bringing out curly maple

[ciscokid]

I recently purchased a pile of really nice curly maple with lots of flame for making some jewelry boxes. I want to make the stripes stand out without radically coloring the wood. I tried BLO and it just didn't achieve the effect I'm looking for. Should I try a weak anilin dye solution? If so, what color dye?

Anyone have any ideas?

[ozwinner]

I would use shellac, if you dont like the shiny effect that shellac can give just go over it when it has dried for a day or two with some wax with steel wool.

You can get white shellac too that hardly changes the timber colour at all.
http://www.ubeaut.com.au/ubhome.htm

Al

[NewLou]

Gidday ciscokid

I'd consider tinting what ever finish you choose with a dye. I think what your after is encouraging the figure to 'POP' without considerably changing the overall colour of your stock.

The dye you use to tint your finish to enhance the figure in your stock will depend on what kind of finish you choose to use.

For instance oil based finishes generally go best with oil based dye while best tinting agents for shellac, lacquer n waterbourne finishes are concentrated non grain raising dyes

The key to getting great results in this situation is use of "test pieces" and experimentation to get the finish you desire.

Check out the latest edition of Fine Wood Working MAgazine pg: 44 for a great article on using dyes to enhance your finishing.

Good luck with it & let us know how you got on!

REgards Lou

[old_picker]

I like to add a little maple stain to the lacquer and it warms it up nice. I dont like maple when its in the raw so to speak. A little colour makes the figure stand out. Some guys rub it with stain raw and sand it back. Ther is all sorts of tricks see here
search "staining maple", pop the grain, etc etc