Iron Oxide Finish

I've been experimenting again with different finishes and I read in a book that you can make your own finish for oak by mixing vinegar with iron of some sort (I used iron wool and a jam jar full of malt vinegar).

I put this mixture together three weeks ago and I decided it was time to test it out. On a piece of oak I arboteched out I could see the oak change colour slowly in front of my eyes, it ends up almost being a petroleum blue - a really amazing colour.

I then experimented further by turning a strip of oak and leaving the middle its natural colour (finished with shellac) and texturing the rest, then adding the stain and rubbing on a light covering of liming wax, this gave it a nice contrast. In the end I textured it again after I added the liming wax and applied more of the stain as it only reacts with the bare oak and could fill in the gaps.

Does anyone else have recipes for stains and finishes I can try? I've really enjoyed this experiment and I can see me using it in my future work.

Spirit Stains And Liming Wax

Although my wood turning classes have finished for this term I couldn't help but email Chris (my tutor) a question or two the other day, I thought he might be missing my thousand questions a lesson. He emailed back that he'd rather come and show me than write it down, so on Tuesday night he came over. This caused a bit of confusion with me as I thought he said for me to go to his and I was over half way there when my wife phoned to tell me my mistake!

We had a good few hours for Chris to show me new techniques involving texturing, painting then liming to give different layers of colour. Using the arbotech and a metal cutting disc in the grinder to give texture and interest. He was quite annoyed at himself when he forgot the blow pipes to show me with spirit stain, but I think we still created an interesting piece. I didn't mind not using the blow pipes as he'd already gone out of his way to teach me all these things, so I was surprised when he phone me up the next night to say we'd have a another crack at it to cover all the techniques. this time though not on oak (as it was too hard for the texturing) so to bring something else to try it on.

I brought round some beech I had left over and we set about making something different, still doing a bit of texturing and liming (the liming was difficult to get right) but working more with the spirit stains on an area that we roughly textured. We used the blow pipes this time and it gives a more airbrushed effect.

Again I know these pieces aren't to every ones taste (Gorges!) but I like them and had a really enjoyable couple of evenings making them in good company. I think I'm very lucky to be friends with someone who's such a good tutor.

Thanks again Chris.