These were made for a dentist's office to match other furniture in the waiting room. The interior designer wanted the floating top look. These were done with African Mahogany and dyed with a lye wash. Lye aka Drano aka sodium hydroxide will make mahogany turn a rosy reddish-violet. A nice base for stain. I mixed 1 Tbsp Drano in 1 qt water.
Two coats of shellac and some Briwax to finish.
The customer wanted glass tops, and with this small table there shouldn't be any problem with changes in humididy, especially since the glass is not really in contact with the wood, but felt pads.
And now a note about shellac. This is the unsung hero of finishes. It is non-toxic, natural, quick drying, easy to repair, beautiful, and cheap. And spraying it doesn't make your brain cells die like lacquer.
Shellac is a resin produced by a bug in India. The resin is extracted, purified and sold as flakes. The craftsman mixes flakes in alcohol to make his finish. There are some companies selling ready-to-use shellac, and generally they are very good and useful. I especially like the spray can for doing small projects or touch up.
Get the full story on shellac here.
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