Purple Heart & Bloodwood Care Question

[Roye Johnson]

I've not been into woodworking long, not sure I'm even up to newbie yet!! After lurking on this and other forums, I just had to see an honest to gosh piece of purple and red wood. So I pushed the learning curve to it's limit and purchased some Purple Heart and Bloodwood. Now I don't know how to help it retain it's color while it waits for me to use it. Nor do I know what is the finish to keep it's natural color after it's been worked. I appreciate any help you may be able to give.

Thanks
Roye

[David Eisenhauer]

I read your post elsewhere and you were given the straight story about the sun fading the purple heart. I haven't ever been able to successfully keep that beautiful, rich purple color you see when you first cut/sand the wood. For me, it would slowly turn brown over a period of time. U/V blocker in the clearest finish I could find, keeping the item out of the sun and away from windows helped, but at the end, it still turned brown for me. I haven't worked with purple heart in 10 years or more now, so maybe the newer finishes can do a better job. I don't mean to discourage you from doing something with the wood at all, just sort of-maybe plan on a slow change to brown. Best of luck.

[Roye Johnson]

Thanks for your honesty David. I rather imagine this will be close to a one time thing using Purple Heart and Bloodwood. I want to use it as trim on boxes for the most part. I feel it's pretty expensive for a major project. I'm not experienced enough to justify the expense. I will look for a clear UV protector finish.

Thanks for your help!

Roye