Conditioning Pine with Shellac

[jeninouray]

In my attempt to match my pine windows with my alder trim, I conditioned a sample board with #1 shellac, coated with semi transparent stain, then rubbed in dark wax. It was a perfect match to the stained trim.

 

SO...I conditioned all my pine windows and now the semi transparent stain just will not "stick". 

 

Any ideas on how to get this water based stain to do the same thing it did on my sample board? 

 

[Tpt life]

Lightly sand the shellac. It will remain in the softer bits that tend to blotch by accepting too much stain. It is possible your wash coat was a little thick at the end if not continuously stirred.

[wdwerker]

Try a abrasive pad (like Scotchbrite) on the molded surfaces, the green is coarsest, then maroon, grey is probably too fine for your purpose. The fine scratches will give the stain something to stick to .

[jeninouray]

Thanks...that's what I thought I would need to do. And yes, you may be also be correct that the wash coat was too thick.

 

One more question: have you found any problems with applying water based stain over shellac? I've always used a gel stain over it and love the final look and this was my first attempt using it under a water based semi transparent stain.

 

Thanks in advance for your advice!

[wdwerker]

Do a test board ! Over coat it w shellac, let it dry completely, scuff the surface, stain, top coat then abuse the surface. Hard rubbing, scratching w fingernails and even score the surface w a razor knife . Then wipe the surface w a damp rag and see if the stain layer makes the topcoat peel off or fail.

[bob493]

a stain is designed to penetrate the wood. Shellac is designed to seal the wood. Succinct problem here. 

 

Using an alcohol based dye will solve your problems.