the old masters used. Both BLO and Safflower oil can be made into a stand oil. Stand Oil is the good stuff. If you leave the cap loose on your bottle in a warm shed for a few months or years you get a thicker, faster hardening oil. Safflower takes much longer than linseed oil to dry, but it tastes better, smells better, and looks brighter.

5. 
   BMack | Jan 13, 2006 10:43pm | #6

   Just finished c table were oil finish or light stain was the plan.  Lumber color would not match - at all!  Ended up adding pigment color (blend of three) purchased from paint store + mix with Watco.  Applied as a glaze.  Slow to dry.  Had to coat twice to get color desired.  Applied poly over top to protect.  All who saw project loved it and it matched color of other pieces, just lost wood grain :(