Choosing a Finish

with Peter Gedrys

Peter Gedrys shows you how to preserve maple's pale, natural look with a water-based finish

by Jeff Jewitt

Oily tropical woods such as cocobolo, bubinga, teak, and others pose problems when using oil-based finish. Jeff Jewitt's solution is simple but effective. First, ...

by Linda Coit

Linda Coit specializes in antique restoration and repair, but she rarely gets the chance to duplicate an entire piece. So when Chris Becksvoort enlisted her shop's ...

by Mike Mahoney

Turner Mike Mahoney has spent a good portion of his career making items intended to hold food. So he's an expert on food-safe finishes, and he's prepared to divulge ...

by Nancy R. Hiller

It's durable and versatile, it comes in a variety of colors, and it contains no toxic ingredients. It's no wonder that milk paint, one of the world's oldest decorative ...

by Roland Johnson

When it comes to finding the perfect wipe-on finish, there's nothing like homemade. At least that's what Roland Johnson discovered when he started searching for ...

by Teri Masaschi

One of the secrets to finishing is advance planning, and sample boards are a great way to do this. When you test a finishing sequence on a sample board rather than ...

by Steven Lash

Give your project an antique finish in three easy steps

by David Heim

Wipe-on poly edges out shellac and lacquer in the latest Knots poll

by David Heim

Nearly 6 in 10 say they use one of those two finishes, in the latest Knots poll

by Teri Masaschi

with Peter Gedrys

Spar, gym seal, bar top, and rubbing. Discover the differences between most varnishes on the market in this excerpt from our series on refinishing furniture.

by Thomas E. Wisshack

A beautiful, aged finish isn't difficult to achieve on pine, if you follow Tom Wisshack's formula for success. The furniture restorer and historian combines thin ...

by Chris A. Minick

by Peter Gedrys

Though most commonly used as the final, protective coating on top of another type of finish, wax has a multitude of other uses. It can be used on its own to serve ...