WOOD
FINISHING IN GENERAL
THE
wood finisher's ideal must necessarily be simply
that of making the most of what he has to work
with, producing the maximum of beauty and serviceability
under the circumstances. For no two jobs are
alike in all respects and he is seldom consulted
in the selection of the wood before erection.
In
undertaking a job of interior wood finishing
there are four factors which must be considered:
the kind of wood, the color decorative plan
for the room, the durability of the finish expected^
and the cost or investment of money to be made.
The
kind of wood to be finished determines broadly
the character of the finish to be employed.
We may say that in common practice woods are
finished as indicated by these groups:
Stain
Natural
Mahogany
Gumwood
Hickory
Redwood
Chestnut
Cedar
OakMahogany
Ash
Walnut, American Holly Walnut, American Walnut,
Circassian Bass ,
Paint
or Enamel Pine, white Pine, yellow Pine, Oregon
Fir Spruce
Butternut
Oak, white, red Cottonwood Rosewood Cherry Cypress
Cherry Rosewood Gumwood Birch, select Chestnut
Birch Gumwood Ebony Redwood Cypress Satinwood
Fir, select Cedar Redwood
In
addition to the kind of wood, the grade has
much to do with the selection of the finish.
The cheaper grades, and even the better grades
which have not been selected for grain, figure
and color by the mill, often leave one with
no choice of finish except as between paint
and enamel.
Trim
lumber which is not selected is apt to show
great differences in color, contrast and size
of the grain and figure. To finish such surfaces
in natural or stained color to have anything
like a uniform color tone is quite impractical,
because of the cost of bleaching, touching-up
and blending off-colored boards. So it pays
to have the trim lumber carefully selected and
matched at the mill. The increased cost there
is less than to have the wood finisher do the
matching.
The
color scheme or decorative plan for a room must
be considered by the wood finisher if he is
to make the most .of his opportunity. It is
his function to enhance by his finishing methods
the natural color shadings and grain figure
of the wood, to subdue too much contrast and
harshness of coarse grain and figure of some
woods, to carry out the color scheme by coloring
the trim wood to become part of the background
of the room, to make it match or harmonize with
the furniture,to so finish it that the surface
will be enduring,and finally, the finish must
protect both the color and the wood from moisture
and gases which discolor, crack and warp the
wood.
Wood
trim ought never to be finished with color or
grain figure so strong as to call attention
to itself. It is really part of the background,
with the walls, ceiling and floor,the background
for the furnishings of the room and not the
focal point of interest in the picture. The
display of strong, fantastic grain figure in
either cheap or expensive woods, except for
special novelty finishes, is evidence of poor
taste as a rule. The beauty of the natural grain
and of the color of wood or stain ought not
to be obscured by finishes which lack transparency
but woods finished to subdue strong contrasts
of grain color and to reveal only simple, graceful
contours of figure are pleasing to behold,and
as one lives with them day after day they sustain
interest and grow in appreciation of all who
love the beauty of harmony and simplicity.
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