PRINTED BY
WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,
LONDON AND BECCLES.

AUTHOR’S PREFACE.

v

Early in the present century the method generally
adopted for polishing furniture was by
rubbing with beeswax and turpentine or with
linseed-oil. That process, however, was never
considered to be very satisfactory, which fact
probably led to experiments being made for the
discovery of an improvement. The first intimation
of success in this direction appeared in the
Mechanic’s Magazine of November 22, 1823, and
ran as follows: “The Parisians have now introduced
an entirely new mode of polishing, which
is called plaque, and is to wood precisely what
plating is to metal. The wood by some process is
made to resemble marble, and has all the beauty
of that article with much of its solidity. It is
even asserted by persons who have made trial of
the new mode that water may be spilled upon it
without staining it.” Such was the announcementvi
of an invention which was destined ultimately
to become a new industry.

The following pages commence with a description
of the art of French Polishing in its
earliest infancy, care having been taken by the
Author, to the best of his ability, to note all the
new processes and manipulations, as well as to
concisely and perspicuously arrange and describe
the various materials employed, not only for
French polishing but for the improving and
preparation of furniture woods, a matter of great
importance to the polisher. The arts of Staining
and Imitating, whereby inferior woods are made
to resemble the most costly, are also fully treated,
as well as the processes of Enamelling, both in
oil-varnishes and French polish, together with the
method of decorating the same. The condition
of the art of polishing in America is dwelt upon,
and various interesting articles written by practical
polishers in the States, which appeared in
their trade journal, The Cabinet-maker, have been
revised and printed in this work.

A number of valuable recipes, and other instructive
matter, useful alike to the amateur and
to the practical workman, are also given.

CONTENTS.

vii

CHAPTER I.

THE IMPROVING AND PREPARATION OF
FURNITURE WOODS.

For a French polisher to be considered a good
workman he should, in addition to his ordinary
ability to lay on a good polish, possess considerable
knowledge of the various kinds of wood used
for furniture, as well as the most approved method
of bringing out to the fullest extent their natural
tones or tints; he should also be able to improve
the inferior kinds of wood, and to stain, bleach,
or match any of the fancy materials to which his
art is applied, in a manner that will produce the
greatest perfection. The following information
is given to facilitate a thorough knowledge
of the above processes.

2

Improving.—Iron filings added to a decoction
of gall-nuts and vinegar will give to ebony
which has been discoloured an intense black, after
brushing over once or twice. Walnut or poor-coloured
rosewood can be improved by boiling
half an ounce of walnut-shell extract and the
same quantity of catechu in a quart of soft-water,
and applying with a sponge. Half a pound of
walnut husks and a like quantity of oak bark
boiled in half a gallon of water will produce much
the same result. Common mahogany can be
improved by rubbing it with powdered red-chalk
(ruddle) and a woollen rag, or by first wiping the
surface with liquid ammonia, and red-oiling afterwards.
For a rich mild red colour, rectified
spirits of naphtha, dyed with camwood dust, or an
oily decoction of alkanet-root. Methylated spirits
and a small quantity of dragon’s blood will also
produce a mild red. Any yellow wood can be
improved by an alcoholic solution of Persian
berries, fustic, turmeric, or gamboge. An aqueous
decoction of barberry-root will serve the same
purpose. Birch when preferred a warm tint may
be sponged with oil, very slightly tinted with
rose-madder or Venetian red; the greatest care
should be used, or it will be rendered unnatural in
appearance by becoming too red. Maple which
is of a dirty-brown colour, or of a cold grey tint,
and mahogany, ash, oak, or any of the light-coloured
woods, can be whitened by the bleaching
fluid (see “Matching“). Numerous materials
3may be improved by the aid of raw linseed-oil
mixed with a little spirits of turpentine. Artificial
graining may be given to various woods by
means of a camel-hair pencil and raw oil; two or
three coats should be given, and after standing
for some time the ground should have one coat of
oil much diluted with spirits of turpentine, and
then rubbed off.

Matching.—Old mahogany furniture which
has been repaired may be easily matched by
wiping over the new portions with water in which
a nodule of lime has been dissolved, or by common
soda and water. The darkeners for general use
are dyed oils, logwood, aquafortis, sulphate of
iron, and nitrate of silver, with exposure to the
sun’s rays. For new furniture in oak, ash, maple,
etc., the process of matching requires care and
skill. When it is desirable to render all the parts
in a piece of furniture of one uniform tone or
tint, bleach the dark parts with a solution of
oxalic acid dissolved in hot water (about two-pennyworth
of acid to half a pint of water is a
powerful solution); when dry, if this should not
be sufficient, apply the white stain (see pp. 11, 12)
delicately toned down, or the light parts may be
oiled. For preserving the intermediate tones,
coat them with white polish by means of a camel-hair
pencil. On numerous woods, carbonate of
soda and bichromate of potash are very effective
as darkeners, as are also other preparations of an
4acid or alkaline nature, but the two given above
are the best.

A good way of preparing these darkeners, says
the “French Polisher’s Manual,” an excellent
little work published in Perth some years since,
is to procure twopennyworth of carbonate of soda
in powder, and dissolve it in half a pint of boiling
water; then have ready three bottles, and label
them one, two, three. Into one put half the
solution, and into the other two half a gill each;
to number two add an additional gill of water,
and to number three two gills. Then get the
same quantity of bichromate of potash, and prepare
it in a like manner; you will then have six
staining fluids for procuring a series of brown and
dark tints suitable for nearly all classes of wood.

The bichromate of potash is useful to darken
oak, walnut, beech, or mahogany, but if applied
to ash it renders it of a greenish cast. If a sappy
piece of walnut should be used either in the solid
or veneer, darken it to match the ground colour,
and then fill in the dark markings with a feather
and the black stain (see pp. 10, 11). The carbonate
solutions are generally used for dark surfaces,
such as rosewood represents, and a still darker
shade can be given to any one by oiling over
after the stain is dry. The better way of using
these chemical stains is to pour out into a saucer
as much as will serve the purpose, and to apply
it quickly with a sponge rubbed rapidly and
evenly over the surface, and rubbed off dry
5immediately with old rags. Dark and light portions,
between which the contrast is slight, may
be made to match by varnishing the former and
darkening the latter with oil, which should remain
on it sufficiently long; by this means the different
portions may frequently be made to match
without having recourse to bleaching or staining.

Painting.—The next process is painting. It
frequently happens in cabinet work that a faulty
place is not discovered until after the work is
cleaned off; the skill of the polisher is then
required to paint it to match the other. A box
containing the following colours in powder will
be found of great utility, and when required for
use they should be mixed with French polish and
applied with a brush. The pigments most suitable
are: drop black, raw sienna, raw and burnt
umber, Vandyke brown, French Naples yellow
(bear in mind that this is a very opaque pigment),
cadmium yellow, madder carmine (these are expensive),
flake white, and light or Venetian red;
before mixing, the colours should be finely
pounded. The above method of painting, however,
has this objection for the best class of
furniture, that the effects of time will darken the
body of the piece of furniture, whilst the painted
portion will remain very nearly its original colour.
In first-class work, therefore, stained polishes or
varnishes should be applied instead of these
pigments.
6

Dyed Polishes.—The methods of dyeing
polish or varnish are as follows: for a red, put a
little alkanet-root or camwood dust into a bottle
containing polish or varnish; for a bright yellow,
a small piece of aloes; for a yellow, ground
turmeric or gamboge; for a brown, carbonate of
soda and a very small quantity of dragon’s blood;
and for a black, a few logwood chips, gall-nuts,
and copperas, or by the addition of gas-black.

The aniline dyes (black excepted) are very
valuable for dyeing polishes, the most useful
being Turkey-red, sultan red, purple, and brown.
A small portion is put into the polish, which soon
dissolves it, and no straining is required. The
cheapest way to purchase these dyes is by the
ounce or half-ounce. The penny packets sold by
chemists are too expensive, although a little goes
a long way.

7

CHAPTER II.

STAINS AND IMITATIONS.

In consequence of the high price demanded for
furniture made of the costly woods, the art of the
chemist has been called into requisition to produce
upon the inferior woods an analogous effect at a
trifling expense. The materials employed in the
artificial colouring of wood are both mineral and
vegetable; the mineral is the most permanent,
and when caused by chemical decomposition
within the pores it acts as a preservative agent in
a greater or less degree. The vegetable colouring
matters do not penetrate so easily, probably on
account of the affinity of the woody fibre for the
colouring matter, whereby the whole of the latter
is taken up by the parts of the wood with which
it first comes into contact. Different intermediate
shades, in great variety, may be obtained by combinations
of colouring matters, according to the
tint desired, and the ideas of the stainer. The
processes technically known as “grounding and
ingraining” are partly chemical and partly
mechanical, and are designed to teach the various
8modes of operation whereby the above effects can
be produced. We will commence with

Imitation Mahogany.—Half a pound of
madder-root, and two ounces of logwood chips
boiled in a gallon of water. Brush over while
hot; when dry, go over it with a solution of
pearlash, a drachm to a pint. Beech or birch,
brushed with aquafortis in sweeping regular
strokes, and immediately dried in front of a good
fire, form very good imitations of old wood.
Venetian red mixed with raw linseed-oil also
forms a good stain.

The following is a method in common use by
French cabinet-makers. The white wood is first
brushed over with a diluted solution of nitrous
acid; next, with a solution made of methylated
spirits one gill, carbonate of soda three-quarters
of an ounce, and dragon’s blood a quarter of an
ounce; and a little red tint is added to the varnish
or polish used afterwards. Black American
walnut can be made to imitate mahogany by
brushing it over with a weak solution of nitric
acid.

Imitation Rosewood.—Boil half a pound of
logwood chips in three pints of water until the
decoction is a very dark red; then add an ounce
of salt of tartar. Give the work three coats
boiling hot; then with a graining tool or a feather
fill in the dark markings with the black stain.
9A stain of a very bright shade can be made with
methylated spirits half a gallon, camwood three-quarters
of a pound, red-sanders a quarter of a
pound, extract of logwood half a pound, aquafortis
one ounce. When dissolved, it is ready for
use. This makes a very bright ground. It
should be applied in three coats over the whole
surface, and when dry it is glass-papered down
with fine paper to a smooth surface, and is then
ready for graining. The fibril veins are produced
by passing a graining tool with a slight vibratory
motion, so as to effect the natural-looking streaks,
using the black stain. A coat of the bichromate
of potash solution referred to on page 4 will
make wildly-figured mahogany have the appearance
of rosewood.

Imitation Walnut.—A mixture of two parts
of brown umber and one part of sulphuric acid,
with spirits of wine or methylated spirits added
until it is sufficiently fluid, will serve for white
wood. Showy elm-wood, after being delicately
darkened with the bichromate solution No. 1,
page 4, will pass for walnut; it is usually applied
on the cheap loo-table pillars, which are made of
elm-wood. Equal portions of the bichromate and
carbonate solutions (see page 4), used upon
American pine, will have a very good effect.

Another method for imitating walnut is as
follows: One part (by weight) of walnut-shell
extract is dissolved in six parts of soft-water, and
10slowly heated to boiling until the solution is complete.
The surface to be stained is cleaned and
dried, and the solution applied once or twice;
when half-dry, the whole is gone over again with
one part of chromate of potash boiled in five parts
of water. It is then dried, rubbed down, and
polished in the ordinary way.

The extract of walnut-shells and chromate of
potash are procurable at any large druggist’s
establishment. A dark-brown is the result of the
action of copper salts on the yellow prussiate of
potash; the sulphate of copper in soft woods gives
a pretty reddish-brown colour, in streaks and
shades, and becomes very rich after polishing or
varnishing. Different solutions penetrate with
different degrees of facility. In applying, for
instance, acetate of copper and prussiate of potash
to larch, the sap-wood is coloured most when the
acetate is introduced first; but when the prussiate
is first introduced, the heart-wood is the most
deeply coloured. Pyrolignite of iron causes a
dark-grey colour in beech, from the action and
tannin in the wood on the oxide of iron; while in
larch it merely darkens the natural colour. Most
of the tints, especially those caused by the prussiates
of iron and copper, are improved by the
exposure to light, and the richest colours are produced
when the process is carried out rapidly.

Imitation Ebony.—Take half a gallon of
strong vinegar, one pound of extract of logwood,
11a quarter of a pound of copperas, two ounces of
China blue, and one ounce of nut-gall. Put these
into an iron pot, and boil them over a slow fire
till they are well dissolved. When cool, the
mixture is ready for use. Add a gill of iron
filings steeped in vinegar. The above makes a
perfect jet black, equal to the best black ebony.
A very good black is obtained by a solution of
sulphate of copper and nitric acid; when dry, the
work should have a coat of strong logwood stain.

Imitation Oak.—To imitate old oak, the
process known as “fumigating” is the best.
This is produced by two ounces of American
potash and two ounces of pearlash mixed together
in a vessel containing one quart of hot water.

Another method is by dissolving a lump of bichromate
of potash in warm water; the tint can
be varied by adding more water. This is best done
out of doors in a good light. Very often in sending
for bichromate of potash a mistake is made,
and chromate of potash is procured instead; this
is of a yellow colour, and will not answer the purpose.
The bichromate of potash is the most
powerful, and is of a red colour. A solution of
asphaltum in spirits of turpentine is frequently
used to darken new oak which is intended for
painter’s varnish, or a coating of boiled oil.

Another method of imitating new oak upon any
of the inferior light-coloured woods is to give the
surface a coat of Stephens’s satin-wood stain, and
12to draw a soft graining-comb gently over it, and
when the streaky appearance is thus produced a
camel-hair pencil should be taken and the veins
formed with white stain. This is made by
digesting three-quarters of an ounce of flake
white (subnitrate of bismuth), and about an ounce
of isinglass in two gills of boiling water; it can
be made thinner by adding more water, or can be
slightly tinted if desired.

Proficients in staining and imitating can make
American ash so like oak that experienced judges
are frequently deceived, the vein and shade of the
spurious wood looking nearly as natural as the
genuine. After the veining is done, it should be
coated with white hard varnish, made rather thin
by adding more spirits, after which the ground
can be delicately darkened if required.

Imitation Satin-wood.—Take methylated
spirits one quart, ground turmeric three ounces,
powdered gamboge one and a-half ounces. This
mixture should be steeped to its full strength,
and then strained through fine muslin, when it
will be ready for use. Apply with a sponge, and
give two coats; when dry, glass-paper down with
fine old paper. This makes a good imitation for
inside work. By the addition of a little dragon’s
blood an orange tint can be produced. A yellow
colour can also be given to wood by boiling hot
solutions of turmeric, Persian berries, fustic, etc.
but the colour is very fugitive. A more per13manent
colour results from nitric acid, and last of
all by the successive introduction of acetate of
lead and chromate of potash. Sulphate of iron
also stains wood of a yellowish colour when used
as a preservative agent, so much so, that the use
of corrosive sublimate is recommended for this
purpose when it is desirable to preserve the light
colour.

A Blue Stain.—This dye can be obtained by
dissolving East Indian indigo in arsenious acid,
which will give a dark blue. A lighter blue can
be obtained by hot solutions of indigo, of sulphate
of copper, and by the successive introduction of
pyrolignite of iron and prussiate of potash.

A Green Stain.—Dissolve one ounce of
Roman vitriol in a quart of boiling water, to
which is added one ounce of pearlash; the mixture
should then be forcibly agitated, and a small
quantity of pulverised yellow arsenic stirred in.
A green is also the result of successive formations
in the pores of the wood of a blue and a yellow
as above indicated, and by a hot solution of
acetate of copper in water. A yellowish green
may be obtained by the action of copper salts on
the red prussiate of potash.

A Purple Stain.—Boil one pound of logwood
chips in three quarts of water, until the full
14strength is obtained; then add four ounces of
pearlash and two ounces of powdered indigo.
When these ingredients are thoroughly dissolved,
it is ready for use, either hot or cold. A purple
is also obtained by a boiling hot solution of logwood
and Brazil-wood, one pound of the former
and one quarter of a pound of the latter to a
gallon of water.

A Red Stain.—Methylated spirits one quart,
Brazil-wood three ounces, dragon’s blood half an
ounce, cochineal half an ounce, saffron one ounce.
Steep the whole to its full strength, and strain.
A red can also be produced by macerating red-sanders
in rectified spirits of naphtha. An orange-red
colour may be obtained by the successive action
of bichloride of mercury and iodide of potash,
madder, and ammoniacal solutions of carmine.

Imitation Purple-wood Stain.—Grind a
piece of green copperas on coarse glass-paper, and
mix with polish coloured with red-sanders. This
makes a capital purple stain, and is used by French
cabinet-makers.

These dyestuffs may be much improved by the
addition of a mordant applied after they are dry;
this will greatly assist in modifying and fixing
the tints and shades which the dyes impart. The
best thing for the purpose, in the writer’s opinion,
is clear ox-gall, which, besides being useful as a
mordant, will destroy all unctuous matter.
15

Chemicals used in Staining.—It may
perhaps be useful here to give the common or
popular names of the chemicals employed in the
operations of staining and imitating, as few
polishers know them by the scientific names used
by chemists:—

Nitric acid is but another phrase for aquafortis.
Sulphuric acid, for oil of vitriol.
Ammonia, for spirits of hartshorn.
Sulphate of magnesia, for Epsom salts.
Nitrate of potass, for sal prunelle.
Chlorine, for aqua regia.
Sulphate of copper, for blue vitriol.
Subborate of soda, for borax.
Superoxalate of potass, for salts of sorrel.
Hydrochlorate of ammonia, for sal ammoniac.
Subnitrate of bismuth, for flake white.
Acetic acid, for vinegar.
Acetate of lead, for sugar of lead.
Sulphate of lime, for gypsum.
Carbonate of potass, for pearlash.
Bitartrate of potass, for cream of tartar.
Nitrate of silver, for lunar caustic.
Supercarbonate of iron, for plumbago.
Cyanide of iron, for Prussian blue.
Subacetate of copper, for common verdigris.
Susquecarbonate of ammonia, for sal volatile.
Alcohol, for pure spirit.
Sulphate of iron, for green copperas.
Sulphate of zinc, for white copperas.

16Process of Staining.—The natural qualities
of woods are very variable; so also are the
textures of the different sorts usually used for
staining. It will be readily perceived that there
is no fixed principle upon which certain peculiar
tints or shades can be produced with any degree
of certainty. In order to arrive at the best results,
the stainer is recommended to observe the
following rules:—

All dry stuffs are best reduced to powder, when
it is possible, before macerating or dissolving them.

All liquids should be strained or filtered before
use.

The requisite ingredients should always be
tested before a free use is made of them, as the
effect produced by a coat of stain cannot be
accurately ascertained until it is thoroughly dry.

Amateurs in staining had far better coat twice
or thrice with a weak stain than apply a strong
one; for if too dark a tint is first obtained it is
often irremediable. Flat surfaces will take stain
more evenly if a small portion of linseed-oil is first
wiped over, well rubbed off, and allowed to dry,
then lightly papered down with fine glass-paper.
End-way wood which is of a spongy nature should
first have a coat of thin varnish, and when dry well
glass-papered off. For applying stain a flat hog-hair
tool is the best; and for a softener-down a
badger-hair tool is used. For mahogany shades
and tints a mottler will be found of service, as
will also a soft piece of Turkey sponge. For oak,
17the usual steel graining-comb is employed for the
streaking, and for veining badger sash-tools and
sable pencils.

Ready-made Wood Stains.—There are
numerous stains suitable for common work in the
market obtainable at a small cost by residents in
London, but it is cheaper for those who reside in
country towns to make their own, if only a small
quantity is required. The principal makers of
wood stains are H. C. Stephens, of 191, Aldersgate-street,
E.C., and Jackson, 213, Union-street,
Southwark, S.E. These makers prepare stains in
a liquid state, and also in powders for oak, walnut,
mahogany, satin-wood, ebony, and rosewood.
The powders are sold in packages at 8s. per lb.
or 1s. for two ounces, and are soluble in boiling
water. Judson, of 77, Southwark-street, S.E.,
makes a mahogany powder in sixpenny packets,
and any reliable oilman will sell a good black
stain at 8d. per quart, or a superior black stain
at 1s. 2d. per quart. Fox, of 109, Bethnal Green-road,
also prepares stains in a liquid state.18

CHAPTER III.

FRENCH POLISHING.

The Polish Used.—The oil or wax polish was
used for all kinds of furniture before the introduction
of French polish, the invention of
which, as its name implies, is due to French
cabinet-makers. It was first introduced into
England about seventy years since; some time
elapsed, however, before it was brought to a
high state of perfection. At first apprentices
or porters were entrusted with the polishing, they
having been usually called upon to do the wax
polishing; but in course of time it was found that
its successful adoption implied the possession of
considerable skill, and it came to be regarded as
an art of no little importance—so much so, that
the early polishers who had perfected themselves
used to work in a shop with closed doors, lest
the secret of their success should be discovered.
From that time polishing became a separate
branch of the cabinet business.

The following original recipe as first invented
has been extracted from a French work, the
19Dictionnaire Technologique, not, however, for its
usefulness (it having gone into disuse many years
ago), but as a matter of curiosity:—

“French Polish.“

“Pound the resinous gums, and effect their solution by continued
agitation, without the aid of heat; if the woods are porous, add seven
ounces one drachm of Venice turpentine. If an equal weight of ground
glass be added, the solution is more quickly made, and is also otherwise
benefited by it. Before using, the wood should be made to imbibe a
little linseed-oil, the excess of which should be removed by an old
flannel.”

Notwithstanding the improvement made upon the old processes by this new
method, it was by no means considered to be perfect, for the polish was
found to impart its brown tinge to the light-coloured woods, especially
in marqueterie work, and to deteriorate their appearance. It will be
readily seen that it was a great desideratum among polishers to render
shellac colourless, as, with the exception of its dark-brown hue, it
possesses all the properties essential to a good polish or spirit
varnish in a higher degree than any of the other resins.

In 1827 the Society of Arts came forward with its valuable aid and
offered a premium of a gold 20medal, or thirty guineas, “for a polish or
varnish made from shell or seed-lac, equally hard, and as fit for use in
the arts as that at present prepared from the above substance, but
deprived of its colouring matter.” After numerous experiments, this
long-felt want was perfectly attained by Dr. Hare, who was awarded the
premium. His method was as follows: “Dissolve in an iron kettle one part
of pearlash in about eight parts of water; add one part of shell or
seed-lac, and heat the whole to ebullition. When the lac is dissolved,
cool the solution, and impregnate it with chlorine till the lac is all
precipitated. The precipitate is white, but its colour deepens by
washing and consolidation; dissolved in alcohol, lac, bleached by the
process above mentioned, yields a polish or varnish which is as free
from colour as any copal varnish.” At the present time shellac is
bleached by filtration over animal charcoal.

Numerous experiments were afterwards made in the manufacture of
polishes; several chemists devoted their attention to its manufacture,
and an improved polish was soon produced which was used for a number of
years. The following are its proportions:—

The21 “filling-in” processes also began to be used,
which effected a considerable saving in the quantity
of polish usually required, and in consequence
of the expensiveness of spirits of wine rectified
spirits of naphtha was used as a substitute for the
making of polishes, etc.; but it was discovered
that its continued use soon affected the eyesight
of the workmen, and it had to be abandoned, the
methylic alcohol, pyroxylic spirit, or wood spirit,
as it has been differently called, taking its place.
This was first discovered by Mr. Philip Taylor
in 1812, and is obtained by distilling wood.
Messrs. Dumas & Peligot, after analysing it,
determined that it contained 37·5 per cent. of
carbon, 12·5 per cent. of hydrogen, and 50 per
cent. of oxygen. When pure, it remains clear in
the atmosphere; but for the sake of economy it
is often employed in the manufacture of other
compounds called methylated. This spirit began
to be much used in the manufacture of polishes
and varnishes in the year 1848, and has continued
to be much used ever since.

The wonderful improvements which have been
effected in polishes since their first introduction
obviously prove that they have now arrived at a
very high point of perfection, and polishing is
now justly acknowledged, both by skilled artisans
and connoisseurs, to be an important decorative
art. French polish or varnish at the present
time can easily be obtained at most chemists or
oil shops, or direct from the manufacturers,
22amongst whom may be mentioned Mr. W.
Urquhart, 327, Edgware-road, W.; Messrs.
Turner & Sons, 7 to 9, Broad-street, Bloomsbury,
W.C.; Messrs. William Fox & Son, Bethnal
Green-road, E.; Mr. G. Purdom, 49, Commercial-road,
E.

The London prices are: Best French polish,
5s. 6d. per gallon; best white polish, 9s. per
gallon; brown or white hard varnish, 8s. per
gallon; patent glaze, 10s. per gallon; methylated
spirits, 3s. 3d. per gallon. For those who prefer
to make their own, the following will be found
an excellent recipe:—

12 ounces of orange shellac.
 1 ounce of benzoin.
 1 ounce of sandarach.
½ gallon of methylated spirits.

Pound the gums well before mixing with the spirit, as this will hasten
their dissolution. White polish for white wood and marqueterie work
should be made with bleached shellac instead of the above. In making
polishes or varnishes, the mixture will frequently require shaking until
dissolved.

Rubbers.—In commencing to polish, the materials required are old
flannel for the rubbers and clean old linen or cotton rags for the
coverings, the softer the better; some polishers, however, prefer white
wadding for rubbers instead of flannel. Rubbers for large surfaces 23are
usually made of soft old flannel, firmly and compactly put together
somewhat in the form of a ball, and the more they possess softness and
compactness, and are large and solid, the more quickly and
satisfactorily will they polish extensive surfaces. Small pliable
rubbers are usually employed for chairs or light frame-work. Perhaps for
a beginner a rubber made of old flannel may be best, as it takes some
little practice to obtain the necessary lightness of hand.

The rubber for “spiriting-off” should be made up from a piece of old
flannel or woollen cloth, and covered with a piece of close rag,
doubled. Carefully fold the rag and screw it round at the back to make
it as firm as possible, and sprinkle some spirit on the face of it just
as it is covered; then give it two or three good smacks with the palm of
the hand, and begin by laying on as lightly as possible for the first
few strokes and gradually increase the pressure as the rubber gets dry;
then take off the first fold of the cover and work it perfectly dry.

The rubber should present to the wood you are about to work on a
smooth-rounded or convex surface. Have beside you linseed-oil in one
receptacle, and some French polish in another. Apply one drop of polish
and one drop of oil, and polish with a circular movement—traversing
steadily the whole surface to be polished, and from time to time, as
may be necessary (when the rubber gets sticky and harsh, indicating that
the 24inside needs replenishing with more polish), open and apply more of
it, and again draw over the linen cover, holding it tightly to form the
convex face proper to do the work. After replenishing, the rubber will
probably need a little more oil to help it to work smoothly. Having thus
worked on one coat of polish evenly over all the wood until it has got
what may best be described as a full look, set it aside for two or
three hours to sink in and become hard, and when completely dry, lightly
paper off with glass-paper (very finest), afterwards dusting the surface
to remove any trace of powder, and lay on a second coat of polish in the
same method. Then allow twenty-four hours to dry. Another light papering
may possibly be needed—dust off as before recommended and let the wood
have a third coat of polish.

For this third coat a fresh rubber should be made, the inside being
sparingly supplied with spirits of wine instead of polish. Put a double
fold of linen over it, touch it with one drop of oil, and go very
lightly and speedily over the whole work.

In spiriting-off—the object of which is to remove any trace of smudge
that may blur the surface unless removed thus by spirit—you should go
gently to work, using a very light hand, or you may take the polish off
as well, amateurs more especially.

Position.—All work should be placed in an 25easy and accessible
position while it is being polished, so that the eye may readily
perceive the effect of the rubber; this will greatly help to relieve the
difficulties attending the polishing of a fine piece of furniture. It
should also be kept quite firm, so that it cannot possibly move about.
The most suitable benches for polishers are the ordinary cabinet-makers’
benches, with the tops covered with thick, soft cloths; these cloths
should not be fastened down, it being an advantage to be able to remove
them when required. When a piece of work too large to be placed upon the
bench is in hand, pads will be found useful to rest it upon. These can
be made by covering pieces of wood about two feet in length by three
inches in width with cloth several times doubled, the work being placed
so that a good light falls upon it. All thin panelling should be tacked
down upon a board by the edges while polishing.

Filling-in.—The first process the wood usually undergoes is
“filling-in.” This consists in rubbing into the pores of the wood
Russian tallow and plaster of Paris, which have been previously heated
and mixed together so as to form a thick paste. For rosewood, or to
darken mahogany, a little rose-pink should be added. After well rubbing
in, the surface should be cleared from all the surplus paste with the
end of the scraper, and then rubbed off with shavings 26or old rags, and
made quite clean. For birch or oak, some use whiting or soft putty
moistened with linseed-oil for the filling; this preparation prevents in
a great measure the rising of the grain. For white delicate woods, such
as sycamore, maple, or satin-wood, plaster of Paris, mixed with
methylated spirit, is used. When polishing pine, a coat of Young’s
patent size (2d. per lb.) is used instead of the above mixtures, and
when dry is rubbed down with fine glass-paper.

Some workmen, who regard their modes of filling-in as important secrets,
do their work surprisingly quick by the methods here given. The various
processes are soon acquired by a little practice, and contribute greatly
to the speedy advancement of a smooth and imporous ground, which is the
most important point to observe in polishing.

Applying the Polish.—In commencing to use the polish some are
provided with a small earthenware dish, into which the polish is poured
for wetting the rubbers; while others make a slit in the cork of the
polish bottle, and so let it drip on to the rubber; whichever method is
adopted, the rubber should not be saturated, but receive just enough to
make a smear. Every time after wetting the rubber and putting on the
cover it should be pressed upon the palm of the hand, or if a small
rubber it can be tested between 27the thumb and finger. This is an
important operation, for by it the polisher can easily tell the exact
state of moisture, and at the same time, by the pressure being applied,
the moisture is equalised. The tip of the finger should then be just
dipped into the linseed-oil, and applied to the face of it; if the
rubber should be rather sappy, the greatest care must be used or a
coarse streaky roughness will be produced; extreme lightness of hand is
required until the rubber is nearly dry. (It would be a serious error to
bear heavily on the rubber while the surface is moist; to do so, and to
use too much oil on the rubber, are the causes of many failures in
polishing.)

In commencing to work, pass the rubber a few times gently and lightly
over the surface in the direction of the grain; then rub across the
grain in a series of circular movements, all one way, in full and free
sweeping strokes, until the rubber is dry. Continue this operation until
the pores are filled in, and the surface assumes a satisfactory
appearance. It should then be left for about twelve hours; the polish
will be well into the wood by that time. The polish should then be
carefully rubbed down with No. glass-paper; this will remove the atomic
roughness usually caused by the rising of the grain during the sinking
period. In flat-surface work a paper cork can be used, and the rubbing
lightly and regularly done in a careful manner, so as to avoid rubbing
through the outer skin, especially at the 28edges and corners, or the
work will be irremediably defaced.

The woods which possess a rising grain are well known to polishers;
these are the light-coloured woods with a coarse grain, viz., ash,
birch, and oak. This rising of the grain can in a great measure be
prevented by passing a damp sponge over the work before commencing the
polishing, allowing it to dry, and papering it. After the rubbing or
smoothing-down process is finished, the work should be well dusted; the
polishing can then recommence. The above operation must be again
repeated with a rotary motion and gradually increased pressure as the
rubber gets dry, and finished by lighter rubbings the way of the grain;
this will remove any slight marks that may be occasioned by the circular
movements of the rubber.

Working too long on any one part is to be avoided, nor should the rubber
be allowed to stick even for an instant, or it will pull the coating of
polish off to the bare wood. The rubber should be covered with a clean
part of the rag as soon as a shiny appearance becomes apparent upon it,
or at each time of damping, and less oil should be used towards the end
of the operation, so as to gradually clear it all off from the surface.
Rubber marks can be removed by rubbing in a direction the reverse of the
marks with a half-dry rubber and increased pressure. When the work has
received a sufficient body, in finishing the drying of 29the last rubber,
ply it briskly the way of the grain to produce a clean dry surface for
the spiriting-off.

The following is the method usually employed on fine carved or turned
work when finished in the best style. In the first place it is embodied
with polish, using a small rubber for the operation, after which it
should have one coat of shellac (two parts by weight of shellac to one
of spirits) applied with a brush, and when dry it should be carefully
smoothed down with flour paper, the utmost caution being observed in
dealing with the sharp edges, or the carving will be spoiled. Then it is
embodied with polish again, and one coat of glaze applied with the
greatest care. A few hours should be allowed to harden, and then
finished off with a rubber slightly damped with thin polish. This is an
expensive method, but it will pay in appearance for all the time
bestowed.

For the best class of cabinet and pianoforte work in amboyna or
burr-walnut it is advisable not to use linseed-oil on the sole of the
rubber when polishing, but the best hog’s lard; the reason for this is
that these veneers being so extremely thin and porous the oil will
quickly penetrate through to the groundwork, softening the glue, and
causing the veneers to rise in a number of small blisters. Of course,
this is not always the case, but the use of lard instead of oil will be
found a good preventative. Lard is also used on the above class of work
when it is desirable to preserve the colour of the wood in its natural
state. 30

The following method is employed for the best work: Immediately
on receiving the job from the cabinet-maker, a good coating of thin,
clean glue should be applied with a sponge or brush; this is allowed to
dry, and thoroughly harden; it is then cleaned off, using the scraper
and glass-paper, cutting it down to the wood. The bodying-in with white
polish is the next process, the usual sinking period being allowed; it
is again cleaned off, but the scraper this time should not quite reach
the wood. Then embody again, and treat in a like manner. In getting up
the permanent body, commence with a slight embodying; let this stand,
and when the sinking period is over rub it down with a felt rubber and
powdered pumice-stone; continue this several times, till the surface
presents a satisfactory appearance, and the job is ready for the
spiriting process. By this means the wood will retain its natural
colour, and a beautiful transparent polish will result, and remain for a
number of years. This also is an expensive process, but the result
cannot be obtained in any other way.

Spiriting-off.—Most polishers affirm that if an interval of at least
a couple of hours elapse between the final embodying and the
spiriting-off the brilliancy of the polish will be improved, and remain
harder and more durable. The spirit is applied in exactly the same way
as the polish, and the same rubber can be used, but it should be
31covered with more than one fold of the soft linen rag; care should be
taken not to make it very wet, or the gum on the surface of the work
will be redissolved, and a dulness instead of a brilliancy will result.
If the spirit should be very strong, the rubber should be breathed upon
before using, and a little more oil taken up; some, however, prefer to
mix a little polish with the spirit, while others prefer the spirit to
be weakened by exposure to the air for a few hours; experience alone
must be the teacher in this particular; but if the spirit should not
“bite,” as it is termed, all will be well. The last rubber should be
worked a little longer than usual, and a trifle quicker, so as to remove
the slight greasy moisture on the surface.

The finishing touch is given to the work by a soft rag loosely rolled up
and just a few drops of spirit dropped upon it, applied quickly the way
of the grain. This will remove every defect, and leave it clear and
brilliant. If, in a short time after finishing, the polish becomes dull
or rough, it will be owing to too much oil being absorbed in the process
and working through the surface, combined with dust. It should be
cleaned off first with a soft cloth, damped with a little warm water,
and the whole repaired, as at first, with equal parts of polish and
spirits mixed together, using the least possible damp of oil to make it
finish clear; there is no danger of its happening again. In all cases
the work must be rubbed till 32quite dry, and when nearly so the pressure
may be increased.

The rubber for spiriting-off should be made up from a piece of old
flannel, and be covered with a piece of old rag. This is preferable to
very thin rag, and will give a better finish.

Prepared Spirits.—This preparation is useful for finishing, as it
adds to the lustre and durability, as well as removes every defect of
other polishes, and it gives the surface a most brilliant appearance.

It is made of half a pint of the very best rectified spirits of wine,
two drachms of shellac, and two drachms of gum benzoin. Put these
ingredients in a bottle and keep in a warm place till the gum is all
dissolved, shaking it frequently; when cold add two teaspoonfuls of the
best clear white poppy oil; shake them well together, and it is fit for
use.

Antique Style.—For mediæval or old English furniture a dull polish is
generally preferred to a French polish, because it has a gloss rather
than a brilliant polish, which materially assists in showing up
mouldings or carvings to the best advantage; it is also more in
character with the work of the Middle Ages. Another advantage is the
facility of obtaining a new polish (after being once done) should the
first one get tarnished, as 33the finishing process can be performed
without difficulty by any one, and a new polish obtained each time.

On receiving a job which is required to be done in this style, it should
be “filled-in” in the usual manner, and afterwards bodied with white
polish to a good extent; it is then left for a sinking period (say
twelve hours). The work is then carefully rubbed down with powdered
pumice-stone and a felt-covered block or rubber, and after well dusting
it is ready for finishing. The preparation used for this process is
mainly composed of bees’-wax and turpentine (see Wax Polish, page 87),
well rubbed in with a piece of felt or a woollen rag, and finished off
by rubbing briskly with a very soft cloth or an old handkerchief to
produce a gloss.

Dull or Egg-shell Polish.—This is another style of finishing for
mediæval work; the process is very simple. In commencing a job to be
finished in this style, the process of “filling-in” and “embodying” are
first gone through, then a sinking period is allowed, after which it is
embodied again, till the work is ready for finishing. All the parts
should be carefully examined to see if there is a good coating of polish
upon them. This is important, for if the work should be only thinly
coated it is liable to be spoiled by rubbing through in the last
process. After allowing a few hours for the surface to 34harden, a pounce
bag of powdered pumice-stone should be applied to the work, and a
felt-covered rubber used, rubbing down in the direction of the grain
until the work is of the desired dulness.

For the cheaper kind of work done in this style, the first process, of
course, is the filling-in; then a rubber of wadding is taken and used
without a cover, made rather sappy with polish and a few drops of oil
added; and after bodying-in with this sufficiently, the work should be
stood aside for twelve hours, then rubbed down with some fine worn
glass-paper. The embodying is then again commenced, a proper rubber and
cover being used; and when sufficient is put on, and while the surface
is still soft, the pounce above mentioned should be applied, and rubbed
down with a piece of wadding slightly moistened with linseed-oil until
the desired dulness appears. This is becoming the fashionable finish for
black walnut work.

Polishing in the Lathe.—The lathe is of more use to a polisher than a
great many persons outside the trade would imagine. By its aid turned
work can be finished in a most superior style, and in less time than by
hand. The articles usually done by the lathe are wood musical
instruments, such as clarionets, flutes, etc.; also cornice-poles, ends,
and mahogany rings, the latter being first placed in a hollow 35chuck and
the insides done, after which they are finished upon the outside on a
conical chuck. For table-legs, chair-legs, and all the turnery used in
the cabinet-work, it will be found of great advantage to finish the
turned parts before the work is put together.

Most of the best houses in the trade finish their work in this way,
where all the work is polished out entirely with the rubber. In the
first place, the filling-in is done. The band is thrown off the pulley
and the work rubbed in; at the same time the pulley is turned round by
the left hand. When this is done, the band is replaced and the work
cleaned off with rags or shavings, the lathe to be driven with speed to
get a clean surface. When applying the polish the lathe should revolve
with a very slow motion.

The rubbers best adapted for turned work are made of white wadding, as
the hollows and other intricacies can be completely finished out with a
soft rubber. The work should first receive a coating of thick shellac,
two parts by weight of shellac to one of methylated spirits, and applied
with a brush or a soft sponge; after a couple of hours this is nicely
smoothed with fine paper, and the “bodying-in” completed with the soft
rubber and thin polish. There are numerous hard woods which do not
require filling-in, amongst which may be mentioned boxwood, cocus,
ebony, etc.; these may be rapidly polished in the lathe, on account of
their texture, with the white polish. 36In spiriting-off a very soft
piece of chamois leather (if it is hard and creased it will scratch)
should be damped with methylated spirits, then wrung so that the spirit
may be equally diffused; the lathe should then be driven at a rapid
speed, and the leather held softly to the work. In a few minutes, if a
dark wood, a brilliant surface will be produced.

37

CHAPTER IV.

CHEAP WORK.

Glazing.—Glaze is known to the trade under several names, such as
slake, finish, and telegraph; it is used only for cheap work, when
economy of time is a consideration, and is made as follows: mastic, 1
oz.; benzoin, 5 ozs.; methylated spirit, 5 gills. A superior article can
be obtained from G. Purdom, 49, Commercial Road, Whitechapel, E., who is
the manufacturer of a “patent glaze.”

First give the work a rubber or two of polish after the “filling-in”; it
is important to dry the last rubber thoroughly, so that no unctuousness
remains upon the surface before applying the glaze, otherwise it will be
of no effect. The way to apply it is as follows: Prepare a rubber as for
polishing and make it moderately wet, and take only one steady wipe the
way of the grain, never going over the same surface twice while wet; and
when dry, if one coat is found not to be enough, apply a second in the
same manner. For mouldings or the backs and sides of chair-work, this is
generally considered to be sufficient. Some 38polishers will persist in
using glaze to a large extent, even on the best-paid work; but it is not
recommended, as the surface will not retain its brilliancy for a
lengthened period, particularly in hot weather. Nothing is so good for
the best class of work as polishing entirely with French polish.

The way of treating small flat surfaces such as the frames of tables,
looking-glasses, builders’ work, etc., is to first fill in, and give one
or two rubbers of polish, drying the last rubber thoroughly; then glaze,
and after a period of two or three hours finish with a rubber slightly
wetted with thin polish. It is a bad plan to put glaze on newly-spirited
work, or to re-apply it on old bodies.

The following is another method for cheap work: A coating of clear size
is first given in a warm state (this can be obtained at most oil-shops),
and when dry is rubbed down with fine glass-paper, after which a coating
of varnish is applied with a sponge or a broad camel-hair brush, giving
long sweeping strokes. The tool should be plied with some degree of
speed, as spirit varnishes have not the slow setting properties which
distinguish those of oil, and care should be taken not to go over the
same part twice. When this is thoroughly hard it is nicely smoothed with
fine paper, a few rubberfuls of polish is given, and it is then ready
for spiriting-off.

Another plan is frequently adopted for cheap 39work: Make a thin paste
with plaster of Paris, suitably tinted and watered, and well rub in
across the grain with a piece of felt or old coarse canvas till the
pores are all full; any superfluity should be instantly wiped off from
the surface before it has time to set. The succeeding processes are
papering and oiling. In applying the polish, which should be done
immediately after oiling, the rubber should be made rather sappy with
thin polish, and worked without oil. During the embodying a pounce-bag
containing plaster of Paris is sparingly used; this application tends to
fill the pores and also to harden the body of polish on the exterior,
but too much should not be used, or it will impart a semi-opaque
appearance to the work. This first body is allowed sufficient time to
harden; it is then rubbed down lightly with flour paper or old worn No.
1, and then embodied with thicker polish or a mixture of polish and
varnish, and the smallest quantity of oil applied to the rubber. When a
sufficient body of polish is given to the work, the surface is rubbed
very carefully with a lump of moist putty plied in the longitudinal
direction of the grain; this will bring up a gloss, and very little
spiriting will be required.

Stencilling.—An imitation of marqueterie on light-coloured woods can
be obtained by the following method: Cut a stencil pattern in stout
cartridge paper (this is best done upon a piece of 40glass with the point
of a sharp penknife), and place it on the centre of a panel or wherever
required, and have ready some gas-black mixed with thin polish; apply
this with a camel-hair pencil over the cut-out pattern, and when it is
removed finish the lines and touch up with a finer tool. The work should
be first bodied-in, and when the pattern is dry rubbed down with a piece
of hair-cloth (the smooth side down) on a cork rubber to a smooth
surface, after which the polishing can be proceeded with until finished.
Upon oak this will have the appearance of inlaid work.

Charcoal Polishing.—A method known as “charcoal polishing” is now
much used for producing the beautiful dead-black colour which seems to
have the density of ebony. Its invention is due to French
cabinet-makers. The woods used by them are particularly well adapted for
staining black or any other colour, limetree, beech, cherry, pear, soft
mahogany, or any wood of a close and compact grain being the woods
usually selected.

The first process is to give the work a coating of camphor dissolved in
water and made rather strong; this will soon soak into the wood, and
immediately afterwards another coat composed of sulphate of iron-water
with a few nut-galls added. These solutions in blending penetrate the
wood and give it an indelible tinge, and also prevent insects from
attacking it. After these coats are 41dry, rub the surface with a hard
brush (an old scrubbing-brush will do) the way of the grain, after which
rub the flat parts with natural stick charcoal, and the carved or
indented portions with powdered charcoal; the softest portion of the
charcoal only should be used, because if a single hard grain should be
applied it would seriously damage the surface. The workman should have
ready at the same time a preparation of linseed-oil and essence of
turpentine (linseed-oil one gill, and essence of turpentine one
teaspoonful), a portion of which should be freely taken up with a piece
of soft flannel and well rubbed into the work. These rubbings with the
preparation and charcoal several times will give the article of
furniture a beautiful dead-black colour and polish. This method of
polishing is applied to the black-and-gold furniture, cabinets, etc., in
imitation of ebony.

Another good black polish is obtained by gas-black being applied to the
rubber after wetting with French polish, the cover being then put on and
worked in the usual manner.

These black polishes should not be applied if there are coloured woods
in the piece of furniture. Should the work be already dyed black, or in
black veneers, it is best to use white polish, which will greatly help
to preserve the transparent density of the dye.

42

CHAPTER V.

RE-POLISHING OLD WORK.

If the piece of furniture requiring to be re-polished should be in bad
condition, it is best to clean off thoroughly, using the liquid ammonia
(see page 94), or by the scraper and glass-paper. The indentations may
be erased by dipping into hot water a piece of thick brown paper three
or four times doubled and applying it to the part; the point of a
red-hot poker should be immediately placed upon the wet paper, which
will cause the water to boil into the wood and swell up the bruise; the
thickness of the paper prevents the wood from being scorched by the hot
poker. After the moisture is evaporated, the paper should be again
wetted if required. If only shallow dents, scratches, and broken parts
of the polish present themselves, carefully coat them two or three times
with a thick solution of shellac, and when the last coating becomes hard
carefully paper down with a piece of old glass-paper and a cork rubber.

If the surface should be in good condition, it 43is necessary only to
remove the viscid rust; this is done by friction with a felt-covered
rubber and pure spirits of turpentine; by this means the polish remains
unsullied. If the surface should not be in very good condition, a
flannel should be used smeared with a paste of bathbrick-dust and water,
or a paste made of the finest emery flour and spirits of turpentine.
After cleansing, and before the polish is applied, it is a good plan to
just moisten the surface with raw linseed-oil; this will cause the old
body to unite with the new one.

In order to carry out the process of re-polishing with facility, it is
necessary to disunite all the various parts, such as panels, carvings,
etc., before commencing the operation. The polish is applied in the
usual manner, and when a good body is laid on the work should be set
aside for twelve hours, after which it can be finished. It should be
particularly observed that in polishing no job should be finished
immediately after the rubbing-down process; a sinking period should
always be allowed. If the work should be immediately finished, the
consequences are that in a few hours all the marks and scratches of the
paper, etc., will be discernible, and the polished surface will present
a very imperfect appearance, although looking perfect when first
finished.

Holes and crevices may be well filled up with a cement made in the
following manner: In a large iron spoon place a lump of beeswax about
44the size of a walnut, a pinch of the pigments mentioned on page 5,
according to the colour required, a piece of common rosin the size of a
nut, and a piece of tallow as large as a pea; melt, and it is ready for
use. Some add a little shellac, but much will make it very brittle. A
similar substance to the above can be bought at the French warehouses.

45

CHAPTER VI.

SPIRIT VARNISHING.

Most polishers are agreed that to obtain a good surface with varnish it
is necessary to give the work, where it is possible to do so, a
rubberful of polish first, and to thoroughly dry the rubber; but in most
carved work the surface is not accessible, and the brush must be used.
Sometimes the carving is extremely coarse, and with an open porous
grain, in which case it is best to oil it first and then to fine-paper
it down; by this process a thin paste is formed by the attrition, which
materially assists in filling up the pores. Before commencing to use the
varnish have ready an earthenware dish or box,—one of the tins used for
the preserved meats or fish will answer the purpose,—with two holes
drilled so that a piece of wire can be fastened diametrically across the
top; this is called a “regulator,” and when the brush is passed once or
twice over this it prevents an unnecessary quantity of varnish being
transferred to the work. 46

Varnishes.—The ingredients for making
varnish are very similar to those for making polish, but the proportions
are somewhat different. Furniture varnish consists of two kinds, viz.:
the brown-hard and the white-hard; the former is used for dark woods,
such as mahogany, walnut, rosewood, etc.; whilst the latter is used for
the light-coloured woods, in conjunction with the white polish. A few
years since the brown-hard varnish was made from these ingredients:

1 gallon of methylated spirit,
40 ozs. of shellac,
4 ozs. of rosin,
5 ozs. of benzoin,
2 ozs. of sandarach,
2 ozs. of white rosin.

The brown-hard varnish which is used at the present time is made
differently, and produces a better result; it is made from the
following:

1 gallon of methylated spirit,
32 ozs. of shellac,
8 ozs. of rosin,
8 ozs. of benzoin.

The white-hard or transparent varnish for white wood is made with

1 gallon of methylated spirit,
32 ozs. of bleached shellac,
24 ozs. of gum sandarach.

In making either polishes or varnishes, all the 47gums should be first
pounded and reduced to powder before mixing with the spirit, and when
mixed they should be occasionally well shaken or stirred, so as to
hasten their dissolution.

Brushes and Pencils.—The brushes used for varnishing are either flat,
in tin, or round, tied firmly to the handle, and made of camel’s-hair;
but the small white bristle-tools and red-sable pencils will frequently
be found of service in coating delicate carving, or turned work. Varnish
brushes can be obtained from a quarter of an inch to four inches and
upwards in width; the most useful brush, however, for general use is
about an inch wide. It is important that brushes should be cleaned in
spirits immediately after use, for if laid by in varnish they lose their
elasticity and are soon spoiled; but if this preservative principle is
ever neglected, the hardened brush should be soaked in methylated
spirit, and if wanted for immediate use the spirit will soften the
varnish quicker if made luke-warm. The spirit should be gently pressed
out by the finger and thumb. All varnish brushes when not in use should
be hung up, or kept in such a position that they do not rest upon their
hairy ends, either in a box or tin free from dust.

Mode of Operation.—It is usual in varnish48ing to give the work three
coats, and always allow each coat to dry thoroughly before applying the
next. It should be noted that spirit varnishes begin to dry immediately
they are laid on; therefore, on no account should they be touched with
the brush again whilst wet, or when dry they will present a rough
surface. Always ply the brush quickly, and never go over a second time.
When giving the first or second coats it is unimportant how they are
applied, whether across the grain or with the grain, but the finishing
coat should always be with the grain. If the varnish should appear
frothy when laid on, it is of no consequence, as it will dry smooth if
equally and evenly applied before a good fire or in a warm atmosphere.

Coloured varnishes can be made in exactly the same manner as coloured
polishes (see page 6). The beautiful glossy black varnishes so admired
on Indian cabinet-work, specimens of which can be seen at the Indian
Museum, are very difficult to obtain in England, but a description of
them may be interesting.

East Indian Varnishes.—The Sylhet varnish is composed of two parts of
the juice of the bhela (the tree which bears the marking nuts of India),
and one part of the juice of the jowar. The articles varnished with it
at Sylhet are of the most beautiful glossy black; and it seems equally
49fitted for varnishing iron, leather, paper, wood, or stone. It has a
sort of whitish-grey colour when first taken out of the bottle, but in a
few minutes it becomes perfectly black by exposure to the air. In the
temperature of this country it is too thick to be laid on alone; but it
may be rendered more fluid by heat. In this case, however, it is clammy,
and seems to dry very slowly. When diluted with spirits of turpentine,
it dries more quickly; but still with less rapidity than is desirable.

The tsitsi, or Rangoon varnish, is less known than the Sylhet varnish.
It is probably made from the juice of the bhela alone. It appears to
have the same general properties as the Sylhet varnish, but dries more
rapidly. The varnish from the kheeso, or varnish-tree, may be the same
as the Rangoon varnish, but is at present considered to be very
different. The kheeso grows particularly in Kubboo, a valley on the
banks of the Ningtee, between Munnipore and the Burman empire. It
attains to such a large size, that it affords planks upwards of three
feet in breadth, and in appearance and grain is very like mahogany. A
similar tree is found in great abundance and perfection at Martaban.

A poisonous vapour exhales from several of the Indian varnishes,
especially from that of Sylhet, and is apt to produce over the whole
skin inflammations, swellings, itchings, and pustules, as if the body
had been stung by a number of wasps. Its 50effects, however, go off in a
few hours. As a preventative the persons who collect the varnish, before
going to work, smear their faces and hands with greasy matter to prevent
the varnish poison coming into contact with their skin.

51

CHAPTER VII.

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS.

Remarks on Polishing.—Amateurs at French polishing will be more
successful on a large surface than a small one.

When polishing, the rubber-cloth should be changed occasionally, or the
brightness will not remain when finished.

A most efficacious improver of many kinds of woods is raw linseed-oil
mixed with a little rectified spirits of turpentine.

French polish can be tinted a light-red with alkanet-root, and a
dark-red with dragon’s blood.

A good Turkey sponge is capable of spreading either stain or varnish
more smoothly than a camel’s-hair brush on a flat surface.

The sub-nitrate of bismuth mentioned on p. 12 is beginning to supersede
oxalic acid for bleaching processes.

Thin panels for doors should be securely tacked down to a level board,
and polished with a 52large round flannel rubber having a very flat sole.
Fret-work panels should have all the edges entirely finished with
varnish before they undergo the above operation. To get a good polish
upon a full-fret panel is considered by polishers to be the most
difficult part in the work, on account of the extreme delicacy and
frangibility of the work and the great carefulness required.

Soft spongy wood may be satiated by rubbing a sponge well filled with
polish across the grain until it becomes dry.

In polishing a very large surface, such as a Loo-table top or a wardrobe
end, it is best to do only half at a time, or if a large top a quarter
only.

The approved method of treating dining-table tops is to well body-in
with French polish, after which thoroughly glass-paper down with fine
paper, and then use the oil polish (see page 87).

Immediately after using a rubber, it should be kept in an air-tight tin
canister, where it will always remain fresh and fit for use.

The Polishing Shop.—A few words as to the polishing shop may be
acceptable to those who possess ample room and desire the best results.

First in order is the location and arrangement 53of the finishing rooms.
Preference is to be given to the upper rooms of a building for several
reasons, among which may be named the securing of better light, greater
freedom from dust, and superior ventilation.

A good light in this, as in many other arts, is a very important matter,
and by a good light we mean all the light that can be obtained without
the glare of the direct rays of the sun. Light from side windows is
preferable to that from skylights for three reasons: (1) Skylights are
very liable to leakage; (2) they are frequently, for greater or less
periods, covered with snow in winter; (3) the rays of the sun
transmitted by them in summer are frequently so powerful as to blister
shellac or varnish.

Good ventilation is at all times of importance, and especially so in
summer, both as tending to dry the varnish or shellac more evenly and
rapidly, and as contributing to the comfort of the workmen. The latter
consideration is of importance even as a matter of economy, as men in a
room the atmosphere of which is pleasant and wholesome will feel better
and accomplish more than they could do in the close and forbidding
apartments in which they sometimes work.

Any suggestion in reference to freedom from dust, as a matter to be
considered in locating rooms for this business, would seem to be
entirely superfluous, as it is clear that there is hardly any
54department of mechanical work which is so susceptible to injury from
dust as the finishing of furniture, including varnishing and polishing.

Finishing rooms may be arranged in three departments. The first should
include the room devoted to sand-papering and filling. These processes,
much more than any other part of furniture polishing, produce dirt and
dust, and it is plain that the room devoted to them should be so far
isolated from the varnishing room as not to introduce into it these
injurious elements.

Another room should be appropriated to the bodying-in, smoothing and
rubbing-down processes. The third room is for spiriting and varnishing,
or the application of the final coats of varnish, which is the most
important of all the processes in finishing. It requires a very light
and clean room, and a greater degree of heat than a general workroom. It
should, as nearly as possible, be uniform, and kept up to summer heat;
in no case ought the temperature to fall below fifty nor rise higher
than eighty-five degrees Fahrenheit while the varnishing process is
going on. Varnishing performed under these circumstances will be more
thorough in result, have a brighter appearance and better polish, than
if the drying is slow and under irregular temperature. For drying work,
the best kind of heat is that from a stove or furnace. 55

Steam heat is
not so good for two reasons: (1), it is too moist and soft, causing the
work to sweat rather than to dry hard, and (2), the temperature of a
room heated by steam is liable to considerable variation, and especially
to becoming lower in the night. This fire heat is as necessary for the
varnishing room in damp and cloudy weather in summer as it is in winter.
At all seasons, and by night as well as by day, the heat should be as
dry as possible, and kept uniformly up to summer heat, by whatever means
this result is secured. Varnished work, after receiving the last coat,
should be allowed to remain one day in the varnishing room. It may then
be removed into the general workroom.

A remark may be proper here, viz., that there is sometimes a failure to
secure the best and most permanent results from not allowing sufficient
time for and between the several processes. An order is perhaps to be
filled, or for some other reason the goods are “rushed through” at the
cost of thoroughness and excellence of finish.

The following suggestion is made by way of caution in reference to the
disposal of oily rags and waste made in the various processes of
finishing. These articles are regarded as very dangerous, and are
frequently the cause of much controversy between insurance companies and
parties who are insured. The best way to dispose of this waste is to put
it into the stove and 56burn it as fast as it is produced. If this rule
is strictly adhered to there will be no danger of fire from this source.
All liquid stock should be kept in close cans or barrels, and as far
from the fire as possible.

57

CHAPTER VIII.

ENAMELLING.

The process of enamelling in oil varnishes as applied to furniture must
be understood as a smooth, glossy surface of various colours produced by
bodies of paint and varnish skilfully rubbed down, and prepared in a
peculiar way so as to produce a surface equal to French polish. Ornament
can be added by gilding, etc., after the polished surface is finished.

We will begin with the white or light-tinted enamel. The same process
must be pursued for any colour, the only difference being in the
selection of the materials for the tint required to be produced.

It should be observed that enamelling requires the exercise of the
greatest care, and will not bear hurrying. Each coat must be allowed
sufficient time for the hardening, and the rubbing down must be
patiently and gently done; heavy pressure will completely spoil the
work.

Materials.—The materials used for the purpose above named are: white
lead ground in 58turpentine and the best white lead in oil; a clear,
quick, and hard-drying varnish, such as the best copal, or the varnishes
for enamel manufactured by Mr. W. Urquhart, 327, Edgware Road, W.; or
white coburg and white enamel varnish, ground and lump pumice-stone, or
putty-powder, great care being taken in the selection of the
pumice-stone, as the slightest particle of grit will spoil the surface;
and rotten-stone, used either with water or oil.

Tools.—The tools required are several flat wooden blocks, of various
sizes and forms, suitable for inserting into corners and for
mouldings—these must be covered with felt on the side you intend to
use, the felt best adapted for the purpose being the white felt, from a
quarter to half an inch in thickness, which can be obtained of Messrs.
Thomas Wallis & Co., Holborn Circus, or at the woollen warehouses; two
or three bosses (made similar to polish rubbers) of cotton-wool, and
covered with silk (an old silk handkerchief makes capital coverings);
wash or chamois leather, and a good sponge.

Mode of Operation.—If the wood is soft and porous it is best to
commence with a coating of size and whiting applied in a warm state,
which is allowed to dry; it is then rubbed down with 59glass-paper, and
two coats of common paint given, mixed in the usual way and of the same
colour as you intend to finish with. In practice this is found to be
best; after these two coats are thoroughly dry, mix the white-lead
ground in turps, with only a sufficient quantity of varnish to bind it,
thinning to a proper consistency with turps. It is as well to add a
little of the ordinary white-lead ground in oil, as it helps to prevent
cracking. Give the work four or five coats of this, and allow each coat
to dry thoroughly. When it is hard and ready for rubbing down, commence
with a soft piece of pumice-stone and water, and rub just sufficient to
take off the roughness. Now use the felt-covered rubbers and ground
pumice-stone, and cut it down, working in a circular manner. The
greatest care is required to obtain a level surface free from scratches.

After the work is well rubbed down, if it should appear to be
insufficiently filled up, or if scratched, give it two more coats, laid
on very smoothly, and rub down as before. If properly done, it will be
perfectly smooth and free from scratches. Wash it well down, and be
careful to clean off all the loose pumice-stone. Then mix flake-white
from the tube with either of the above-named varnishes, till it is of
the consistency of cream. Give one coat of this, and when dry give it
another, adding more varnish. Let this dry hard, the time taken for
which will of course depend upon the drying qualities of the varnish;
60some will polish in eight or nine days, but it is much the best to let
it stand as long as you possibly can, as the harder it is, the brighter
and more enduring will be the polish. When sufficiently hard, use the
felt, and very finely-ground pumice-stone and water; with this cut down
till it is perfectly smooth; then let it stand for a couple of days, to
harden the surface.

Polishing.—In commencing to bring up a polish, first take
rotten-stone, either in oil or water; use this with the felt rubber for
a little while, then put some upon the surface of the silk-covered boss,
and commence to rub very gently in circular strokes; continue this till
there is a fine equal surface all over. The polish will begin to appear
as you proceed, but it will be of a dull sort. Clean off: if the
rotten-stone is in oil, clean off with dry flour; if in water, wash off
with sponge and leather, taking care that you wash it perfectly clean
and do not scratch.

You will now, after having washed your hands, use a clean damp chamois
leather, holding it in the left hand, and using the right to polish
with, keeping it clean by frequently drawing it over the damp leather.
With the ball of the right hand press gently upon the work, and draw
your hand sharply, forward or towards you; this will produce a bright
polish, and every time you bring 61your hand forward a sharp shrill sound
will be heard similar to rubbing on glass. Continue this till the whole
surface is one bright even polish. It will be some time before you will
be able to do this perfectly, especially if the skin is dry or hard, as
it is then liable to scratch the work. A smooth, soft skin will produce
the best polish.

For the interior of houses, the “Albarine” enamel manufactured by the
Yorkshire Varnish Company, of Ripon, is recommended. This article
combines in itself a perfectly hard solid enamel of the purest possible
colour; and for all interior decorations, where purity of colour and
brilliancy of finish are desired, it is universally admitted to be the
most perfect article of the kind hitherto introduced to the trade. It is
applied in the same manner as ordinary varnish.

Another Process.—The preceding section describes the process of
enamelling by oil varnishes, and the directions referring to the
polishing will be found of value for the “polishing up” on painted
imitations of woods or marbles. There is another process whereby an
enamel can be produced upon furniture at a much cheaper rate than the
preceding, and one too, perhaps, in which a polisher may feel more “at
home.” The work should first have a coating of size and whiting (well
strained); this will act as a pore-filler. When dry, rub down with fine
paper, after which use the felt-covered rubber and 62powdered
pumice-stone, to remove all the scratches caused by the glass-paper and
to obtain a smooth and good surface. Then proceed to make a solution for
the enamel: first procure two ounces of common isinglass from the
druggist’s, and thoroughly dissolve it in about a pint of boiling water;
when dissolved, stir in two ounces and a-half of subnitrate of
bismuth—this will be found to be about the right quantity for most
woods, but it can be varied to suit the requirements. With this give the
work one coat, boiling hot; apply it with a soft piece of Turkey sponge,
or a broad camel’s-hair brush, and when dry cut down with powdered
pumice-stone; if a second coat is required, serve in precisely the same
manner. Then proceed to polish in the ordinary way with white polish.
After wetting the rubber, sprinkle a small quantity of the subnitrate of
bismuth upon it; then put on the cover, and work in the usual manner;
continue this till a sufficient body is obtained, and after allowing a
sufficient time for the sinking and hardening it can be spirited off.

Enamelled furniture has had, comparatively speaking, rather a dull sale,
but there is no class of furniture more susceptible of being made to
please the fancy of the many than this. It can be made in any tint that
may be required by the application of Judson’s dyes, and the exercise of
a little skill in the decoration will produce very pleasing effects.
63

Decorations.—The decorations are usually ornaments drawn in gold. A
cut-out stencil pattern is generally used, and the surface brushed over
with a camel’s-hair pencil and japanner’s gold size, which can be
obtained at the artist’s colourman’s, or, if preferred, can be made by
boiling 4 ozs. of linseed-oil with 1 oz. of gum anîme and a little
vermilion. When the size is tacky, or nearly dry, gold powder or gold
leaf is applied. The gold is gently pressed down with a piece of
wadding, and when dry the surplus can be removed with a round
camel’s-hair tool. In all cases where gold has been fixed by this
process it will bear washing without coming off, which is a great
advantage.

64

CHAPTER IX.

AMERICAN POLISHING PROCESSES

The method of polishing furniture practised by the American
manufacturers differs considerably from the French polishing processes
adopted by manufacturers in most European countries. This difference,
however, is mostly compulsory, and is attributable to the climate. The
intense heat of summer and the extreme cold of winter will soon render a
French polish useless, and as a consequence numerous experiments have
been tried to obtain a polish for furniture that will resist heat or
cold. The writer has extracted from two American cabinet-trade journals,
The Cabinet-maker and The Trade Bureau, descriptions of the various
processes now used in the States, which descriptions were evidently
contributed by practical workmen. The following pages are not, strictly
speaking, a mere reprint from the above-named journals, the articles
having been carefully revised and re-written after having been
practically tested; attention to them is, therefore, strongly
recommended. 65

In these processes the work is first filled in with a
“putty filler,” and after the surface has been thoroughly cleaned it is
ready for shellac or varnish. Second, a coating of shellac is next
applied with a brush or a soft piece of Turkey sponge. This mixture is
composed of two parts (by weight) of shellac to one of methylated
spirits, but what is called “thin shellac” is composed of one part
shellac to two of spirits. After the coating is laid on and allowed to
dry, which it does very soon, it is rubbed carefully with fine flour
glass-paper, or powdered pumice-stone—about four coats are usually
given, each one rubbed down as directed. Third, when the surface has
received a sufficient body, get a felt-covered rubber and apply
rotten-stone and sweet oil in the same manner as you would clean brass;
with this give the work a good rubbing, so as to produce a polish.
Fourth, clean off with a rag and sweet oil, and rub dry; then take a
soft rag with a few drops of spirit upon it, and vapour up to a fine
polish. With these few preliminary remarks, the following will be easily
understood.

Use Of Fillers.—The cost of a putty filler consists chiefly in the
time consumed in applying it. In the matter of walnut-filling much
expense is saved in the processes of coating and rubbing if the pores of
the wood be filled to the surface with a substance that will not shrink,
and will harden 66quickly. The time occupied in spreading and cleaning a
thin or fatty mixture of filler, or a stiff and brittle putty made fresh
every day, is about the same, and while the thin mixture will be subject
to a great shrinkage, the putty filler will hold its own. It will thus
be seen that a proper regard to the materials used in making fillers,
and the consistency and freshness of the same, form an important element
in the economy of filling.

A principal cause of poor filling is the use of thin material. By some a
putty-knife is used, and the filling rubbed into the surfaces of
mouldings with tow, while others use only the tow for all surfaces,
mostly, however, in cases of dry filling. In the use of the wet filler,
either with a knife or with tow, workmen are prone to spread it too thin
because it requires less effort, but experience shows that the greatest
care should always be taken to spread the putty stiff and thick,
notwithstanding the complaints of workmen. In fact, this class of work
does not bring into play so much muscle as to warrant complaints on
account of it. Nor can there be any reasonable excuse for taking a
longer time to spread a stiff filler than a thin filler.

Good results are not always obtained by the use of thick fillers,
because the putty is spread too soon after the application of the first
coat of oil, which liquid should be quite thin, and reduced either with
benzine or turpentine, so that when 67the putty is forced into the pores
the oil already in them will have the effect of thinning it. As an
illustration of the idea meant here to be conveyed, we will suppose a
quantity of thick mud or peat dumped into a cavity containing water, and
a similar quantity of the same material dumped into another cavity
having no water; the one fills the bottom of the cavity solid, while the
other becomes partly liquid at the bottom, and must of necessity shrink
before it assumes the solidity of the former. Hence it appears that work
to be filled should be oiled and allowed to stand some time before
receiving the filler, or until the oil has been absorbed into the pores.

The preparatory coating should not be mixed so as to dry too quickly,
nor allowed to stand too long before introducing the putty, for in this
case the putty when forced along by the knife will not slip so easily as
it should.

The cost of rubbing and sand-papering in the finishing process is very
much lessened if the cleaning be thorough, and if all the corners and
mouldings be scraped out, so that pieces of putty do not remain to work
up into the first coat of shellac, or whatever finish may be used as a
substitute for shellac.

Another important feature in hard filling is to let the work be well
dried before applying the first coat of finish. One day is not
sufficient for the proper drying of putty fillers, and if in consequence
of insufficient drying a part of the 68filling washes out, it is so much
labour lost. As a safeguard against washing out, these fillers should be
mixed with as much dryer or japan as the case warrants, for it
frequently occurs that work must be finished, or go into finish, the day
following the filling, whether it be dry or not.

By observing the main facts here alluded to, good filling may always be
obtained, and at a cost not exceeding that of poor work.

For the light woods, including ash, chestnut, and oak, the filling is
similar to that used in walnut, except the colouring material, which, of
course, must be slight, or just enough to prevent the whiting and
plaster from showing white in the pores. This colouring may consist of
raw sienna, burnt sienna, or a trifle raw, or umber; one of these
ingredients separate, or all three combined, mixed so as to please the
fancy and suit the prevailing style. The colouring may be used with a
dry filling, although a wet filling is more likely to give a smooth
finish and greater satisfaction, and the colour of the filler can be
seen better in the putty than in the dry powder.

Upon cheap work a filler should be used that requires the least amount
of labour in its application. For this purpose liquid fillers, like
japan, are suitable. If, however, a fine finish on fine goods is
required, the putty compositions of various mixtures are the more
appropriate. The secret of the process of filling consists in the
mix69ing of the compounds and the method of using them. A liquid filler
or a japan simply spread over the work in one or two coats can hardly be
called filling, yet this will serve the purpose very well for cheap
furniture.

Thick compositions or putty fillers are composed of whiting and plaster,
or similar powders having little or no colour. This material is mixed
with oil, japan, and benzine, with a sufficient quantity of colouring
matter to please the fancy. The value of these fillers is in proportion
to their brittleness or “shortness,” as it is termed, and, to give them
this quality, plaster is used and as much benzine or turpentine as the
mixture will bear without being too stiff or too hard to clean off.
Sometimes a little dissolved shellac is used to produce “shortness.”
This desirable feature of a filler is best effected by mixing a small
quantity of the material at a time. Many workmen mistakenly mix large
batches at a time with a view of securing uniformity of colour, and this
is one cause why such fillers work tough and produce a poor surface. An
oil mixture soon becomes fatty and tough, and must be reduced in
consistency when used, as it is apt when old to “drag” and leave the
pores only partly filled. These fillers should be mixed fresh every day,
and allowed to stiffen and solidify in the wood rather than out of it.

The surface of a pore is the largest part of it, and it is desirable to
fill it to a level as nearly as 70possible. This is done by using the
filler thick or stiff.

Making Fillers.—In making “fillers,” a quantity of the japan which is
used in the ingredients can be made at one time, and used from as
occasion may require. It is made in the following manner:

Japan of the Best Quality.—Put ¾ lb. gum shellac into 1 gall.
linseed-oil; take ½ lb. each of litharge, burnt umber, and red-lead,
also 6 oz. sugar of lead. Boil in the mixture of shellac and oil until
all are dissolved; this will require about four hours. Remove from the
fire, and stir in 1 gall. of spirits of turpentine, and the work is
finished.

Fillings for Light Woods.—Take 5 lb. of whiting, 3 lb. calcined
plaster (plaster of Paris), ½ gall. of raw linseed-oil, 1 qt. of
spirits of turpentine, 1 qt. of brown japan, and a little French yellow
to tinge the white. Mix well, and apply with a brush; rub it well with
excelsior or tow, and clean off with rags. This thoroughly fills the
pores of the wood and preserves its natural colour.

Another for Light Woods.—Take 10 lb. of whiting, 5 lb. of calcined
plaster, 1 lb. of corn starch, 3 oz. calcined magnesia, 1 gall. of raw
linseed-oil, ½ gall. spirits of turpentine, 1 qt. of brown japan, 2
oz. French yellow. Mix well, 71and apply with brush; rub in well with
excelsior or tow, and clean off with rags.

For Mahogany or Cherry Wood.—Take 5 lb. of whiting, 2 lb. of calcined
plaster, 1½ oz. dry burnt sienna, 1 oz. Venetian red, 1 qt. of boiled
linseed-oil, 1 pt. of spirits of turpentine, and 1 pt. of brown japan.
Mix well, apply with brush, and rub well in with excelsior or tow. Clean
off with rags dry.

For Oak Wood.—Take 5 lb. of whiting, 2 lb. calcined plaster, 1 oz.
dry burnt sienna, ½ oz. of dry French yellow, 1 qt. raw linseed-oil, 1
pt. benzine spirits, and ½ pt. white shellac. Mix well, apply with
brush, rub in with excelsior or tow, and clean off with rags.

For Rosewood.—Take 6 lb. of fine whiting, 2 lb. of calcined plaster,
1 lb. of rose-pink, 2 oz. of Venetian red, ½ lb. of Vandyke brown, ½
lb. of Brandon red, 1 gall. of boiled linseed-oil, ½ gall. of spirits
of turpentine, 1 qt. of black japan. Mix well together, apply with
brush, rub well in with tow, and clean off with rags.

For Black Walnut (1).—For medium and cheap work. Take 10 lb. of
whiting, 3 lb. dry burnt umber, 4 lb. of Vandyke brown, 3 lb. of
calcined plaster, ½ lb. of Venetian red, 1 gall. of boiled
linseed-oil, ½ gall. of spirits of turpentine, 1 qt. of black japan.
Mix well and apply with brush; rub well with excelsior or tow, and clean
off with rags.

For Black Walnut (2).—An improved filling, 72producing a fine
imitation of wax finish, may be effected by taking 5 lb. of whiting,
with 1 lb. of calcined plaster, 6 oz. of calcined magnesia, 1 oz. of dry
burnt umber, 1 oz. of French yellow to tinge the white. Add 1 qt. of raw
linseed-oil, 1 qt. of benzine spirits, ½ pt. of very thin white
shellac. Mix well, and apply with a brush; rub well in, and clean off
with rags.

An Oil-Colour for Black Walnut (3), to be used only on first-class and
custom work.—Take 3 lb. of burnt umber ground in oil, 1 lb. of burnt
sienna ground in oil, 1 qt. of spirits of turpentine, 1 pt. of brown
japan. Mix well and apply with a brush. Sand-paper well; clean off with
tow and rags. This gives a beautiful chocolate colour to the wood.

Numerous compositions are in the market for filling the pores of wood,
and in this connection particular attention has been given to walnut,
for the reason that this wood is used in large quantities in the
furniture industry, and is nearly, if not quite, as porous as any other
of the woods used.

A variety of walnut fillings have been recommended to the trade in order
to meet the demand consequent upon the different grades of finish and
the method of obtaining the finish, so that it would be difficult to
pronounce as to the superiority of any one filling for general purposes.
In treating this subject, attention should be given to the necessities
for the use of filling, so that each one 73may determine for himself the
kind of composition best adapted for the work in hand, and the best
method of applying it.

Finishing.—Having described the methods of making and applying the
“fillings,” we will now describe the mode of finishing, and begin with
the “dead-oil finish.” We can remember when a satisfactory oil-finish
was produced either with a good quality of japan or a fair quality of
spirits. These materials are recommended to be used by inexperienced
workmen and those not familiar with the mixing of the various grades of
japan and varnish with oil, turpentine, benzine, etc. This method of
oil-finish, too, is scarcely inferior to the shellac or spirit-varnish
method, and it is cheaper. When the best finish is desired, a sufficient
number of coats to fill the pores of wood to a level are required, and
then the whole surface should be subjected to the rubbing process. The
use of these fillers provides an oil-finish in a simplified form for
those who are not aware of the difference between hard and soft gum
compositions as a base for rubbing. In fact, the rubbing process
constitutes a fine oil-finish, and requires a hard gum, whether it be of
japan, varnish, or shellac.

The use of varnish or its substitute as a filler and finish is more
frequent than the use of shellac, and for cheap work it is equally good.
74The surface produced by a hard gum composition must be smooth and dead,
or but slightly glossed, so as to admit of the pores being filled full
or to a level. It may be added that a coat or any number of coats of the
composition referred to above is substantially a filling, and the
quality of finish depends upon the number of coats, together with the
amount of rubbing applied.

Thus far we have simply called attention to the best quality of
oil-finish and the manner of producing it. Possibly three-fourths of all
wood-finishing, particularly walnut-finishing, is several degrees below
the best quality. In fact, oil-finish may imply only one coat of any
composition that will dry, while two coats may be regarded as fair, and
three coats a very good quality of finish. For the class of finish not
rubbed down with pumice-stone and water, oil-varnish would be out of
place on account of its gloss; hence shellac, being in composition
similar to japan, is the better material, because of its dull appearance
or lack of gloss as compared with shellac.

In addition to the liquid fillers already mentioned, there is a putty or
powder filling used for cross-grained woods, or such woods as have a
deep pore. This filling is forced into the wood previous to the
application of the other finishing compounds, with the use of which it
in no way interferes. On the contrary, it economises the use of the
liquid fillers, and, while constituting a part of an oil-finish, is also
a finish wholly independent of 75the other methods mentioned—that is to
say, the same results can be obtained by the use of either one, although
the putty or powder filling is attended with greater expense both as to
time and material. The hard filling is generally used on walnut, ash,
and all coarse-grained woods.

With regard to oil-finishes, viz., spirit-varnish or oil-varnish,
shellac is thought by many to be the best for fine work; but others
think differently. We may say of shellac that it will finish up into any
degree of polish, and while it will not retain a French polish long in
this climate, it will replenish easier and cheaper than any other
finish, and continue to improve under each application. For a common
finish, however, oil preparation is as good as shellac, and even for a
fine finish it is only second to shellac, if made of a hard gum. On
common finish, too, the oil will wear better than shellac in stock or on
storage, so far as preserving its freshness is concerned.

The cost of oil-finish is governed chiefly by the amount of labour
expended on it. A suite of walnut furniture can be well rubbed with
sand-paper in two hours, or even less; while two weeks could be
profitably employed in rubbing another suite with pumice and water.

Black Walnut Finishing.—The fashionable finish for black walnut work,
particularly chamber sets, is what is known to the trade as the
76“dead-oil finish.” It is admired, perhaps, because it has a gloss,
rather than a shine of the varnish stamp. There is no more labour
required upon it than upon a bright finish, but the process of
manipulation is different, and harder to the fingers.

It should be premised that the walnut work of the day bears upon its
surface, to a greater or less extent, raised panels covered with French
burl veneer. And upon this fact largely depends the beauty of the
production. And the endeavour is to so finish the article that there
shall be a contrast between the panel and the groundwork on which it is
placed. In other words, the former should be of a light colour, while
the latter is of a darker shade. In that view the palest shellac should
be used on the panels, and darker pieces, liver coloured, etc., on the
body of the work. The darker grades of shellac are the cheaper, and will
answer for the bulk of the work, but the clearest only for the panels.

In commencing to finish a job direct from the cabinet-maker’s hand,
rough and innocent of sand-paper, first cover the panels with a coat of
shellac to prevent the oil in the filling from colouring them dark.
Next, cover the body of the work with a wood filling composed of whiting
and plaster of Paris, mixed with japan, benzine, and raw linseed-oil, or
the lubricating oil made from petroleum; the whole covered with umber,
to which, in the rare cases when a reddish shade is 77wanted, Venetian
red is also added. This filling is then rubbed off with cloths, and by
this process tends to close up the grain of the wood and produce an even
surface. More or less time should be allowed after each of the several
steps in the finishing process for the work to dry and harden, though
much less is required in working with shellac than with varnishes
composed of turpentine, oil, and gums. But the time that should be
allowed is often lessened by the desire to get the work through as soon
as possible, so that no standard can be set up as to the number of hours
required between each of the several processes. It would be well if
twelve hours intervened, but if work to which ten days could well be
devoted must be hurried through in three, obviously the processes must
follow each other in a corresponding haste.

A coating of shellac is then given the whole work, light on the panels
and dark on the body work, and when it has dried and hardened, which it
does very soon, it may be rubbed down. This process of “rubbing down”
should be done evenly and carefully, so as not to rub through the
shellac at any point, and be done with the finer grades of sand-paper
for the cheaper class of work, particularly at first, but at a later
period of the process, and for the better class of articles in all
cases, hair-cloth should be used, the material for the “rubbing down”
being pumice-stone moistened with raw linseed-oil for the best work, and
the 78lubricating oil, before mentioned, for cheaper work, or the covered
parts of the better grades. This rubbing down involves labour, wear of
fingers and finger-nails, and is carried on with an ordinary bit of
hair-cloth, the smooth surface next the wood, and not made in any
particular shape, but as a wad, ball, or otherwise. In the corners and
crevices where the hair-cloth will not enter it will be necessary to use
sand-paper of the finest grades, and worn pieces only.

Three coats of shellac are put on, followed each time by this
rubbing-down process, each one giving the work a smoother feeling and a
more perfect appearance. Afterwards, to complete the whole, a coating of
japan thinned with benzine is applied, which gives to the work a clean
appearance and the dead glossy finish.

There is this objection to the above style of finish, that the japan
catches all the dust which touches it, and holds it permanently, so that
many of the best workmen will not have work finished in this way for
their own private houses, preferring the brighter look given by shellac
and varnish without rubbing down the last coat, believing that the work
can be kept much cleaner.

Finishing Veneered Panels, etc.—The large oval panels of desks, etc.,
covered with French veneer, are generally taken out and finished by
themselves. The process is similar 79to that above given, with successive
coats of shellac and varnish, and the oil and pumice-stone rubbing down;
but the final part of this latter process is a rubbing down with
rotten-stone; then the merest trifle of sweet-oil is applied all over
the surface and wiped off. (See Rosewood, etc., farther on.)

For Light Woods (Dead Finish).—Apply two or three coats of white
shellac; rub down with pumice and raw linseed-oil, and clean off well
with rags; use varnish-polish on the panels.

Another.—Finish as in the previous recipe. For a flowing coat of
varnish-finish apply one flowing coat of light amber varnish. If a
varnish-polish is desired, apply three coats of Zanzibar polishing
varnish. Rub down and polish, and the result will be a splendid finish.

Mahogany or Cherry Wood.—For shellac dead finish apply two coats of
yellow shellac. Rub down with pumice and raw linseed-oil. If a
varnish-finish is desired, apply a flowing coat of light amber varnish
or shellac thus rubbed. The panels should receive two coats of Zanzibar
polishing varnish.

Oak.—For a dead finish give three coats of shellac, two-thirds of
white and one-third of yellow, mixed. Rub down with pumice and raw
linseed-oil. For a cheap varnish-finish give one flowing coat of light
amber varnish in the shellac, rubbed as directed. Varnish-polish the
panels.

Rosewood, Coromandel, or Kingwood (a Bright 80Finish).—Apply two thin
coats of shellac, sand-papering each coat; then apply three or four
coats of Zanzibar polishing varnish, laying it on thin, and giving it
sufficient time to dry thoroughly. When it is perfectly hard, rub down
with pumice and water. Polish with rotten-stone to a fine lustre, clean
up with sweet-oil, and vapour up the oil with a damp alcohol rag. The
result is a splendid mirror-like polish. This is the method employed in
polishing pianofortes in America.

Walnut.—For a cheap finish, apply one coat of yellow shellac. When
dry, sand-paper down. Apply with brush; rub in well; clean off with
rags. This gives a very fair finish.

For a medium dead finish apply two or three coats of yellow shellac.
When dry, rub down with pumice and raw linseed-oil; clean up well;
varnish-polish the panels.

For finish. Before using the above filling, give the work one coat of
white shellac. When dry, sand-paper down, and apply the above filling.
Give two coats of white shellac; rub down with pumice and raw
linseed-oil; clean up well with brown japan and spirits of turpentine,
mixed. Wipe off. This is a good imitation of wax-finish; it is
waterproof, and will not spot as wax-finish does. The panels are to be
varnished-polished. This is to be used with the improved filling No. 2.

For finish. Apply three coats of yellow shellac; rub down with pumice
and raw linseed81oil; clean off well. Varnish-polish the panels. Use this
with the oil colour No. 3.

Finishing Cheap Work.—With One Coat of Varnish.—Give the work a
coat of boiled linseed-oil; immediately sprinkle dry whiting upon it,
and rub it well in with tow all over the surface. The whiting absorbs
the oil and completely fills the pores of the wood. For black walnut add
a little dry burnt umber. For mahogany or cherry add a little Venetian
red, according to the colour of the wood. The application can be made to
turned work while in motion in the lathe. Clean off well with rags. The
work can then be finished with a single coat of varnish, and for cheap
work makes a very good finish.

For varnishing large surfaces, a two-inch oval varnish brush is to be
used first to lay out the varnish, and then a two-inch flat badger
flowing-brush for a softener. The latter lays down moats and bubbles
left by the large brush. A perfectly smooth glass-like surface is thus
obtained. When not in use, these tools should be put into a pot
containing raw linseed-oil and spirits of turpentine. This keeps them in
a better working condition than if they are kept in varnish, making them
clean and soft. Standing in varnish they congeal and become hard as the
spirit evaporates from the varnish. For shellacing a large surface use a
two-inch bristle brush; for small work, such as 82carvings and mouldings,
use a one-and-a-half inch flat brush. These brushes when not in use
should be taken from the various pots and deposited in an earthen pot
sufficiently large to hold all the shellac brushes used in the shop. Put
in enough of raw linseed-oil and thin shellac to cover the bristles of
the brushes. Kept in this manner, they will remain clean and elastic,
and will wear much longer.

Wax Finishing.—Take ½ gall. of turpentine, 1½ lb. yellow
beeswax, 1 lb. white beeswax, ½ lb. white rosin. Pulverise the rosin,
and shave the wax into fine shavings. Put the whole into the turpentine,
and dissolve it cold. If dissolved by a fire-heat, the vitality of the
wax is destroyed. When it is thoroughly dissolved, mix well and apply
with a stiff brush. Rub well in, and clean off with rags. When dry, it
is ready for shellac or varnish as may be desired.

A Varnish Polish.—Take 10 oz. gum shellac, 1 oz. gum sandarach, 1
drachm Venice turpentine, 1 gall. alcohol. Put the mixture into a jug
for a day or two, shaking occasionally. When dissolved it is ready for
use. Apply a few coats. Polish by rubbing smooth.

For the commonest kind of work in black walnut a very cheap polish can
be made in the following manner: Take 1 gall. of turpentine, 2 lb.
pulverised asphaltum, 1 qt. boiled linseed-oil, 2 oz. Venetian red. Put
the mixture in a warm place and shake occasionally. When it is
83dissolved, strain and apply to the wood with a stiff brush. Rub well
with cloth when dry. Then take 1 pt. of thin shellac, ½ pt. boiled
linseed-oil. Shake it well before using. Apply with cloth, rubbing
briskly, and you will have a fine polish.

With Copal or Zanzibar Varnish.—As a substitute for filling, the wood
may receive one coat of native coal-oil, thinned with benzine-spirits;
then apply one coat of shellac, and follow with varnish, as desired. The
time is not far distant when manufacturers must and will use varnish for
the finishing of all kinds of furniture on account of the high price of
shellac. Furniture finished in the last-named method may be rubbed with
either water or oil. Water has a tendency to harden varnish, while oil
softens it. If water is used there will be a saving of oil and rags. In
the other case shellac, when rubbed with oil, should be cleaned with
japan. This removes the greasy and cloudy appearance which is left after
the rubbing with oil, and the work will have a clean, dry, and brighter
appearance than otherwise.

We suggest another idea for finishing black walnut for a cheap or a
medium class of work. In the first place, fill the pores of the wood,
and apply one thin coat of shellac to hold the filling in the pores of
the wood. Let this stand one day; sand-paper down with fine paper, then
with a brush apply a coat of coach japan. Rub well, 84and clean off with
rags. Let this stand one day to dry, then, with some sand-paper that has
been used before, take off the moats from the japan. Go over the whole
surface with a soft rag saturated with japan; wipe and clean off
carefully, and the job is finished. This, though a cheap finish, is a
good one for this class of work.

We give one more method of finishing black walnut, that is, with boiled
linseed-oil only, and there is no other way of obtaining a genuine
oil-finish. Sand-paper the wood down smoothly; apply a coat of boiled
linseed-oil over the whole surface; sand-paper well, and clean up dry
with rags; let it stand one day to dry, then apply one more coat of oil;
rub well in with rags, but do not use sand-paper on this coat. Apply
three, four, or more coats in the same way. When the work has received
the last coat of oil and is dry, sand-paper down with old paper. Then
clean up with the best coach japan with rags, and let the work stand one
day to dry. The panels are to be varnish-polished the same as other
wood. The work is then finished, and ready for the warerooms.

This method takes a longer time than finishing with either varnish or
shellac; but the cost is less both for materials and for labour, the
workman being able to go over a greater surface in the same time. The
work will stand longer, and the method gives a rich and close finish,
bringing out 85the figure and rich colour of the wood better than in any
other method of finishing. It does not cost so much as shellac finish;
it only requires a little more time for drying between the coats of oil.
In finishing in varnish or shellac, to get the body or surface for
polishing three or four coats are frequently applied, which is liable to
produce a dull cloudy appearance. For this reason, and having in view
the high and increasing price of stock, it seems to us that this really
superior method of finishing in oil must take the place of shellac and
varnish-finish in good work.

Polishing Varnish.—This is certainly a tedious process, and
considered by many a matter of difficulty. The following is the mode of
procedure: Put two ounces of powdered tripoli into an earthen pot or
basin, with water sufficient to cover it; then, with a piece of fine
flannel four times doubled, laid over a piece of cork rubber, proceed to
polish your varnish, always wetting it well with the tripoli and water.
You will know when the process is complete by wiping a part of the work
with a sponge and observing whether there is a fair and even gloss.
Clean off with a bit of mutton suet and fine flour. Be careful not to
rub the work too hard, or longer than is necessary to make the face
perfectly smooth and even. Some workmen polish with rotten-stone, others
with putty-powder, and others with common 86whiting and water; but
tripoli, we think, will be found to answer best.

An American Polish Reviver.—Take of olive-oil 1 lb., of rectified oil
of amber 1 lb., spirits of turpentine 1 lb., oil of lavender 1 oz.,
tincture of alkanet-root ½ oz. Saturate a piece of cotton batting with
this polish, and apply it to the wood; then, with soft and dry cotton
rags, rub well and wipe off dry. This will make old furniture in private
dwellings, or that which has been shop-worn in warerooms, look as well
as when first finished. The articles should be put into a jar or jug,
well mixed, and afterwards kept tightly corked.

This is a valuable recipe, and is not known, the writer believes,
outside of his practice.

87

CHAPTER X.

MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES.

Oil Polish.—One quart of cold-drawn linseed-oil to be simmered (not
boiled) for ten minutes, and strained through flannel; then add
one-eighth part of spirits of turpentine: to be applied daily with soft
linen rags, and rubbed off lightly; each time the oil is applied the
surface should be previously washed with cold water, so as to remove any
dirt or dust. This method of polishing is particularly useful for
dining-table tops; it will in about six weeks produce a polish so
durable as to resist boiling water or hot dishes, and be like a mirror
for brilliancy.

Wax Polish.—Eight ounces of beeswax, 2 oz. of resin, and ½ oz. of
Venetian turpentine, to be melted over a slow fire; the mass, when quite
melted, is poured into a sufficiently large stone-ware pot, and while it
is still warm 6 oz. of rectified turpentine are stirred in. After the
lapse of twenty-four hours the mass will have 88assumed the consistency
of soft butter, and is ready for use. A small portion of the polish is
taken up with a woollen rag and rubbed over the surface of the work—at
first gently, then more strongly. When the polish is uniformly laid on,
the surface is once more rubbed lightly and quickly with a fresh clean
rag to produce a gloss.

Waterproof French Polish.—Take 2 oz. gum benjamin, ½ oz. gum
sandarach, ½ oz. gum anîme, 1½ oz. gum benzoin, and 1 pt. alcohol.
Mix in a closely-stoppered bottle, and put in a warm place till the gums
are well dissolved. Then strain off, and add ¼ gill of poppy-oil.
Shake well together, and it is ready for use.

A Varnish for Musical Instruments.—Take one gallon of alcohol, 1 lb.
gum sandarach, ½ lb. gum mastic, 2 lbs. best white resin, 3 lbs. gum
benzoin; cut the gums cold. When they are thoroughly dissolved, strain
the mixture through fine muslin, and bottle for use; keep the bottle
tightly corked. This is a beautiful varnish for violins and other
musical instruments of wood, and for fancy articles, such as those of
inlaid work. It is also well adapted for panel-work, and all kinds of
cabinet furniture. There is required only one flowing coat, and it
produces a very fine mirror-like surface. Apply this varnish 89with a
flat camel’s-hair or sable brush. In an hour after application the
surface is perfectly dry.

French Varnish for Cabinet-work.—Take of shellac 1½ oz. gum mastic
and gum sandarach, of each ½ oz., spirit of wine by weight 20 oz. The
gums to be first dissolved in the spirit, and lastly the shellac. This
may be best effected by means of the water-bath. Place a loosely-corked
bottle containing the mixture in a vessel of warm water of a temperature
below the boiling point, and let it remain until the gums are dissolved.
Should evaporation take place, an equal quantity to the spirit of wine
so lost must be replaced till the mixture settles, then pour off the
clear liquid for use, leaving the impurities behind; but do not filter
it. Greater hardness may be given to the varnish by increasing the
quantity of shellac, which may be done to the amount of one-twelfth of
the lac to eleven-twelfths of spirit. But in this latter proportion the
varnish loses its transparency in some degree, and must be laid on in
very small quantities at a time.

Mastic Varnish.—Mastic should be dissolved in oil of turpentine, in
close glass vessels, by means of a gentle heat. This varnish is
extensively used in transparencies, etc. 90

Cabinet-maker’s
Varnish.—Take 5 lbs. very pale gum shellac, 7 oz. gum mastic, 1 gallon
alcohol. Dissolve in a cold atmosphere with frequent stirring.

Amber Varnish.—This is a most difficult varnish to make. It is
usually prepared by roasting the amber and adding hot linseed-oil, after
which turpentine can be mixed if required. But for a small quantity,
dissolve the broken amber, without heat, in the smallest possible
quantity of chloroform or pure benzine. Heat the linseed-oil, remove it
from the fire, and pour in the amber solution, stirring all the time.
Then add the turpentine. If not quite clear, heat again, using the
utmost caution.

Colourless Varnish with Copal.—To prepare this varnish the copal must
be picked; each piece is broken, and a drop of rosemary-oil poured on
it. Those pieces which, on contact with the oil, become soft are the
ones used. The pieces being selected, they are ground and passed through
a sieve, being reduced to a fine powder. It is then placed in a glass,
and a corresponding volume of rosemary-oil poured over it; the mixture
is then stirred for a few minutes until it is transformed into a thick
liquor. It is then left to rest for two hours, when a few drops of
rectified 91alcohol are added, and intimately mixed. Repeat the operation
until the varnish is of a sufficient consistency; leave the rest for a
few days, and decant the clear. This varnish can be applied to wood and
metals (Journal of Applied Chemistry).

Seedlac Varnish.—Wash 3 oz. of seedlac in several waters; dry it and
powder it coarsely. Dissolve it in one pint of rectified spirits of
wine; submit it to gentle heat, shaking it as often as convenient, until
it appears dissolved. Pour off the clear part, and strain the remainder.

Patent Varnish for Wood or Canvas.—Take 1 gallon spirits of
turpentine, 2¼ lbs. asphaltum. Put them into an iron kettle on a
stove, and dissolve the gum by heat. When it is dissolved and a little
cool, add 1 pint copal varnish and 1 pint boiled linseed-oil. When
entirely cool it is ready for use. For a perfect black add a little
lamp-black.

Copal Varnish.—Dissolve the copal, broken in pieces, in linseed-oil,
by digestion, the heat being almost sufficient to boil the oil. The oil
should be made drying by the addition of quick-lime. This makes a
beautiful transparent varnish. It should be diluted with oil of
turpentine; a 92very small quantity of copal, in proportion to the oil,
will be found sufficient.

Carriage Varnish.—Take 19 oz. gum sandarach, 9½ oz. orange
shellac, 12½ oz. white resin, 18 oz. turpentine, 5 pints alcohol.
Dissolve and strain. Use for the internal parts of carriages and similar
purposes. This varnish dries in ten minutes.

Transparent Varnish.—Take 1 gallon alcohol, 2 lbs. gum sandarach, ½
1b. gum mastic. Place them in a tin can. Cork tight and shake
frequently, placing the can in a warm place. When dissolved it is ready
for use.

Crystal Varnish for Maps, etc.—Mix together 1 oz. Canada balsam and 2
oz. spirits of turpentine. Before applying this varnish to a drawing or
a painting in water-colours the paper should be placed on a stretcher,
sized with a thin solution of isinglass in water, and dried. Apply the
varnish with a soft camel’s-hair brush.

A Black Varnish.—Mix a small quantity of gas-black with the brown
hard varnish pre93viously mentioned. The black can be obtained by boiling
a pot over a gas-burner, so that it almost touches the burner, when a
fine jet-black will form at the bottom, which remove and mix with the
varnish, and apply with a brush.

A Black Polish can be made in the same way: after wetting the rubber,
just touch it with the black. Place the linen cover over, touch it with
oil, and it is ready for work.

Varnish for Iron.—Take 2 lbs. pulverised gum asphaltum, ¼ lb. gum
benzoin, 1 gallon spirits of turpentine. To make this varnish quickly,
keep in a warm place, and shake often till it is dissolved. Shade to
suit with finely-ground ivory-black. Apply with a brush. This varnish
should be used on iron-work exposed to the weather. It is also well
adapted for inside work, such as iron furniture, where a handsome polish
is desired.

Varnish for Tools.—Take 2 oz. tallow, 1 oz. resin; melt together, and
strain while hot to remove the specks which are in the resin. Apply a
slight coat on the tools with a brush, and it will keep off the rust for
any length of time.

94

To Make Labels Adhere to a Polished
Surface.—Brush the back of a label over with thin varnish or polish,
and press down with a soft rag; this must be done quickly, as the polish
soon becomes dry. This is the way labels are put on pianofortes, and
also the paper imitation of fancy woods on polished pine-work.

How to Remove French Polish or Varnish from Old Work.—Cleaning off
old work for re-polishing or varnishing is usually found difficult, and
to occupy much time if only the scraper and glass-paper be used. It can
be easily accomplished in a very short time by washing the surface with
liquid ammonia, applied with a piece of rag; the polish will peel off
like a skin, and leave the wood quite bare. In carvings or turned work,
after applying the ammonia, use a hard brush to remove the varnish.
Unadulterated spirits of wine used in a tepid state will answer the same
purpose.

Colouring for Carcase Work.—In the best class of cabinet-work all the
inside work—such as carcase backs, shelves, etc.—is made of good
materials, such as wainscot, soft mahogany, Havannah cedar, or American
walnut; but for second-class work, pine or white deal is used instead,
and coloured.

The colouring matter used should match with 95the exterior wood. For
mahogany take ½ lb. of ground yellow ochre to a quart of water, and
add about a tablespoonful of Venetian red—a very small quantity of
red in proportion to the yellow is sufficient for mahogany—and a piece
of glue about the size of a walnut; the whole to be well stirred and
boiled. Brush over while hot, and immediately rub off with soft shavings
or a sponge. For the antique hues of old wainscot mix equal parts of
burnt umber and brown ochre. For new oak, bird’s-eye maple, birch,
satin-wood, or any similar light yellowish woods, whiting or white-lead,
tinted with orange chrome, or by yellow ochre and a little size. For
walnut, brown umber, glue size, and water; or by burnt umber very
moderately modified with yellow ochre. For rosewood, Venetian red tinted
with lamp-black. For ebony, ivory-black; but for the common ebonised
work lamp-black is generally used.

When the colouring is dry, it should be rubbed down with a piece of worn
fine glass-paper, and polished with beeswax rubbed on a very hard
brush—a worn-out scrubbing-brush is as good as anything—or it can be
well rubbed with Dutch rush. In polishing always rub the way of the
grain. The cheap work seldom gets more than a coat of colour rubbed off
with shavings.

Cheap but Valuable Stain for the Sap of Black Walnut.—Take 1 gallon
of strong 96vinegar, 1 lb. dry burnt umber, ½ lb. fine rose-pink, ½
lb. dry burnt Vandyke brown. Put them into a jug and mix them well; let
the mixture stand one day, and it will then be ready for use. Apply this
stain to the sap with a piece of fine sponge; it will dry in half an
hour. The whole piece is then ready for the filling process. When
completed, the stained part cannot be detected even by those who have
performed the work. This recipe is of value, as by it wood of poor
quality and mostly of sap can be used with good effect.

Polish for Removing Stains, etc., from Furniture (American).—Take ½
pint alcohol, ¼ oz. pulverised resin, ¼ oz. gum shellac, ½ pint
boiled linseed-oil. Shake the mixture well, and apply it with a sponge,
brush, or cotton flannel, rubbing well after the application.

Walnut Stain to be used on Pine and White-wood.—Take 1 gallon of very
thin sized shellac; add 1 lb. of dry burnt umber, 1 lb. of dry burnt
sienna, and ¼ lb. of lamp-black. Put these articles into a jug, and
shake frequently until they are mixed. Apply one coat with a brush. When
the work is dry, sand-paper down with fine paper, and apply one coat of
shellac or cheap varnish. It will then be a good imitation 97of solid
walnut, and will be adapted for the back-boards of mirror-frames, for
the backside and inside of case-work, and for similar work.

Rosewood Stain.—Take 1 lb. of logwood chips, ½ lb. of red-sanders,
½ gallon of water. Boil over a fire until the full strength is
obtained. Apply the mixture, while hot, to the wood with a brush. Use
one or two coats to obtain a strong red colour. Then take 1 gallon of
spirits of turpentine and 2 lb. of asphaltum. Dissolve in an iron kettle
on a stove, stirring constantly. Apply with a brush over the red stain,
to imitate rosewood. To make a perfect black, add a little lamp-black.
The addition of a small quantity of varnish with the turpentine will
improve it. This stain applied to birchwood gives as good an imitation
of rosewood as on black walnut, the shade on the birch being a little
brighter.

Rosewood Stain for Cane Work, etc.—Take 1 gallon alcohol, 1 lb.
red-sanders, 1 lb. dragon’s blood, 1 lb. extract logwood, ½ lb. gum
shellac. Put the mixture into a jug, and steep well till it obtains its
full strength. Then strain, and it will be ready for use. Apply with
brush, giving one, two, or more coats, according to the depth of colour
desired. Then give one or more coats of varnish. This stain is suitable
for use 98on cane, willow, or reed work, and produces a good imitation of
rosewood.

French Polish Reviver.—This recipe will be found a valuable one. If
the work is sweated and dirty, make it tolerably wet, and let it stand a
few minutes; then rub off and polish with a soft rag. It is important
that the ingredients should be mixed in a bottle in the order as given:
Vinegar, 1 gill; methylated spirit, 1 gill; linseed-oil, ½ pint;
butter of antimony (poison), 1 oz. Raw linseed-oil, moderately thinned
with turpentine or spirits of wine, will also make a good reviver. Old
furniture, or furniture that has been warehoused for a long time, should
be washed with soda and warm water previous to applying the reviver.

Morocco Leather Reviver.—The coverings of chairs or sofas in morocco,
roan, or skiver can be much improved by this reviver. If old and greasy,
wash with sour milk first. The reviver should be applied with a piece of
wadding, and wiped one way only, as in glazing. The colour can be
matched by adding red-sanders. Methylated spirit, ½ pint; gum benzoin,
2 oz.; shellac, ½ oz. Mix, and shake up occasionally until dissolved.99

Hair-cloth Reviver.—Mix equal parts of marrow-oil (neats-foot),
ox-gall. and ivory-black, to be well rubbed with a cloth. This
composition forms a valuable renovator for old hair-cloth.

To Remove Grease Stains from Silks, Damasks, Cloth, etc.—Pour over
the stain a small quantity of benzoline spirit, and it will soon
disappear without leaving the least mark behind. The most delicate
colours can be so treated without fear of injury. For paint stains
chloroform is very efficacious.

To Remove Ink Stains from White Marble.—Make a little chloride of
lime into a paste with water, and rub it into the stains, and let it
remain a few hours; then wash off with soap and water.

100

CHAPTER XI.

MATERIALS USED.

Alkanet-root (botanical name, Anchusa tinctoria).—This plant is a
native of the Levant, but it is much cultivated in the south of France
and in Germany. The root is the only part used by French polishers to
obtain a rich quiet red; the colouring is chiefly contained in the bark
or outer covering, and is easily obtained by soaking the root in spirits
or linseed-oil. The plant itself is a small herbaceous perennial, and
grows to about a foot in height, with lance-shaped leaves and purple
flowers, and with a long woody root with a deep red bark.

Madder-root (Rubia tinctoria).—This plant is indigenous to the
Levant; but it is much cultivated in Southern Europe, and also in India.
Its uses are for dyeing and staining; it can be procured in a powdered
state, and imparts its red colour when soaked in water or spirits. This
is a creeping plant with a slender stem; almost 101quadrangular, the
leaves grow four in a bunch; flowers small, fruit yellow, berry double,
one being abortive. The roots are dug up when the plant has attained the
age of two or three years; they are of a long cylindrical shape, about
the thickness of a quill, and of a red-brownish colour, and when
powdered are a bright Turkish-red. Extracts of madder are mostly
obtained by treating the root with boiling water, collecting the
precipitates which separate on cooling, mixing them with gum or starch,
and adding acetate of alumina or iron. This is in fact a mixture of
colouring matter and a mordant.

Red-sanders (Pterocarpus santalinus).—The tree from which this wood
is obtained is a lofty one, and is to be found in many parts of India,
especially about Madras. It yields a dye of a bright garnet-red colour,
and is used by French polishers for dyeing polishes, varnishes,
revivers, etc.

Logwood (Hæmatoxylon campeachianum).—This is a moderate-sized tree
with a very contorted trunk and branches, which are beset with sharp
thorns, and blooms with a yellow flower. It is a native of Central
America and the West Indies. This valuable dye-wood is imported in logs;
the heart-wood is the most valuable, which 102is cut up into chips or
ground to powder for the use of dyers by large powerful mills
constructed especially for the purpose. Logwood, when boiled in water,
easily imparts its red colour. If a few drops of acetic acid (vinegar)
is added, a bright red is produced; and when a little alum is added for
a mordant, it forms red ink. If an alkali, such as soda or potash, is
used instead of an acid, the colour changes to a dark blue or purple,
and with a little management every shade of these colours can be
obtained. Logwood put into polish or varnish also imparts its red
colour.

Fustic (Maclura tinctoria).—This tree is a native of the West
Indies, and imparts a yellow dye. Great quantities are used for dyeing
linens, etc. The fustic is a large and handsome evergreen, and is
imported in long sticks.

Turmeric (Curcuma longa).—Turmeric is a stemless plant, with
palmated tuberous roots and smooth lance-shaped leaves. It is imported
from the East Indies and China. The root is the part which affords the
yellow powder for dyeing. It is also a condiment, and is largely used in
Indian curry-powder. Paper stained with turmeric is used by chemists as
a test for alkalies, and it is also used in making Dutch, pink, and
gold-coloured varnishes.103

Indigo (Indigofera tinctoria).—Indigo is
a shrub which grows from two to three feet in height, and is cut down
just as it begins to flower. It is cultivated in almost all the
countries situated in the tropics. The dye substance is prepared from
the stems and leaves, and is largely used in calico-printing.

Persian Berries (Rhamnus infectorius).—These berries are the
produce of a shrub of a species of buckthorn common in Persia, whence
they derive their name; but large quantities are also imported into
England from Turkey and the south of France. The berries are gathered in
an unripe state, and furnish a yellow dye.

Nut-galls.—These are found upon the young twigs of the Turkish dwarf
oak (Quercus infectoria), and are produced by the puncture of an
insect called Cynips. The supply is principally from Turkey and Aleppo.
Nut-galls contain a large quantity of tannin and gallic acid, and are
extensively used in dyeing.

Catechu.—This is obtained from the East Indies, and is the extract of
the Acacia catechu, a thorny tree. The wood is cut up into chips
similar to logwood, and after boiling and evapora104tion the liquor
assumes the consistency of tar; but when cold it hardens, and is formed
into small squares. It is extensively used by tanners in place of oak
bark.

Thus.—Thus is the resin which exudes from the spruce-fir, and is used
by some polishers in the making of polishes and varnishes.

Sandarach is the produce of the Thuya articulata of Barbary. It
occurs in small pale yellow scales, slightly acid, and is soluble in
alcohol; it is used in both polishes and varnishes.

Mastic exudes from the mastic-tree (Pistacia lentiscus), and is
principally obtained from Chios, in the Grecian Archipelago. It runs
freely when an incision is made in the body of the tree, but not
otherwise. It occurs in the form of nearly colourless and transparent
tears of a faint smell, and is soluble in alcohol as well as oil of
turpentine, forming a rapidly-drying but alterable varnish, which
becomes brittle and dark-coloured by age.

Benzoin.—This is the produce of the American tree Laurus benzoin,
and also of the Styrax benzoin 105of Sumatra, which is called “gum
benjamin”; it is used in polishes and varnishes, and as a cosmetic, and
is also burnt as incense in Catholic churches.

Copal is one of the most valuable of gums, and is furnished by many
countries in the districts of Africa explored by Mr. H. M. Stanley, the
discoverer of Livingstone. Copal is found in a fossil state in very
large quantities. The natives collect the gum by searching in the sandy
soil, mostly in the hilly districts, the country being almost barren,
with no large tree except the Adansonia, and occasionally a few thorny
bushes.

The gum is dug out of the earth by the copal gatherers at various
depths, from two or three to ten or more feet, in a manner resembling
gold-digging; and great excitement appears when a good amount is
discovered. The gum is found in various shapes and sizes, resembling a
hen’s egg, a flat cake, a child’s head, etc. There are three kinds,
yellow, red, and whitish; and the first furnishes the best varnish and
fetches the highest price from the dealers. Many of the natives assert
that the copal still grows on different trees, and that it acquires its
excellent qualities as a resin by dropping off and sinking several feet
into the soil, whereby it is cleansed, and obtains, after a lapse of
many years, its hardness, inflammability, and transparency.106

Dragon’s Blood is the juice of certain tropical plants of a red colour,
especially of the tree Pterocarpus draco. After the juice is
extracted, it is reduced to a powder by evaporation. It is used for
darkening mahogany, colouring varnishes or polishes, etc., and for
staining marble. Chemists also use it in preparing tinctures and tooth
powders.

Shellac—or, more properly, gum-lac—is a resinous substance
obtained from the Bihar-tree, and also from the Ficus Indica, or
Banyan-tree. It exudes when the branches are pierced by an insect called
the Coccus ficus. The twigs encrusted with the resin in its natural
state is called Stick-lac. When the resin is broken off the twigs,
powdered, and rubbed with water, a good deal of the red colouring matter
is dissolved, and the granular resin left is called seed-lac; and when
melted, strained, and spread into thin plates it is called shellac, and
is prepared in various ways and known by the names of button, garnet,
liver, orange, ruby, thread, etc., and is used for many purposes in the
arts. Shellac forms the principal ingredient for polishes and spirit
varnishes. Red sealing-wax is composed of shellac, Venice turpentine,
and vermilion red; for the black sealing-wax ivory-black is used instead
of the vermilion. Shellac is soluble in alcohol, and in many acids and
alkalies. Lac-dye is the red 107colour from the stick-lac dissolved by
water and evaporated to dryness. The dye, however, is principally from
the shrivelled-up body of the insect of the Stick-lac.

Shellac is produced in the largest quantity and the best quality in
Bengal, Assam, and Burmah. The chief seat of manufacture is Calcutta,
where the native manufacturers are accused of adulterating it with resin
to a considerable extent. The best customers are Great Britain and the
United States, though the demand in the Italian markets appears to be on
the increase.

Amber is a yellow, semi-transparent, fossil resin; hard but brittle,
and easily cut with a knife; tasteless, and without smell, except when
pounded or heated, and then it emits a fragrant odour. It has
considerable lustre; becomes highly electric by friction; and will burn
with a yellow flame. It is found in nodules of various sizes in alluvial
soils, or on the seashore in many places, particularly on the shores of
the Baltic. Amber is much employed for ornamental purposes, and is also
used in the manufacture of amber-varnish. It will not dissolve in
alcohol, but yields to the concentrated action of sulphuric acid, which
will dissolve all resins except caramba wax.

Pumice-stone.—This well-known light and 108spongy volcanic substance is
extensively quarried in the small islands that lie off the coast of
Sicily. Its porosity and smooth-cutting properties render it of great
value to painters and polishers for levelling down first coatings.
Ground pumice-stone is the best for cutting down bodies of polish or
varnish that are more advanced towards completion. The best way to get a
surface to a piece of lump pumice-stone is to rub it down on a flat York
stone, or, better still, an old tile that has been well baked.
Pumice-stone should not be allowed to stand in water; it causes the
grain to contract and to harden, thereby deteriorating its cutting
properties.

Linseed-oil.—This valuable oil is obtained by pressure from the seed
of the flax plant (Linum usitatissimum). Linseed contains on an
average about 33 per cent. of oil, though the amount varies materially,
the percentage obtained fluctuating considerably, not being alike on any
two successive days. This is partly due to the varying richness of the
seed, and partly to the manner in which it is manipulated in extracting
the oil, it being a very easy matter to lose a considerable percentage
of the oil by a lack of skill in any of the processes, though they all
seem so simple.

The first thing done with the seed from which the oil is to be extracted
is to pass it through a 109screen, to cleanse it from foreign substances.
The seed is received in bags containing from three to four bushels, and
pockets containing one-sixth of that amount. Having been screened it is
passed through a mill, whose large iron-rollers, three in number, grind
it to a coarse meal. Thence it is carried to what are known as the
“mullers,” which are two large stones, about eight feet in diameter and
eighteen inches thick, weighing six tons each, standing on their edges,
and rolling around on a stone bed. About five bushels of the meal are
placed in the mullers, and about eight quarts of hot water are added.
The meal is afterwards carried by machinery to the heaters, iron pans
holding about a bushel each. These are heated to an even temperature by
steam, and are partly filled with the meal, which for seven minutes is
submitted to the heat, being carefully stirred in order that all parts
may become evenly heated. At the end of that time the meal is placed in
bags, which in turn are placed in hydraulic presses, iron plates being
placed between the bags. Pressure is applied for about eight minutes,
until, as is supposed, all the oil is pressed out, leaving a hard cake,
known to the trade as oil-cake, or linseed-cake.

The product of these various processes is known as “raw” oil, a
considerable portion of which is sold without further labour being
expended upon it. There is, however, a demand for “boiled” oil, for
certain purposes where greater drying pro110perties are needed. To supply
this want oil is placed in large kettles, holding from five hundred to
one thousand gallons, where it is heated to a temperature of about 500
degrees, being stirred continually. This process, when large kettles are
used, requires nearly the entire day. While the boiling process is going
on, oxide of manganese is added, which helps to give the boiled oil
better drying properties. A considerable portion of the oil is bleached,
for the use of manufacturers of white paints.

Venice Turpentine.—This is obtained from the larch, and is said to be
contained in peculiar sacs in the upper part of the stem, and to be
obtained by puncturing them. It is a ropy liquid, colourless or brownish
green, having a somewhat unpleasant odour and bitter taste.

Oil of Turpentine is the most plentiful and useful of oils. It is
obtained in America from a species of pine very plentiful in the
Carolinas, Georgia, and Alabama, known as the long-leaved pine (pinus
Australis), and found only where the original forest has not been
removed.

Methylated Spirits.—The methylated spirit of commerce usually
consists of the ordinary mixed grain, or “plain” spirit, as produced by
the large distillers in London and elsewhere, with 111which are blended,
by simply mixing in various proportions, one part vegetable naphtha and
three parts spirits of wine. The mixing takes place in presence of a
revenue officer, and the spirits so “methylated” are allowed to be used
duty free. The revenue authorities consider the admixture of naphtha,
having so pungent and disagreeable a smell, a sufficient security
against its sale and consumption as a beverage. No process has yet been
discovered of getting rid of this odour. It is illegal for druggists to
use it in the preparation of medicinal tinctures, unless they are for
external use.

PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, LONDON AND BECCLES.

Crosby Lockwood & Son’s

LIST OF WORKS

ON

TRADES AND MANUFACTURES, THE INDUSTRIAL ARTS, CHEMICAL MANUFACTURES,
COUNTING HOUSE WORK, Etc.

LIST OF WORKS

ON

TRADES and MANUFACTURES,
THE INDUSTRIAL ARTS, Etc.