this post was submitted on 03 Apr 2024
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Woodworking

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I would like to wood burn some designs into a nightstand but may want to add more burning down the road, after I coat it with shellac. From what I could gather, people mentioned to only burn and then seal, otherwise the burning after the shellac could cause issues, like releasing inhalants. Is that really an issue with shellac since it is “natural”?

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 7 months ago

I've done wood burning stuff a lot and you should burn first, seal after. Even if your finish isn't flammable (and most I know of are), you'd still want to finish again the burned areas anyway, so you may as well save time burning then sealing/staining/etc.