Powdery residue forming as shellac dries?

[The Spin Doctor]

Never seen that before. Not sure what I did wrong but it didn't go well. The same residue formed on wood also as I tried to pad a sealer on. Ended up scraping all of it off. Also noticed, if I rested my hand on the surface for a minute or more I could see the image of it when I took it away.

It's not cloudy like is often described when moisture is the issue though. It also scraped off pretty easily. It's fairly new shellac flake. And I made up a batch a month ago from the same alcohol and flakes without any issues.

Later I tried brushing a coat on another piece of scrap pine and it seemed to go on fine...

Do you think it's a moisture issue, or?

[Swifty]

Something contaminating the pad? Is it an old pad? I keep all my old ones, but I’ve never seen anything like that before 😀