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Monday, October 23, 2017

How to Make Your Own Wiping Varnish

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                                                   By Jim Hingst

For years, I have used a mixture of varnish and mineral spirits as a wiping varnish. After many thin coatings of this mixture, the result is a beautiful, smooth finish. There are no drips, no streaks, no runs, no bubbles and no dust that has dried in the finish. 

I believe that because a wiping varnish soaks deeply into the wood, it strengthens the wood fibers and better preserves it than a surface coating.  The finishing touch is waxing, which I apply after the wiping varnish hardens for a week. Before then, the varnish is too soft, and can be dulled by the solvents in the wax. The only downside to finishing with a wiping varnish is that the process is time consuming.

While this wiping varnish recipe has for me, I have used other recipes. Some popular recipes are mixtures of boiled linseed oil, Tung oil, varnish and turpentine. These finishes are usually applied to bare sanded wood using a lint free rag. The mixture will freely soak into the wood. Continue to apply the wiping varnish, until no more soaks in. After waiting 15 to 30 minutes, wipe off any excess with a clean rag. Then wait for the coating to dry before adding more coatings.


Real Milk Paint Pure Tung Oil




● 100% Pure Tung Oil without any additives and no thinners.
● Penetrates deeply into the wood fibers providing water resistance.
● Enhances the natural beauty of wood.
● Excellent finish for woodcarvings, wood bowls and wood flooring.  
● Produces an elastic oil finish, which expands and contracts with changes in the substrate. 


The two Celtic crosses were treated with several coatings of a wiping varnish. The basic recipe that I used was modified with each application by increasing the ratio of varnish to the other components. 


Continue applications of the mixture to your wood project until the wood will no longer absorb any of the wiping varnish. This can take as few as four applications or more than six coatings. If there are any rough spots between coatings, you can sand the surface with 0000 steel wool.

Whichever recipe you decide to try, you should always “Test, Don’t Guess”, before using it on one of your projects. This way, you avoid one of those painful learning experiences, which we all dread.

While not fixing something that isn’t broken is pretty good advice, trying new products and new techniques can improve your results. With this in mind, I have tried variations of the recipe listed below:

Alternative Wiping Varnish Recipe: Mix equal amounts of Tung Oil, turpentine and varnish. Woodworkers have used many different types of varnish for this recipe. Spar varnish, which is also called Marine varnish, is an excellent choice for this recipe, providing a very durable finish. A safer alternative for turpentine is mineral spirits. I prefer using pure Tung oil. Other people will substitute boiled linseed oil for the more expensive Tung oil. Compared to Tung oil, boiled linseed oil has a more orange hue as it ages. 

 What I like about pure Tung oil is that it imparts a warm yellow shade to the wood. If that coloring is not your cup of tea, you can mix a little dark Tung oil with the standard Tung oil. This will darken the grain of the wood as shown in the above picture of the cross on the left. 

You can vary the standard recipe to achieve the results that you desire. If you add a little more turpentine to your mixture, it will flow out more readily. If you want to retain a more natural look to the wood surface, increase the amount of oil. On later coats of you may wish to decrease the amount of oil that you use and increase the proportion of varnish in the mixture. A higher concentration of varnish will provide better protection to the surface of the wood. On any of the final coats, in which you increase the amount of varnish, you may want the wiping varnish to dry more quickly before dust settles in the finish. In this case, replace turpentine with Naphtha, which dries faster.

After varnishing, I polished the carvings with dark oak  Liberon Black Bison paste wax. 


While there are commercial products sold as wiping varnishes, making your own is more economical and it gives you the opportunity to better control the finishing process. 

Essential Reading for Artists


One topic that fascinates me in the field of art are the materials and techniques of painters, especially the Old Masters. So much of what an artist uses and how he uses these materials affect the durability of the painting. Failure to understand the physical properties of pigments and oils used in painting, and how one material chemically interacts with another can result in problems. 

 To ensure the longevity of a work of art, an artist needs to thoroughly familiarize himself with the materials, tools and  techniques of his trade. What's more, because many of these materials are comprised of toxic chemicals, he or she needs to know the hazards involved and how to deal with them. Here are four books in my library that I believe are essential reading for artists. 



The Artist's Handbook of Materials and Techniques


If you are an art student or serious artist, The Artist's Handbook of Materials and Techniques by Ralph Mayer belongs in your bookcase. Called the “Painter’s Bible”, this reference book explains the chemistry of commonly used art materials that you should understand. These materials include pigments, drying oils, solvents and varnishes. The Artist’s Handbook provides information on how to make your own paint and painting mediums, how to prepare a canvas and how to care for your tools. In addition to oil painting, Mayer’s book also covers tempera painting and encaustic painting. Originally published in 1940, The Artist’s Handbook has been revised several times. The fifth edition is now available.


The Materials of the Artist and Their Use in Painting: With Notes on the Techniques of the Old Masters


The Materials of the Artist and Their Use in Painting by Max Doerner, a German artist, who painted in the impressionist style, was an authority on the materials and techniques of the Old Masters. Originally, this book was published in1921. It is still relevant for any artist or restorer, who wants to learn the techniques used by the great painters of the past.


Painter's Handbook


 First published in 1993, The Painter’s Handbook by Mark David Gottsegen provides artists with essential information about art materials. The book also offers step-by-step recipes for making paints, varnishes and gessoes. In addition, it explains how to prepare your supports and how to preserve, store and restore paintings. Gottsegen, who chaired the ASTM committee on artist’s materials, also covers the health hazards, which artists routinely encounter, as well as how to safely handle materials in your shop or studio.

Artist Beware, Updated and Revised: The Hazards in Working with All Art and Craft Materials and the Precautions Every Artist and Craftsperson Should Take


 Often artists and art students are unknowingly exposed to highly toxic chemicals or work in poorly equipped studios. Gases, solvents, dusts and fumes can be toxic and threaten your health.  If you work with art materials, you need to read Artist Beware, by Michael McCann PhD. This book provides details regarding toxicity of chemicals, flash point and common uses for these art materials. McCann also explains what personal protective equipment an artist should wear when working with hazardous materials.


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About Jim Hingst: After fourteen years as Business Development Manager at RTape, Jim Hingst retired. He was involved in many facets of the company’s business, including marketing, sales, product development and technical service.

Hingst began his career 42 years ago in the graphic arts field creating and producing advertising and promotional materials for a large test equipment manufacturer.  Working for offset printers, large format screen printers, vinyl film manufacturers, and application tape companies, his experience included estimating, production planning, purchasing and production art, as well as sales and marketing. In his capacity as a salesman, Hingst was recognized with numerous sales achievement awards.

Drawing on his experience in production and as graphics installation subcontractor, Hingst provided the industry with practical advice, publishing more than 150 articles for  publications, such as  Signs Canada, SignCraft,  Signs of the Times, Screen Printing, Sign and Digital Graphics and  Sign Builder Illustrated. He also posted more than 400 stories on his blog (hingstssignpost.blogspot.com). In 2007 Hingst’s book, Vinyl Sign Techniques, was published.  Vinyl Sign Techniques is available at sign supply distributors and at Amazon. 

Slides of Jim's Artwork


© 2017 Jim Hingst

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