A lesson in French Polishing

[kobblers]

Having had no luck sourcing a decent sole stain I came up with a cunning plan to try Shellac (Yes, you read it right) and the results were amazing.

 

Shellac's been used for years to enhance the natural beauty inherent in most hardwoods and it's regarded as being better than anything else available for protecting, sealing and bringing a deep shine to wood without having to resort to polyuretahne varnishes which tend to make wood look plasticy. This is why I thought I'd give it a try on Leather as it isn't too dissimilar to wood.

 

I recommend you good folk give it a try. It takes a bit of practice learning to apply it but is well worth the effort.

My advice is to 'French polish' the shellac which involves using what is known as a rubber but is in fact a piece of muslin tightly wrapped around a thick piece of cotton. You dip the cotton into the Shellac and then wrap the muslin around it tightly (so there are no creases in the material as this will cause streaking) and squeeze gently until a small amount of Shellac comes through the muslin. If you squeeze too much through then you risk blotching the sole.

There are many ways of French polishing but I find that if you work in small figure eights on the first coat you get better coverage and you can control the absorption much better. On the second and 3rd coat I tend to go gently and fully along the sole/wood without stopping (Try to avoid overlapping). The beauty of Shellac is that if you make a mistake and get blotching or thick streaks you can knock it back using meths and then just recoat.

 

Shellac is better bought in flake form and then added to meths as the ready made stuff has a very short shelf life, about six months. It also comes in various natural, tan and brown colours. You can alter the shades by using more or less meths when you make your mix up.

 

The more coats you apply, the deeper the gloss and the more hardwearing the finish.

 

Experiment and have fun \:D/

 

Shellac also makes an excellent adhesive and can bond glass as well as metal

 

Rick.

[Hugh-Candoit (ENG)]

Used this method 30 years ago to win Competitions, no-one knew how I had do it.

Made my own with the Flkes from Boots Chemist but then went onto "White Polish" ready made... still use it for sealing and varnishing at home.

I applied mine with a soft Paint Pad and also made a Pad from Draylon on a Foam base, less messy than a Cotton Wool filled Ball.

Big problem though...it crazes when you bend the sole. mmmmmm I can smell it now... bootifull.

[kobblers]

I tried the foam pad and wasn't impressed maybe the mix is a bit different now 'cause manufacturing methods have changed.

 

Sometimes mine cracks and sometimes it doesn't, it's prob an environmental conditions thing as the mix is always the same.

 

I can honestly say I've never seen a shine like it - shame leather doesn't have a grain simlar to wood as it's excellent for enhancing fine detail.

 

Rick.

[Gray]

It sounds great Rick but when you have spent so much time getting a superb finish just to watch the ungrateful customer go out of the shop and scuff away at the soles on the tarmac because they were to slippy seems to put a dampner on it. But I admire your dedication. Now I seem to remember my grandad talking of sour milk and ammonia as a finish...........or did I dream it Its always stuck in my mind for some strange reason.

[kobblers]

Ammonia and/or milk sounds familiar to me too rlj

 

Do you not put an extra finish on your leather soles then?

 

Rick.

[Gray]

I used to use 406 stain but it is crap now..I just leave them natural.

[keithm]

What about applying that kind of finish to a competition entry Rick?

[elfman]

velestone no 12 was the best i used with that stuff you could put a wood grain finsh on the sole rick

[kobblers]

Because I wanted to produce an entry out of the ordinary and they wouldn't let me when I told them what I had in mind

 

Personally and this is only personally and my opinion but I honestly think in this day and age they should be a little bit more flexible with the entry criteria if they want to encourage more people to enter

 

Rick.

[kobblers]

velestone no 12 was the best i used with that stuff you could put a wood grain finsh on the sole rick

I once saw a bloke take a normal piece of MDF and using just wood dye and a spreader produce what appeared to be a solid Mahogany door complete with the right sort of pitted grain. Now that's what I call talented.

 

Rick.

[Hugh-Candoit (ENG)]

Velostain as it was called was used to add the Sour Milk or Ammonia to give a lighter Bottom finish for Competitions.

I once a Comp with soles that had been French Polished, just never told anyone what I had done.

 

Rick.. I gave my Graining tools. Combs, Oil Base coats, Brummer (all dried up)to a youg lad starting out as a Painter /Decorator.

I inherited them from my retired uncle who taught me how to use them. Last year I took off my Kitchen door that had been grained to match some Teak furniture/Table that now looked miss matched with the current Cherry Units, still looked good as it went hurtling over the Skip. (forget to take off the Ingersol Mortice Lock).