Dear James: I recently bought an older house. It has beautiful cherry woodwork that needs to be refinished. I have heard about a French-polish finish. Is this a good finish to use and how do I do it? ...

For shellac finish users, good news: Shellac flakes have become more plentiful. Even those familiar with shellac may not know that it starts out as a crusty protective coating secreted on tree ...

I discuss high-tech wood coatings. But from time to time, I will discuss something that is tried and true and, perhaps, not so high tech. Shellac is definitely a low-tech product. It is the secretion ...