How to Wax Your Woodcarving

                                           


                                  By Jim Hingst 

Jim Hingst explains how he uses Liberon Black Bison paste wax to accentuate the contrast between highlight and shadow in  a woodcarving.

After seeing some of my carvings that I had just polished, a friend told me that he used shoe polish instead to shine his woodcarving. He claimed that his polishing technique was the same as the one he used in the Army to polish his boots. I was reasonably sure that he was kidding. Or was he? In fact, joking or not,  he was right that polishing wood is very similar to polishing shoes.

I have been using colored furniture wax polishes for years to add a finishing touch to my carvings. I have been using them strictly for aesthetic reasons.  The waxes do not provide great protection for the woodcarving. And they are certainly not a substitute for stains and sealers.

The reason that I use colored waxes is that they can add  subtle warmth to the woodcarving and provide a uniform and pleasing finish to the surface.  My choice for colored paste wax is Liberon Black Bison furniture wax (http://www.liberon.co.uk/woodfinishing/wax-polish.html). This premium British product costs  twice as much as American paste wax polishes, but it is worth the premium price.

What I like about the Liberon wax is the buttery texture. That characteristic makes it  very easy to apply. This brand is available in a range of colors. Just to be clear, the colored paste wax does not stain the wood itself as wood stains do. Instead the layers of wax on the surface are colored.

Liberon Black Bison Paste Wax
Available in a wide range of colors, this  furniture wax features a
creamy texture which makes it easy to spread. 

While paste wax can be applied to raw wood, if you want to achieve a highly polished finish, you must begin the finishing process by sanding the surface smooth with fine grit sandpaper, removing any dust from the wood with a tack cloth and sealing the surface with shellac or a wiping varnish. A smooth, clean surface is critical because the polish mirrors any imperfection. If the sealed surface of the wood is rough, no amount of polish will disguise it.

In waxing the surface, sparingly apply the wax. One key in creating a gloss finish is to let the solvents in the paste wax evaporate after application until the wax hardens. The rule of thumb is to wait 15 to 30 minutes after waxing before buffing the surface with a clean cloth.

Buffing removes any of the excess paste wax. If the wax is not completely dry, you will merely remove too much of the wax that you have applied. This is a waste of time and paste wax. To get a good shine, you should apply additional coats of wax, waiting 24 hours between each application.

One way to bring out a high gloss finish is to do a final buffing of the waxed surface with women’s panty hose. I have no idea why this works so well but the finish sparkles.

The colored Liberon wax also can collect in the crevices of a carving. I intentionally leave some of these dark waxes in these recesses to accentuate the contrast between highlight and shadow giving the piece some added dimension and character. 

Final buffing with women’s panty hose will result in a glossy finish.

In applying paste wax I use an industrial heat gun to melt and evenly distribute the wax over surface of the carving. I also use heat to remove any excessive build up of  colored wax in the crevices of the carving. Once the wax melts, you can use a chip brush to dab away any of the wax that you want to remove.

The final ingredient to a great polishing job is time – lots of it, and plenty of elbow grease. Your extra effort will pay off in spectacular results. 

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