I have just started woodworking in the past couple of years, and am emproving my skills by using poplar wood to practice on. Some of my pieces come out nice enought to use, but I cannot seem to get a decent varnish finish on poplar. It looks blotchy and is not at all appealing. On this particular piece I did not use a stain or dye, just finished the natural wood. Any suggestions?
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I would suggest you seal the wood first with Seal Coat. It is blonde shellac. Do a light sanding with 220 paper, clean the dust and apply your varnish.
What type of varnish are you using?
Peter Gedrys
Thank you for you help. The type of varnish was Valspar. I used your advice, sanded the piece down, used the sealer then finished. It looks great now.
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