What finish to apply? Recommendations

[JCLP]

Hi everyone. Just finished putting this artisan serving tray and wanted some recommendations on what finish to put on. I want to a clear finish that will stand the test of time and that brings out the colour of the Walnut and Maple. Thanks.
JC

 

[PA floor guy]

Rubio monocoat

 

[Scott B.]

Vermont Natural Coatings makes whey based clears that are very hard and ideal for that type of app.

 

[#Tee]

butcher block wax and conditioner used on cutting boards.

 

[Loren Woirhaye]

In order to "pop" color you'll need to use an ambering finish.  This is a quandary when wishing to preserve the whiteness of some woods in contrast to the dark wood.  If you want to keep it simple,  oils are ambering, polyurethanes are not.  Shellac as an undercoat is ambering to varying degrees depending on the shellac's level of refinement.  Spar varnish is both ambering and a tough all-round topcoat like poly.

If you're going to be using the object as a cutting board, that's a different situation and specific oils are probably the best choices.

Any topcoat which builds a glossy film on top will sort of appear to give the wood depth.  It is not the same as popping the grain color with ambering but it's not a bad effect by itself. As an exotic approach, the maple could be masked, the walnut ambered with shellac, the tape removed and any errant shellac scraped away.  Then  topcoats of a "white" waterborne poly.  This will give the maple the crisp paleness of some spruce guitar tops contrasted with the popped walnut with color variants brought out by the shellac.  Walnut can have a lovely range of colors and mineral streaks in it that are easily hidden by staining but not by shellac.

 

[JCLP]

In order to "pop" color you'll need to use an ambering finish.  This is a quandary when wishing to preserve the whiteness of some woods in contrast to the dark wood.  If you want to keep it simple,  oils are ambering, polyurethanes are not.  Shellac as an undercoat is ambering to varying degrees depending on the shellac's level of refinement.  Spar varnish is both ambering and a tough all-round topcoat like poly.

If you're going to be using the object as a cutting board, that's a different situation and specific oils are probably the best choices.

Any topcoat which builds a glossy film on top will sort of appear to give the wood depth.  It is not the same as popping the grain color with ambering but it's not a bad effect by itself. As an exotic approach, the maple could be masked, the walnut ambered with shellac, the tape removed and any errant shellac scraped away.  Then  topcoats of a "white" waterborne poly.  This will give the maple the crisp paleness of some spruce guitar tops contrasted with the popped walnut with color variants brought out by the shellac.  Walnut can have a lovely range of colors and mineral streaks in it that are easily hidden by staining but not by shellac.

Thanks Loren for the valuable info. Always great to learn from someone with experience.
Cheers,

 

[JCLP]

Rubio monocoat

Never heard of this, but I will look into it. Thanks.

 

[JCLP]

Vermont Natural Coatings makes whey based clears that are very hard and ideal for that type of app.

Thanks Scott. Found a dealer in the Toronto area and will contact him for a sample. Vermont Natural Coatings must be similar to a product I've used before called Livos from Denmark I believe. It's very pricey but produces a great finish. Also, it only has a shelf life 6-12 months as it is 100% organic.
Cheers,

 

[JCLP]

butcher block wax and conditioner used on cutting boards.

Hi Tee. I have some of this, but wanted to try something different. Kinda of experimenting with finishes.
Cheers.

 

[PA floor guy]

Rubio monocoat is an awesome product, zero VOC, made from plant extract. I use some of there products on floors.  It's very unique and very high end

 

[JCLP]

Rubio monocoat is an awesome product, zero VOC, made from plant extract. I use some of there products on floors.  It's very unique and very high end

Found a dealer in Toronto. I went to their web site, Rubio, and it looks very interesting. I will ask their dealer for a sample as I will have a house that has original floor boards from 1848 that will need to get re-finished to original state and sealed. The client wants to use as much organic materials as possible. It will be a great project to tackle.
Thanks again for the info.

 

[JCLP]

I decided to finish the tray with lacquer as I am familiar with it. However, I will experiment with the many recommendations that I received. Just need to find a local supplier in the Toronto are for some of these that you have mentioned.
Thanks again,
JC