How To French Polish | Priory Polishes
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- Опубліковано 20 бер 2022
- French Polishing is a traditional finishing technique of applying thin layers of shellac polish onto wooden antique furniture to produce a very high gloss finish and enhance the natural colour and appearance of the wood.
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Products used:
Liberon Fine Wood Stripper
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Harris Ultimate Stripping Knife
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Liberon Steel Wire Wool
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Liberon Wax and Polish Remover
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Priory Polishes Fine Cotton Buffing Cloths
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Repair King furniture Care Pack
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Liberon 3 Part Touch-Up Pens
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Liberon Spirit Wood Dye
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Rustins Grain Filler
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Liberon French Polishing Brush
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Priory Polishes Shellac Sanding Sealer
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Priory Polishes Shellac French Polish
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Liberon Raw Linseed Oil
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Restored by: antiquesworld.co.uk
Edited by: Ruby Driscoll
Music: • lukrembo - marshmallow...
Step 1 - 0:12 - Apply the Wood Stripper with a soft brush
Step 2 - 0:22 - Once the Stripper has reacted, use a Stripping Knife to remove the first coat
Step 3 - 0:31 - Re-apply a second coat of Wood Stripper
Step 4 - 0:44 - Use Grade 3 or 4 Steel Wire Wool to remove the old polish
Step 5 - 1:23 - Neutralise the wood and remove any remaining substances with Wax and Polish Remover
Step 6 - 1:41 - Wax fill any defects on the surface
Step 7 - 1:54 - Lightly sand the surface using a fine sanding pad
Step 8 - 2:07 - Colour any imperfections using our Touch Up Pens
Step 9 - 2:18 - Stain the surface with a Spirit Wood Dye
Step 10 - 2:41 - Grain Fill the pores of the wood with a clean cloth
Step 11 - 3:22 - Seal the stain and wood using Shellac Sanding Sealer
Step 12 - 3:56 - Once fully dry, lightly pad over with an ultra-fine sanding pad
Step 13 - 4:12 - Make a French Polishing Rubber
Step 14 - 4:28 - Apply the French Polish using the rubber in the direction of the grain
Step 15 - 5:14 - Apply the French Polish in circular motions to build up the polish and fill the grain
Step 16 - 6:15 - Leave at least 24 hours to fully dry and lightly pad over to a smooth finish
Step 17 - 6:28 - Apply straight coats in the direction of the grain
Another tip would be to make your polishing rubber much bigger ! Easier to handle and increases coverage
Yes a good tip!
Thank you so much for this very practical
Glad this video could be of help :)
Very good! 👍👊
Thank you :)
Super
Thank you :)
As a professional, qualified antique furniture restorer - conservator with over 30 years experience I would not recommend using any metal stripper tool as shown in this video. Such a technique could scratch or mark the substrate whilst removing the layers of old finish etc. Also if that does happen with Rosewood as shown in this demonstration it will cause a dark line / patch that will be impossible to remove with bleach, oxyalic acid etc.
My tip if you must scrape an antique furniture finish is to use unwanted credit/ debit cards or similar. Wearing leather gloves to gently remove the now softened finish with a plastic card works very well and then use the card to gather up the mess into several sheets of newspaper , wrap securely and dispose of safely
Hi, you are correct about the stripper in your previous comment, we always use a solvent based stripper as this is far more effective than water based. A stripping knife works perfectly with the stripper and as long as you use it correctly, it is very difficult to scratch the surface. This will also speed up the stripping time. Using plastic to strip with a solvent based stripper would not be recommended as this could melt the plastic and this is why we use a metal scraper. You can also use steel wire wool to strip but on Rosewood we use a fine grade as a harsh grade can darken the wood. Always wear gloves for safety. We do supply all these products on our website priorypolishes.co.uk :)
@@priorypolishes whilst I understand your point the use of plastic debit / credit cards work perfectly well when used to move the stripper and soften ed finish off the substrate and into a good clump of old newspaper. The technique is simple and swift thus not allowing the card to melt away. IMO there is always the danger of beginners abrading the surface with any metal scraper.
With metal exposed to solvents (new and old remanents thereof) and other unknown substances, there will likely be subtle chemical reactions and leaching of corrosive material deep into your precious wooden surface... Plastic is the way to go but used debit/credit cards??? They don't sell plastic spatulas ( spatulæ) in your hardware stores? I bought a set several years ago and they have proven to be extremely durable, and more importanly, very effectieve at removing old finish.
If you're a pro, then why the hell are you on these videos?
Purely out of interest to see what other folk say @@yeetnama9094
It's a really beautiful table, the wood is amazing 🙂
Thank you :)
its Ziricote FYI, amazing grain and fairly soft too.
Lol. It's Brazilian rosewood
@@tajnewell Beautiful and a shame to use such wood for a table
French polish with linseed oil last longer than regular wood stain
I have no idea what this method ( if a method at all ) but whilst linseed oil will darken a timber substrate, especially a light coloured one, it is not a substitute for a pigmented dye or stain. IMO the practice of applying oil to a surface then coating with shellac ( French polish ) is poor practice and why the need ? Absolutely no need
An interesting video with soothing music, I loved it.
Thank you, i'm glad you enjoyed this :)
at the first 2 application of shellac, talcum powder is used to fill the grain and to sand the surface smooth. then you get a glass like mirror surface. then you apply the rest of five layers over the course of the next 60 days. that's shellack in europe.
and the rubber is called cotton ball
Hi we have never heard of this process before using talcum powder! :)
before the 20th century there was no grain filler pase for sale, they used talcum powder to set in the grooves of the grain, until it filled them gradually, and the surface was glass like
Lol. Wrong. For a full grain finish you would typically apply about 200 to 300 coats, in two batches two weeks apart, for a half grain finish you would apply less than 100 coats over probably two days.
Talc is pumice, you never use that to fill, French chalk was often used to burnish with acid in water with the palm of the hand after drying.
Original grain filler was plaster of Paris and water dye / pigment, you would wet your wadding, dip it in the plaster, wet it again, then dip it in the dye / pigment powder and rub it in. You would remove the excess with hessian.
@@SilverSpur1the rubber is made up from double skinned 'rabbit' wadding which is cotton based, and the wiper, which is close weave cotton as used for hotel or hospital sheets. A partially dried, used wadding pad is called a fad.
You ever hand plane the surface down first after stripping? That wood looked pretty marred.
He didn't sand properly. He should of water washed to raise the grain and could of used a much higher quality ceramic or silicon carbide paper on a block p150 should of done it or a light going over with p120, then p180 and p240. You cannot use a plane as the venner is too thin.
when in the building up layers phase, how long should you leave between layers, does the french polish need to dry for 24 hours before the next coat?
Hi, apologies for the delay. This will depend on your room temperature but if your room is warm and dry you can usually add around a coat every 30 minutes to 1 hour. You will feel the polish start to get sticky if you are applying too quickly. Leave 24 hours between de-nibbing for best results. I hope this helps :)
When brushing, probably around 20 to 30 mins, with his dry coats in the video, about 5 mins. For rubbering, you should be able to do 3 to 5 overlapping coats one after the other, then wait ten mins, it's cumulative. Takes a few years to work out when to stop, thats why you never wear gloves, you need to feel the finish under the rubber.
How can I get access to all the chemicals?
Hi, We sell all of these products on our website priorypolishes.co.uk/, or in the description we have linked each product individually. I hope this helps :)
Leaving after 10 seconds...'music' is too annoying.
Hi Mike, thank you for your comment. On the video at the bottom left of the screen there is a button which mutes the music! I hope this helps :)
All the necessary supplies are available online and be careful as many are highly inflammable and if you choose a solvent based paint / varnish stripper you should wear leather or thick rubber gloves as this product will burn your skin. In my professional opinion with 30 years experience as a antique furniture restorer I only use a chemical solvent based stripper . Used sensibly and carefully they are 100 % more effective than the water based or alcohol based products .
Hi! Thank you for your comment. We do have all these products available on our website priorypolishes.co.uk :)
Leather and rubber gloves are useless, solvent will soak into the leather and will break the rubber within minutes. You need chemical resistant latex nitrile gloves like Nitrex 440 etc. These are normally blue.
Not the classic way....but interesting😉
Thank you for your comment, this has been done in the traditional way but using a few modern materials such as the Grain Filler to speed up the process :)
@@priorypolishes And that is why you can see the wood grain texture on your shellack in the end ;)
Lol this is 100% utterly wrong and would potentially cause thousand of pounds of damage to an important piece, like Chippendale, Sheraton or Vuilliamy, all of which I have worked on.
A very very good demonstration but the music is brain killing. Better to leave it silent.
I loved the music. To each their own
I just turned off the music for a bit....the loop did get to me a bit.
This is not traditional French polishing this is modern day polishing
Thank you for your comment, this has been done in the traditional way but using a few modern materials such as the Grain Filler to speed up the process :)
Wrong. This is a 100% amateur, totally incorrect way not to polish, this advice will ruin your item.
@@tajnewellWhy didn't it ruin his item then...just asking.
Nice work, but unfortunately you did not activate the translation for several languages, including Arabic, in order to understand or read what is written. First, because the video is proposed by UA-cam, and this means the largest segment on which the video will be shown from different nationalities, countries and languages, so you have to activate the languages as some do. I hope you will do what someone did one day when I asked him to activate the language, so he activated it and added the Arabic language, then he replied to the comment, he told me that he took the advice and that it is activated, and I can re-watch the video and all the videos
Looks grate!!! But is the SAME PROCESS THAT APPLYING ANY Stein with 3 coats of polyurethane!! 🤷♂️
Hi, this is a completely different finish as polyurethane will leave a thick finish that is difficult to repair if needed in the future. Polyurethane is also not a very eco-friendly finish. French polish is a more traditional finish that is smooth and highlights the grain beautifully. it is also easier to repair if needed and is more suitable on any antique pieces. I certainly would not use a polyurethane finish on any antique furniture or you will devalue it. Hope this helps :)
@@priorypolishesp
Excellent - let's smother this rosewood in a plastic coating!
Lol you just ruined the piece polishing it totally wrong and embedding half a ton of oil into the shellac. I will give you a million quid to the charity of your choice if you can post a high res photo of the surface now and it has zero cracks 😂
I hate living in Idaho, USA. No oak, maple, hickory, mahogany, walnut, cherry, birch, teak, ipe, nothing decent. Just pine and fir.