Glazing vs Toning for Cherry Kitchen Cabinets?

[Casey Gooding]

Generally, I do the same as Jim. I do, however, like to sit the project out in the sun for an afternoon or two, if weather and time permit. This allows the cherry to darken a bit and gives it a nice "tan". I use my BLO full strength.

[Scott Holmes]

You will see dramatic change within an 8 hour "tanning" session. Less after that, but still darkening for a couple of days...

I'm in Houston; your "sun" may vary. (every board is different, try to get all your lumber from the same tree)

Best proof of darkening; use a piece of black electrical tape to cover a small section on a scrap piece.

[Roger Jensen]

Does anyone do a shellac washcoat before the BLO? A recent issue of FWW indicated this could reduce blotching, even with oils.

I'm in the process of comparing Waterlox and BLO, both with and without a shellac washcoat.

At the rate I'm going I'll use more cherry on test pieces than the actual cabinet...

[Jim Becker]

Roger, since you want the oil to soak in, it would seem counter productive to seal the wood with a wash coat of shellac or any other sealer. There's no point on using the oil otherwise...go right to the clear coats.

Waterlox is not oil. It's a varnish. BLO is pure oil. So the comparison is between two entirely different product types.

[Jesse Cloud]

There's an interesting article in the current issue of Popular Woodworking. Bob Flexner writes "Cherry Blotches - Get Over It". He points out that any finish, even shellac, will blotch somewhat.

He says a wash coat of thinned shellac or lacquer will reduce blotching, but its still there, and there's no way to know how your particular batch of cherry is going to blotch without testing your finish on some scrap.

He does point out, however, that as cherry darkens with age, the difference in darkness between the blotches and the rest lessens a lot.

For what its worth, unless the piece is going to take a lot of wear and tear, I just use shellac and wax for a natural look.