Hi

How are you? It’s been a funny old week here, new restrictions and all sorts. We’re still open and sending orders out though, although working out how to comply with all the new Brexit regulations has delayed overseas orders. We’re getting there.
There’s a lot of questions to talk about it seems…I’ve got three for you in a minute, and then there’s our Question Time which takes place in a week’s time, on 22 January, live on our YouTube channel. With Emma Cook, Richard Findley and Dave Lowe ready to answer your turning-related questions it should be a mine of information. There’s still time for you to send your question in, and even appear on screen – but only if you want to. To send your question in just hit reply!
And if you prefer to answer the questions, there’s our quiz at the end of the month too – I’ll tell you more about that below.
For now though, it’s my turn to answer some questions!

The topic of food safe finishes returns again this week, one day we’ll have a definitive answer on it. We are working on it, but getting raw materials of the correct grade is very difficult at the moment. Getting any raw materials is a struggle at the moment! Anyway, as you should know, our Microcrystalline Wax has been tested and approved for food contact. We were asked this week if it could be applied over Cellulose Sanding Sealer, and would it still be food safe? The honest answer is that we don’t know. To test the wax it was coated straight onto a glass beaker. Strictly speaking, we’d have to test it again but with the sealer applied first to know for sure. The best advice we can offer on this is to either apply the wax over Food Safe Finish, or just apply 2-3 coats of wax; the first couple of coats will act as a sealer, allowing a shine to come through in the final coat.

Our finishes get used on a variety of woodworking techniques, and this week a marquetarian approached us. He had produced a marquetry picture which included some white lilies, and he wanted a finish he could apply over the whole piece that wouldn’t yellow the white wood he’d used for the flowers. Normally we’d suggest an aerosol finish, as this is also least likely to cause any colours in the timbers to run, but our caller didn’t want to spray. The best solution then was to use our brushing Acrylic Sanding Sealer followed by the Acrylic Lacquer. Both brushable, and both unlikely to cause any colours in the wood to run. Best of all, these are also extremely clear when dry – despite their white appearance in the bottle.

And finally this week, a caller asked for advice about polishing a mantelpiece and became confused about the different colours on our WoodWax 22. Which one should they use after staining the wood to the colour they want? And that’s the important part; if you’ve already got the colour you want (either by staining or the natural colour of the wood) and don’t want to change it, just use the Clear. It won’t alter the colour at all. The others are designed to add a subtle tint to the wood, if you want to enhance the original colour or mask any minor imperfections. They could be described as stain waxes, and are a great way to colour patchy timber such as pine and get an even effect.

I mentioned our quiz earlier, if you want to have a go at answering our questions (but there won’t be any on finishing or turning, don’t worry – it’s for all the family) and don’t have anything better to do, come and join us on 30 January at about 7.15. The quiz will last roughly two hours, but the time will, I promise, just fly by. There’s a £50 prize, donated to the charity of the winner’s choice, so just follow this link to set up a reminder.

But before all that, I hope to see you back here, safe and well, next week.

All the best

Terry