FIRE ANTIQUING
QUESTION: MWT, Do tell
about this "setting a piece on fire" process. I am curious what this is all
about? Is it a crackle procedure? Thanks. SS 7/5/04
REPLY: A bit about setting
perfectly good furniture on fire.It's sometimes a part of the Antiquing process
I go through,trying to add some age to a chair or Settee.It is not used(the
process) to produce a crackle,which is done in a different manner,but the
two done together produces a finish that I like.After painting the chair,and
rubbing the final coat out to whatever degree or way that you do...you mix
up what I call burn mix shellac.3lb.cut amber shellac and denatured
alcohol.Ratio: 3to1 -3 alcohol to 1 part shellac.Do small areas at a time,OUTSIDE
the shop.Brush on liberally, and set off with a match immediately.This is
a good two person job,but I usually do it alone.The mixture flashes up and
burns off quickly, leaving behind a thin dark layer of cured shellac.Also
I add dark walnut Trans-Tint dye(Woodcraft) to the burn mix to darken the
result even more.There's more to all this than what I've described here.....but
you get the idea at least what it's about.After you burn the chair...you
still have more work to do to get the thing done.Experiment on
scrap!Additionally, the crackle additives one can buy, seems to be more trouble
than it's worth in my opinion, and fake looking.There's a better way, and
very simple to do. MWT 7/6/04. |
