finishing coat for shellac on red cedar

[tallen]

Evening all,

I have been having great fun restoring an old red cedar fireplace surround that, due to the very, very poor condition of the original finish I (begrudgingly) had to strip back to the bare timber.

Anyway, I found a jar of very old shellac flakes in a cupboard at my grandfather’s house - he has been dead for over 25 years so I have no idea of how old the shellac was. My grandmother thought that it could be as old as 35 - 40 years.

Taking advice off a number of websites that shellac, properly stored, lasts almost indefinitely, I decided to test it, and surprisingly its fine.I have subsequently brushed about 7 to 8 coats onto the surround which has produced a very nice result (I'm sure that 1 year-old shellac probably would have produced the same result(?) but I'm kinda chuffed - although feeling a bit weird about being sentimental over shellac flakes).

Anyway... my question - what final coatings / treatment would forum members suggest in order to finish off the project? The timber presently gives off that great golden shimmering effect that shellac is famous for. I really like this, but I do not want too much gloss.

Traditional wax...if so, which one? Perhaps Danish oil? This is the first time that I've ever worked with shellac.

Cheers,

Tallen
:confused:

[Sir Stinkalot]

Traditional Wax

[ubeaut]

EEE-Ultra Shine http://www.ubeaut.com.au/eee.htm This will cut the surface and bring up a more even finish and a brilliant glow then if you really must, Traditional Wax - Neutral.

Well done shellac needs nothing over the top - ever.

Do not use Danish Oil which is a finish in its own right and needs to be put onto raw timber, or any other oil for that matter.

Cheers - Neil