Recent content by Vintage Frames

To use a well worn cliche - if you wanted to go there, then you wouldn't have started from here! Using a spirit stain alone on pine is only going to give you a thin and dirty looking colour. Better to start again by sanding the pine wood first before making the frame. Use 180grit first to...

I forgot to mention something simple like diluted PVA/wood glue.

Well, I was wrong on that one. As I said though, the colour is coming off the dried wood, so I would experiment with a well diluted water-based varnish. Even a diluted traditional hide glue glaze. You just want something to soak in and seal the oak and not create a lacquered layer over the top.

Can I ask what you used to ebonise the oak? The blue tinge suggests you may have used a water-based logwood stain which would give that blue/purple finish on drying, ie the colour is coming off the dried logwood and not so much the oak.

Old glass has a lot of value to restoration companies, so it might be worthwhile ringing around your nearest reclamation yards and see what they advise. I buy in old picture framing glass from antique frame dealers and use it to re-frame antique art work but the glass is only 2mm thick. For...

You're right in saying that the Van Dyke colour is rather a cold tone. I use it to give a chosen wood stain colour a more 'antique' and characterful tone. So, as was stated already, I would mix up my chosen water-based wood stain first and then add the Van Dyke slowly to give the stain more...

Well, in that case, if we think of the frame in landscape format, then make the corner blocks separately first. Join the blocks to the longs at either end. Veneer those sections with the oak. Then veneer the shorts with the oak laid cross grain. Because the veneer will be cross grain, you will...

I'm a picture frame maker and have had several years' experience of making veneered frames. Can I ask what is the wood species you wish to veneer and is the base profile oak? And when you say to have the wood grain run parallel to the floor, do you mean running parallel on the side pieces as...

Decorative Carved Wood Mouldings & Corbels - DecWOOD

A cotton pad, a tube of toothpaste, and rub very hard for a few minutes. Try it.

Sanding sealer is usually just a shellac solution in alcohol with some zinc solids added, The zinc lubricates the surface for ease of sanding. Applying it to bare wood will seal the wood surface and prevent the stain penetrating, so you would always stain first. As with the excellent advice...

It wasn't actually Simon that recommended bees wax but me. I sort of wanted to keep things simple by not mentioning carnauba wax which might have frightened off anyone wanting to experiment some with wax. Yes, carnauba wax will harden the wax a bit more but can also inhibit the workability of...

First of all, don't use any branded wax finishes. Just use pure bees wax pellets dissolved in turpentine. The bees wax will give you the closest 'dry shine' polish achievable. All the branded waxes are adulterated with various resins and paraffin waxes which contribute to a greasy sort of...

I fear even diluting the varnish will not slow it's drying so that you can give the finish the care you want to use. Many modern varnishes have an excess of 'driers' in their mix. It's to cater for the hobby user who sometimes expects results in one coat. Buy a vanish from one of the more...

The small brown/grey flecks are old mould marks. Don't worry about them. You'd need to bleach them to remove and that could easily go south. If this was my table, I would have sanded as you have done already. Wipe over the table top with clean water and let dry. Go over the surface again with...