It has been very cold in NW Missouri, which prevents me from using the finishing room to complete the spraying of the toner coating on the dust cover for the desk; I would have to open windows to bring make-up air into the shop (the exhaust fan pushes out 2,200 CFM – a complete change of volume in the shop every 5-1/2 minutes!). So, for now, the dust cover sits in the finishing room, where it is a cozy 74°F. Meanwhile, after many hours shoveling snow, and pushing it around with the tractor, I finally got into the shop again today. And I turned my attention to some pre-finishing on the walnut legs.

Garnet shellac enhances the color or walnut. That is what I will apply as the first step in the finishing process, using lint-free rags. But first, the sanding dust must be removed, using moist lint-free rags:

As soon as the wet rag hits the wood, the grain “raises” and the wood surface becomes rough. I use 600-grit sandpaper with light pressure to remove the raised grain, and make the surfaces smooth again:

The garnet shellac I have been using for several years is Target’s Ultraseal-WB, a waterborne, dewaxed shellac that seems to meld with the Target topcoats; notice the gorgeous color imparted to the walnut by the garnet shellac:

Because the Ultraseal-WB contains water, the wood grain will again raise, but only slightly. With two applications, the coating can be sanded smooth, without cutting through the coating into the wood. I will check results in the morning, and continue with the finish. At this stage, only the garnet shellac will be required, and the legs will be ready for initial assembly of the desk.

— Al Navas