The Framers Forum

I would like to black lacquer a white natural finish L frame and an old brown stained Victorian frame. I’m looking for a Japanesed black finish like an old Dutch frame, can anyone recommend a decent product I can use?

I also have a small piece of detail on the Victorian frame I would like to repair by creating a small mould elsewhere to make a small plaster cast of it to use as the missing part. Can anyone recommend any products for this and possibly a website showing the method. This frame is a personal one not for a customer that I can practice on.

I can deal with the easy one first.
If you want to make a cast from a detail on an old frame then buy this stuff -
https://www.mbfg.co.uk/polycraft-silicone-putty.html

Very easy to use. Just squish equal parts together for about 1 min, press firmly over the detail and leave for 10 min.
Gently remove and you have a perfect negative cast.

Now the other bit ..
Without going into a long palaver about building up layers of transparent finish to achive a fine Dutch ebony finish, a quick shortcut is to sand the wood smooth.
Stain it black with either a spirit or water stain.
Paint on a layer of Black Jenkins wood grain filler and leave overnight.
This will set hard and should be sanded flat and smooth with a medium grit sand-paper (180 grit)
Then spray on some coats of Chestnut Ebonising Laquer.
Finish with a coat of Transparent laquer for best results.

Thanks for your helpful advice, couple of quick questions:

1. When restoring missing parts on old ornate frames using casts, do you use a normal plaster of Paris mix and then what’s the best way to attach it to the frame and prep it for stain you describe later?

2. Regarding the lacquer coats, can this be applied with a soft brush as I don’t have any spaying facilities, unless someone makes a product in a can?

Nromally if I'm doing casting repairs, I would use gilder's compo.
Gold leaf Supplies sell it, ready made -
https://www.goldleafsupplies.co.uk/cat ... /?q=compo

It gets heated up in a microwave untill warm and putty like, pressed into the mould and then cools to a hard casting.
Or just use plaster of Paris - fine for small repairs.
Either can be glued down with PVA wood glue.

As its probably going to repair gilded ornament, just use some gilding cream and tone the colour down by stippling over with a mix of Van Dyke Brown and Raw Umber, student acrylic paint.

For the Ebonised finish, the Chestnut stuff is actually in a spray can.
And for a little bit more detail, sand the dried grain filler first with 180grit wet n'dry to flatten it. Then polish it with 320 grit to give a nice velvety finish.
E bay sells these grits in small quantities, post free -
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/133037801212 ... qXuOK7Zw

When spraying the laquer, go for 3 to 4 light coats instead of one heavy coat.
Lightly sand between each coat with the 320 grit paper.
A final top coat of clear laquer will finish everything off just nicely.