I fished for hints, and I think SWMBO wants me to make her project out of cherry.
I've never worked with it at all, and I don't know if there's anything in particular I should look for.
One thing I noticed is that there's sharp contrast, probably between heartwood and sapwood, in all the boards. Is it best to use one or the other? As the patina develops, does the color between the two level out?
I don't want to get into fuming or anything terribly complicated, since I have a bit less than a month to get this thing done. I don't want to
*stain* the wood, but I expect SWMBO wants what she thinks cherry looks like, instead of what I imagine cherry will look like with a finish on it.
Given time constraints, I'd like to just finish it raw anyway. Will the reddish color develop on its own under shellac after a year or two in a sunny dining room?
The project is actually going to sit in a living room where the curtains are never opened (it puts too much glare on the TV) so maybe I should think about lye? What do people use for "lye" anyway? Liquid Plum-R or some such?
This would be a good time to grab a copy of Flexner's book, wouldn't it?
I'm not sure if I will use cherry in any event. With less than a month, and a fairly large project at hand, it's probably best if I use walnut. I was hoping to get away with maple because it's soooooo much cheaper, and I need sooooo much of it for this thing, but the lady has spoken. She likes cherry, walnut, then mahogany. Doesn't like oak, doesn't like light woods in general.
Well, at least the lady has good taste. Too bad the woods we like are on the spendy side.