Mesquite HF - WIP - Finished

[Kathy Marshall]

The finish was dry enough to buff today, so I'm calling it done.
I used the vinegar/steel wool solution and tried to lightly coat it so it wouldn't go completely black. A light coat was a little too much so I sanded back quite a bit until it looked about right, but when I applied the WOP it darkened right back up again. I sanded it back a little more so some of the grain would show through, but couldn't do anything with the endgrain areas (the ebonizing had gone all the way through to the inside.
It's 6" x 5" and has about 4 coats of WOP. I coated the inside with black gesso.
It was hard to get decent pics due to the color and gloss, so it looks better in person.

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Thanks for looking!
Comments and critiques are welcome.

[Tim Leiter]

Nice shape and interesting void. I can't help but try to imagine what it would look like without the dark staining. My personal preference is for wood pieces to look like wood. YMMV.
Tim.

[Gary Sichmeller]

Nice looking piece Kathy.

I've used the steel wool/vinegar solution on walnut and mesquite and was amazed how quickly they will ebonize those woods.
I've obtained some black gesso, but haven't had an opportunity to use it yet. How did you apply the gesso on the inside and how long was the drying time?

Again, the piece is very interesting. I've always been a fan of the egg shape and you nailed it.

[Leo Van Der Loo]

Kathy I did like it better before..............., this not .

[Dennis Ford]

I like it, I would like it even better in person as the dark color caused you so much problems with the photos. The form is perfect and the black interior keeps me focused on the grain pattern and form.

[Baxter Smith]

Nice form Kathy! Coloring wood is kind of fun though I don't always get what I had in mind to begin with!

[Sid Matheny]

I see it as being a real beauty Kathy. Sometimes what we wanted is not always best in the end. I love the almost solid black on this one.

Sid

[Kathy Marshall]

Thanks for the comments everyone!
Sometimes you just need to try new things just to see what kind of results you can get. I'm happy with how this one turned out, although I do wish I had sanded it back just a little more. It was fun trying something new and now I have a better idea of what I can do with mesquite.


Nice looking piece Kathy.

I've used the steel wool/vinegar solution on walnut and mesquite and was amazed how quickly they will ebonize those woods.
I've obtained some black gesso, but haven't had an opportunity to use it yet. How did you apply the gesso on the inside and how long was the drying time?

Again, the piece is very interesting. I've always been a fan of the egg shape and you nailed it.

Thanks Gary! I appied the gesso with a little foam brush. The gesso is fairly thick, so I just pour some in and then use the brush to spread it arround. It dries very quick, just a few minutes. It's usually the last thing I do so if I get a little on the rim, it will wipe off of the finish with a damp towel.

[Fred Belknap]

Like the form and I bet the finish looks better in real life than in the picture

[Thom Sturgill]

Kathy, I love the form and don't think the black is that bad.

I would like to know if applying and then sanding back a sealer before applying the vinegar/iron mixture would help control the level of darkening. Boiling the wood in water with baking soda added will leach the tannin, but I do not know how that would affect the turning. This boiling (and multiple rinses) is done to prevent the tannin leaching into aquariums when a piece of driftwood is added. Perhaps just washing it down with distilled water and sanding back the raised grain before applying the vinegar/iron solution would help.