Series editors' preface - Wood Tools

634 Conservation of Furniture
pointed and thinner at one end, round and full
at the other. The pointed end may be used for
applying polish into corners. Some texts
recommend soaking the wadding in polish,
allowing it to dry and then moistening it with
a little methylated spirits before shaping it.
This both prevents the loss of stray fibres that
may end up on or in the polished surface and
‘pre-charges’ the rubber so that it is ready for
immediate use. Alternatively the rubber may
be prepared and the wadding may simply be
charged and squeezed out several times until
the varnish solution is evenly dispersed
throughout but excess has been removed.
The wadding is wrapped in a 25 cm (9 inch)
square of lint-free cotton, such as an old, good
quality handkerchief. The twist of cloth is held
in the palm of the hand while the index and
middle finger are placed just behind the point
(Figure 13.13). The base of the rubber should
be flat and can be made so by pressing it onto
a clean dust-free surface, or into the palm of
the hand, as was the traditional method. The
size of the wadding and rubber may be
adjusted to suit the work in hand, for example
a small rubber may be useful for the corners
of framed panels. There is a degree of ‘feel’
to the application of French polish and traditionally
no gloves were used. After a polishing
session it may be difficult to remove all
traces of shellac from the hands. Shellac is
soluble in water if the pH is raised slightly.
Rinsing the hands with a solution of household
washing soda, a mild alkali, after a
polishing session will usually remove it. A skin
cream may be applied to protect against
dermatitis. If gloves are used to protect the
hands from solvent and stain, they should be
thin and tight. Polishing rubbers should be
rinsed through with methylated spirits and
stored in an airtight container when not in use.
The surface to be French polished is
prepared by rubbing over with abrasive paper
to remove any scraper marks, glue or other
contaminants. Water or oil stain may be
applied to the surface and allowed to dry
completely. A traditional French polish is a full
grain finish, so grain filling was required if the
wood was a mid- or dark colour with open
or semi-diffuse pores, such as walnut or
mahogany. The pores of light-coloured or
close-grained woods were filled with polish
during an extended bodying up stage.
(f)
(a)
(g)
(e)
(b)
Figure 13.13 Wrapping wadding for a French
polishing rubber. The cloth is twisted from a point at
the narrow end of the rubber (c), and then along the
top of the rubber (d,e,f ). The twist of cloth is held in
the palm of the hand. Two fingers hold the point flat,
whilst the body of the rubber is held lightly between
the thumb and remaining two fingers (h). The base of
the rubber should be pear-shaped, uncreased and flat
The application of polish began with a
brush coat of shellac. While references for a
wide range of concentrations can be found, a
two pound ‘cut’ (i.e. two pounds of shellac to
the gallon of spirit, or 100 g to 500 ml) works
well through the initial and bodying up stages,
after which the alcohol content is gradually
increased until it reaches 100% for pulling over
or spiriting out. Some polishers prefer to use
isopropanol (propan-2-ol) or butanol (butan-1ol)
for spiriting out as they have less ‘bite’ than
IMS or ethanol.
The French polishing rubber is opened and
the rear of the wadding charged with polish.
Excess is squeezed back into the bottle and
the polish applied to the surface using long
strokes. The rubber is charged repeatedly
(c)
(d)
(h)