Glaze and antiquing glaze

Overview

A glaze is colour applied over a sealed surface and partly wiped away, just before the final topcoats. Fine Woodworking (Jewitt) describes it as colour between clear coats that adjusts overall colour, darkens pores, equalizes dissimilar woods and adds an antique look. Colglazier compares manipulating a glaze to painting, in contrast with sprayed toners (Toners and shading lacquer).

Pros

• Controllable: you decide how much to leave and where.
• Settles in pores, corners and carving, which suggests age.
• Fine Woodworking notes oil glazes are reversible, so mistakes can be wiped off. A tar-based glaze over shellac stays reversible as well.
• Evens colour between different woods.

Cons

• Needs a sealed surface, so it adds steps.
• Hard to get consistent across a big piece.
• Not a protective coat: it must be sealed under more clear finish.

Suitability

Works on any wood that is sealed first. Common on Black cherry to age it and on White oak to darken pores. It rescues blotchy staining by hiding it under a controlled colour layer.

Coats and application

1. Seal with shellac or similar. Fine Woodworking's cherry projects seal with SealCoat shellac (Shellac, Dewaxed shellac).
2. Glaze with a pigmented stain or glaze. Fine Woodworking #267 used a dark walnut oil stain over SealCoat, left 12+ hours, then topcoated. Another cherry recipe used asphaltum (roofing tar thinned in mineral spirits) over shellac, then more shellac.
3. Wipe back to taste. Fine Woodworking lists five steps for an antique finish: dye, fill the pores, glaze, clear topcoat, surface tricks. Fill grain under a film (Grain filler (pore filler)).
4. Water-based option, General Finishes Glaze Effects: translucent, over a sealed surface not raw wood; one coat of its High Performance Topcoat first for control; thin 5 to 10% with distilled water; Clear Base lightens; extender 10 to 15% (2% limit in California); wipe off the excess.
5. Topcoat to seal.

Compatibility

Over a shellac or topcoat seal, under clear finish. Gel stain works as a glaze (Gel stain). Oil glazes over a water finish should be tested. Preview base colour on a sample by wetting with alcohol or mineral spirits (Fine Woodworking).

Care and repair

Because the glaze sits between clear coats, scratches into the glaze layer show. Repair by touching up and recoating.

Safety and environment

Oil glazes and tar-in-mineral-spirits glazes are flammable and rags can combust; follow Oil-based pigment stain rag handling. Water glazes are low odour per the maker.

Related

• Distressing and antiquing
• Gel stain
• Toners and shading lacquer
• Colour matching and sample boards