Thread: Chemically Enhancing the Colour of Wood?

GeorgeFrank wrote at least one book on finishing...he was a Hungarian born master finisher plying his trade in Paris, then New York after WW II. I have a copy of "Wood Finishing with George Frank" published by Sterling. ISBN
0-8069-6563-0

It is primarily devoted to french polishing techniques (and is a very good instructional manual for tat alone), but there is extensive mentioning of chemical finishing with recipes as well. No mention of any safety precautions is made in any of the stories, so use a modern person's standards in that regard. Materials Data sheets are available for most things via Google.

Sometimes old formula books like say a 1911 edition of Scientific American's book of Formulas (there are others too) will have recipes for such things, as well as other useful stuff like balloon varnish and sailing ship caulking.

Good luck

Greg

Thankyou for taking the time to reply to my original post, and thankyou for the bool recommendation.
Just out of interest, have you used any of the recipes in the book you mention yourself? It would be good to hear of any experience people have with these methods.
Kindest regards,
Alex

I haven't read the book in question, but chemicals have played a great part in wood colouring and preparation in the furniture and antiques restoration world for centuries. I have many plant extracts and (currently) illicit chemicals which I use for colouring and ageing furniture.

Probably the most renowned chemical treatment of Oak is its fumigation with strong ammonia. 880 ammonia is still quite easily procured and the colours it's capable of imbuing are quite wonderful. However, as with most of the chemicals involved with wood finishing, it's potentially lethal and has to be handled accordingly.

Acids and alkalis are the most frequently used chemicals and many varied depths of colour can be achieved by application of different strengths of the solutions.

Of the plant extracts, Van Dyke 'crystals' (an extremely tannin-rich powder made from a brew of Walnut husks) is probably the most commonly used these days (beware of 'Van Dyke brown' – it's nothing more than a brown pigment and does not possess the colour or characteristics of true Van Dyke), but various roots, bark, berries and acorns/galls/nuts etc. are of equal importance. However, due to their perceived inconvenience of use, most have fallen from favour.

Modern aniline dyes have largely superseded the old witches' concoctions in terms of palette range, but they often fail to replicate the multi-faceted character of natural substances.

Thankyou for an interesting and informative reply.
For anyone who's interested, here is the interview I mentioned in my first post http://londonjoiners.com/interview/norton.php

"A Polishers Handbook" written by a really, really, really, nice guy. (modest too) The book has a lot of good stuff about dying with chemicals and old fashioned dyes and lots more. It can be ordered and sent to the UK. There are a lot already over there.

Cheers - Neil

I don't know why, but I have yet to buy a copy of Neil's book. I'll correct that shortly.

WRT to the old recipes, I never remember to go looking for things like logwood extract and some of the other older ingredients. I have fumed oak before in a brief mission furniture experiment with surprisingly good results.

Another one is the use of iron brews on tanin rich woods. Last year I had to do some grinding on a chuck of cast iron in the driveway near a pile of scrap oak. The next morning all of the boards were a (really) deep black after the iron dust and dew reacted with the wood. Accidental ebonising-very effective and something that I want to explore further..

The other thing I've done but wouldn't repeat is the instant aging of cherry with Potassium dichromate. It is quick and effective, but I think the dangers of hexavalent chrome to the next guy years down the track are real enough to not bother with it. In the case of cherry a good suntan will do the trick anyway.

Greg

Much good stuff in the above.
George Franks is my hero.
potasium dichromate is wonderful stuff. (makes the eyes pop out on birdseye maple)
I first started using potassium D. 20 years ago and I'm still healthy - the container did have a skull and crossbones on it!
Liquid Nightmare (coined by George Franks) is rusted iron and white vingar, used to create "poor man's ebony"
Oxalic acid is great for bleaching woods to be later dyed with aniline dyes.
Chemical stains are the most penetrating and pernanent of 'stains'
Never tried fuming. George Franks tells a wonderful story about how he saved a finish in a bank using the technique.
Boxes below were treated with pot. dich.

AJS, I've got a 1921 book 'The French Polishers Handbook' it covers the making of loads of stains the way you describe.

I'm in the UK as well (Bristol) so if you'd like a photocopy (don't think I'll be breaking any copyright at that age) if you send me a private e-mail with your address I'll post you a copy.

I will share few of my experience in colouring wood with more natural ways :
1. Water & solvent staining , can be using natural colorants , e.q. :
- For glazing / pore highlight can use some natural tars , like bitumen , or burnt molasses. It will also create old tarnish dark effects , depends on the applied concentration & the way we rub it.
- For colouring , can use many kind of leaf and flowers that have strong colours, in Indonesia I can name a few , but not sure if available around your region. Also can use thick water from tobacco.
2. Darkening of the wood. We can use some materials to react with the lignin and resins inside the timber , for example , put the timber upside down , with the targeted surface we want to treat facing the chemical fume, we can use the fume of ammonia or Sulphuric acid to darken the timber ( may be masking some part , and expose the rest ) , or use hydrogen peroxide or also chlorine fume to bleach ( do not mix both , can burst / bubble up & hot liquid ). all of these treatment will not leave a heavy metal trace on the timber.
3. Try to combine step 1 with natural colorant and then fuming like number 2 to get various effects.

Hope can be a help.

Rudy