Sanding and Finishing Projects

Originally, the word "varnish" meant a mixture of natural resin and drying oil. Today's oil varnishes usually contain synthetic resin, but like their ancestors, they're durable, beautiful and easy to apply.

You can now buy ready-to-spray glazing stain in aerosol cans, and that it is available in two formulations: one for wet glazing and one for "breakaway" or dry glazing. Let's look at what those are, how to use them, and how they can add character to our finishes.

Steer clear of finishing frustration on projects with a tight deadline by putting these practices from expert Michael Dresdner into place.

Our finishing expert demonstrates some great tricks to make your inexpensive wood look high-class.

Train yourself in the proper techniques, materials and equipment to avoid (and fix) mistakes.

How to get rid of these small problems, before they become big ones.

Splotching and grain reversal are the two big problems that arise when traditional oil-based stains are applied to softwoods. When done properly, softwoods can be stained evenly and beautifully.

Borrowing liberally from both furniture and car coatings, guitar finishes run the gamut from edible to high-tech.