Shellac, Using a Mop

Having already looked at repairs and cleaning I shall move on here to talk about the final touches, toning and polishing of your repaired work. The most appropriate and traditional finish for any piece of antique furniture made in the last 200 yrs, is shellac, sometimes, called French polish; although, ironically in France it is known as “Vernis à Tampon”. There are two basic methods of application. Most commonly with a “rubber”, a specially prepared pad, (the tampon) this is used for large areas such as a tabletop. Or with a “mop” these come in various sizes and are normally used for mouldings, small objects or cylindrical parts, such as the table legs.
I shall be talking in the context of refinishing or repairing an existing finish rather than starting from scratch (no pun intended) on new bare wood, this would require a lot of preparatory work, like grain filling, that is mostly unnecessary on repaired work and will be covered at a later date.

Recently I described a typical chair repair, so it may be useful to carry on from there and describe how this newly repaired chair should be finished. With the exception of one or two unusual cases, using a “mop” is the preferred method of applying shellac to most chairs. A No 10 mop is the ideal size for this job and this will cost you about £25 for one with a soft hair mixture. Squirrel would be best, if you can find it, but be prepared to pay about three times as much for the genuine artical. The good news is, that if properly cared for, either will last a lifetime and actually improve the more you use it. Anything else will just not apply the polish in the same way, or hold anywhere near, the same amount of shellac without dripping. The shellac itself, you can buy already made up or mix your own by dissolving shellac flakes in mentholated spirit. However, if you are new to polishing it’s best to start with some that has been commercially prepared… it is one thing less to worry about. It does come in different types, which have odd names, like Button, Garnet, Lemon etc. The lightest of them all is Blond and this is the one I would recommend you start with. It is practically colourless, has been de-waxed and can be safely used on any shade of wood. You will also need some good quality methylated spirits; 400 grit silicone carbide abrasive paper (NOT wet and dry); clean rags and a few containers like jam jars or similar (pickling jars are ideal or even better an old stone Jar); “0000” wire wool, the synthetic kind is best; a small dish.

Before you can begin polishing, some cleaning up, is bound to be needed. Start by thoroughly removing any excess glue and then clean the chair by washing as described in an earlier newsletter. If the old polish is crazed or there is an excess of old wax you can remove this with a wash over with methylated spirit using the wire wool. Have a small dish of the meths into which you can dip the wire wool before you use it to wash down the chair. Use a rag to remove the resulting residue before it dries. Don’t overdo this, as you do not want to remove the delicate patina, only the old surface polish or wax. Follow this by washing with soap and water, then leave to dry.

Dilute a small amount of the shellac 50/50 with the methylated spirit into one of your jars. Apply one or two coats to the chair by dipping the polishing mop into the diluted mixture and squeezing out the excess against the edge of the jar. Then using long graceful strokes rather than stabbing ones work in a methodical manner, starting with the chair upside down and polish from the inside to the outside of the cage formed by the legs and stretchers. Begin your brush strokes at the top and work down. You will notice that the shellac foams and runs slightly. This should not matter too much, if it is sufficiently diluted. If, however you find a suggestion of a run when the first coat is dry, dilute the mixture further. The idea is to apply numerous coats so thin that they will leave neither runs nor brush marks, but a smooth even film built up as the methylated spirit evaporates. After finishing the lower section, flip the chair over and complete the upper part using the same technique. If you are working on two or more chairs at once, you will be able to work continuously. If only one, you must wait a few minutes for the polish to dry between coats.

The filling of surface defects is best carried out after you have applied at least two coats of shellac. This will have sealed any bare wood and prevent the filler contaminating and staining the timber. Proceed as described earlier. When the filling is finished and tidied up, go over the whole chair with the 400 grit abrasive paper. You only need to use the lightest of strokes here to remove nibs, work in one direction along the grain.

Now is also a good time to adjust and unify the colour.
What I’m going to tell you now is one of the closest guarded secrets of French polishing, so I think it is worth taking a few moments to explain fully. There is a wonderful substance, known as Vandyke. This can transform a mediocre looking piece of furniture into an expensive and desirable looking antique. Vandyke crystals are available from finishing shops, however they don’t come with the right instructions and you must make sure these are real Vandyke crystals made from the husks of walnuts and not Van Dyke dye. Liboron Vandyke, sold by Axminster Power Tools, is the right stuff.
To make up a reasonable amount, put about ½ pint of clean water in an old saucepan and get it nice and hot, but not boiling. Start adding the Vandyke a little at a time, stirring as you go to dissolve the small granules. It will start to thicken and become quite stiff, but continue slowly adding the Vandyke until no more will dissolve. Now tip the thick paste you have made into a jar. A pickling jar is ideal or even better an old stone Jar.
(Remember not to put hot liquid into cold glass jars, or the jars may crack)
Tamp the paste down as best you can and leave it to cool.

Now you are ready to return to your chair and continue building up the finish and colour. Start by sprinkling a few drops of water onto the Vandyke and then, using a 1-inch brush, work this around until you have a mixture the consistency of single cream. Brush onto the chair, working one area at a time. Then, taking a barely damp cloth, formed into a wad, wipe the mixture lightly along the grain repeatedly until the water evaporates leaving an even effect without streaks. Don’t worry if it is not right first go, you can wash it off and have another try until you develop the right technique and you are satisfied with the result. The small scratches and dings that are characteristic of any genuine antique piece will take up more of the Vandyke and appear darker. As will corners, joints and recesses. This is desirable and will give the look of an aged and correctly polished antique. Further coats can be applied. However, you must seal each one with two or three coats of shellac before applying the next.

The Vandyke can also be used for graining and matching larger repairs, or to imitate the build up of dirt in mouldings or recesses. Here, wiping with the wad will naturally highlight high spots, leaving the recesses dark, making the chair look “right”. When the Vandyke has dried, just run your hand over the surface to remove any gritty deposits that sometime are left. Now, continue with your polishing, applying successive coats of shellac as before. It is hard to say exactly how many coats will be required, but you should start to see a good shine after about 10. Once you are satisfied, set the chair aside and leave at least overnight or a day or two longer, for the polish to harden.

The shine you will have achieved will look a little too bright for a convincing antique, so you will need to soften this back to imitate the sheen of a well-used and polished antique chair. Do this by applying a good quality bees wax polish with the “0000” synthetic wire wool. Apply the wax sparingly and leave for a few minutes, then buff with a soft clean cloth or duster.
All you have to do now is stand back and admire your work. I am sure you will be truly amazed at the results you have achieved and will be encouraged to tackle even more ambitious projects in the future.