I had always liked how a gloss finish on the wood looks so very smooth. That was when I was young and not actually working the wood.

Now that I have been working with wood and have had some excellent advice from one of my brothers, I found my attitude towards finishes has changed a great deal.

While visiting one of my brothers, one day, we started talking about wood and the different types of clear finishes. I explained my preference to him and why. He smiled and said that he thought the same in the beginning stages of his journey with wood. Then, he said something that made so much sense I couldn’t believe I had never thought of it. I had always thought that what made the wood so very smooth was the polyurethane that sealed the grain.

Before he started to explain, he asked me to go up to his second-floor landing and look at the wood floor. I went up and remarked what a beautiful floor it was. My brother was considered a Master Craftsman at this time. I knew without asking he had installed the floorboards himself. The landing on the second floor had two, floor to ceiling windows. The sun was shining that day, and what a beautiful scene it created. When I went back downstairs, he asked me how the grain had looked on the flooring. I was awed at how the flooring was smooth, and the grain was defined. He smiled and told me that the finish on the floor was a satin finish. He then said to me that most people would put satin as a finish for the apparent reason that the floor wouldn’t be too slippery. His reasoning was more for the grain of the wood.

When the sun hits any wood with gloss or semi-gloss for a sealer, the sun will reflect off of it, and just like a camera flash in a window, it will hide what is behind the reflected light. WOW! I had never thought of that. When I asked about the roughness of the wood, he said, “Sandpaper takes care of that.” He did agree with me that there are times where the grain of the wood is not the focal point, and then gloss or semi-gloss is an excellent choice. Things like jewelry, small pieces like napkin holders, or handles of any kind. Those you would want a thicker sealer due to everyday handling.

Here I have a couple of projects I scrolled. As you can see, the German Shepherd with the side profile, the light bounces off of the wood, and you are losing a lot of character and movement this wood has.

For the long hair German Shepherd, I used a satin finish. While this wood has a nice grain, it is nowhere near as lively grain that the first piece has. I only wish I knew this before I had finished the first piece.