Bird's Eye Maple....grain and eye highlights

[Nathan Johnson]

I have one small board of birds eye maple, so testing on scrap isn't all that feasible.
What is my best bet to highlight the grain and eyes without too much color change? There's lots of interesting stuff to highlight, but nothing real dark or prominent in an unfinished state.

This is a small piece...a napkin holder...so durability isn't really a concern. My thought is BLO and wax to really highlight the figure, but maybe there's a better option.

Thanks!

[Nathan Johnson]

442964

This is the material I'm working with.

[John TenEyck]

For minimal color change blonde shellac or lacquer will do a nice job of bringing out the highlights. For a little more grain accentuation, you could dye it then sand it lightly after it's dry. That will leave dye in the soft areas but remove it from the harder areas. Then apply shellac or lacquer. Alternatively, a light colored wiping varnish like Arm-R-Seal will highlight the grain w/o darkening it much. This is what ARS looks like on curly maple.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/ACtC-3f3iaz86zWwAhPaqatDpi1bcxkxe-2jUPq3CLH4IToIuWibAUd26FxRvlDRhdIqCz4aFUD6FObg-x8iNuu6iB8PSjevwt5xaTICig2wFVngwqDsAKbb_0Yqnm0B40L Xr8HKLeUUam2VIWjbrmf8ueDYxw=w835-h626-no?authuser=0

John

[roger wiegand]

Most any oil-based finish and shellac as well will bring out the grain and eyes pretty well, careful surface preparation being key. To really pop the figure though nothing beats dyes (I like TransTint in alcohol). Even a very dilute dye will greatly accentuate the figure, sanding it back then even moreso. Curly and birdseye present a lot of end grain that will soak up the dye to create contrast without adding a ton of color to the overall wood. To keep the overall look as light as possible you can dye, sand back the flat grain to eliminate the color outside the end grain, and then finish with a water-based urethane that won't add any amber tone to the wood. Maple will, of course, amber on its own over time.

I'd strongly suggest getting some scraps of similar wood to try out finishes on; not quite as good as wood from the same boards, but way better than winging it. Surprises (mostly not good ones) lurk everywhere in finishing.

[Phil Mueller]

This is quilted maple (veneer) and curly maple with just ArmRSeal semi gloss. I didn’t get quite the contrast as John posted. Which just goes to say every board may be different.

443025

As suggested already, an initial application of dye or stain, then sanded back, will pop the grain more. There are a number of YouTube videos that demonstrate this...just search for “highlight curly maple” and they should show up.

[glenn bradley]

I do as Jahn does. I flood with shellac initially to allow deep penetration that enhances the contrast.