The next meeting of the Guild will be on January 19, 2021 via Zoom. The presenter will be Roland Johnson. The subject of his presentation is Coloring Wood.
Chromophobia is defined as a persistent, irrational aversion to colors and is usually a conditioned response. Sounds like a woodworking problem! Too many woodworkers are terrified of adding color to their woodworking, falling back on the hackneyed phrase “I would never ruin the natural beauty of wood by changing it’s color”. What they’re really saying is “I’m afraid of color, I might ruin the piece” and unfortunately in many cases that’s exactly what happens.
Rollie will show us how to change our conditioned response by learning how to correctly use color to bring out the best in a piece, no more bland! There are many factors that will determine the outcome of using color and we will make a grand tour of them, from grain direction to glazing we will find out why color works with wood the way it does. We will learn how to avoid the pitfalls of blotching and uneven coloring. Glazing can add to the allure of color and give a piece added depth and texture. We will also learn how to cover the color with an easy-to-apply long lasting finish that will bring bring out the brilliance. Color, it’s what makes the world beautiful.
Biography
Rollie Johnson has been messing around with stains, dyes and mysterious coloring agents since his high school days way back in the last millennium. He started a restoration business in 1976 and quickly added furniture building to his repertoire, reproducing antiques and building custom pieces as well as producing custom millwork. In 1997 he wrote his first article for Fine Woodworking magazine (a finishing article!) which started a relationship with the magazine that resulted in his becoming a Contributing Editor in 2004 and continuing to the present day. He has been a featured presenter for The Woodworking Shows for the past decade and in his free time plays Bluegrass mandolin. Rollie doesn’t like to be bored.