Finish

I bought some unfinished, unstained pine furniture. I want to put a finish on the furniture, but I do not want a high-gloss finish. What are my other options, and what is the best method for applying the finish?

The first thing that you must do is test the wood to see what it will look like when you apply the finish. Apply a thin layer of paint thinner across the surface of the wood. This will allow you to see what areas of the wood were not sanded properly. Wood may look well-sanded when you buy it, but this is rarely the case. Before you apply any finish, you must sand the entire piece thoroughly. There are alternatives to a high-gloss finish. There are matte, satin, semigloss, and gloss. What you should be aware of is that the higher the gloss, the better protected the wood will be. You can buy stains that have absolutely no finish. They come in gels and liquids, but both should be applied with a foam brush. Once that has dried, you can apply any type of transparent finish. If the pine furniture does not have a lot of mechanical wear, then the finish you might want to use is tung oil, which will leave a deep oil finish.