I made a side table this weekend from a lovely piece of sycamore which I have sanded down and it’s ready for its finish.

It’s got really nice grain structure but sycamore is a very light wood (nearly white) so I want a finish that will bring out the grain and give it a bit more pop, but not lose the light colour.

Very worried that linseed or tung oil will turn it yellow! But beeswax won’t give it anymore pop.

Any ideas?

Clear danish oil maybe?

Actually maybe not as it’s 50% tung oil

Coincidentally, I was googling recently to source a wax.
Found Drew Pritchard (Salvage Hunters) recommending Fiddes
Looks like a good range of wood finishes – might be worth phoning them?

Hopefully you’ve kept some offcuts to test various ideas…

You could apply a stain (just lightly with a rag – make sure it’s oil based). The grain will absorb much more than the surrounding wood. Then sand back to original timber (random orbital best for this) – this will get the grain quite a bit darker, leaving you with fresh creamy coloured sycamore otherwise. Then finish with a clear oil.

EDIT: not sure quite what you mean by “pop” but try a lighter coloured stain first – maybe light/mid oak. Anything darker may leave you with too much of a contrast between grain and surrounding timber.

DO NOT mix oil-based/water-based.

Osmo do a raw finish hard wax oil, I think it’s basically their normal oil with a slight white tint to lessen the yellowing effect.

Yep got a few offcuts.

Mean by ‘pop’ add a bit more vibrancy but def not yellow, so the word ‘stain’ sounds bad, hence why I was just thinking wax.

We get a lot of students asking the same question when making furniture from Sycamore.

We usually point them in the direction of acrylic varnish.
Any finish will slightly darken your wood but acrylic seems to be a good compromise.

I would apply a few coats and then denib it, and then perhaps a light coat of clear wax to give a little sheen.

A students table and clock from a couple of years ago.
Sycamore and purpleheart table, Sycamore, purpleheart and walnut clock.

Hmmm……wasn’t keen on an acrylic varnish as I didn’t think it would look particularly natural.

Ordered a pot of the ‘light’ clear fiddas wax as a starter as it was only £8.50 posted.

See what that looks like on a test bit of wood

Hmmm……wasn’t keen on an acrylic varnish as I didn’t think it would look particularly natural.

Think of it more as a sealing coat. Use matt and rub it back, then use your wax for a sheen.

If you apply it thick it won’t look natural but to be honest, it’s like milk. You’d struggle to apply it too thick.

Wax is also often applied too thick and ends up looking thick and patchy.
Very light application then buff.

Cool thanks kayak. I didn’t want that artificial look.

Any recommendations on the acrylic varnish?

Got the wax through and just need to pick up some 120 grit and wire wool today.

Is Kayak23 in the house? 😀

FWIW, we used a water-based stain (from these guys, via local supplier http://www.icaspa.com/ww/en/iridea_color ) on the wooden trim fitted around our new windows, and it does bring the grain out well.
A wipe over with meths beforehand also helped even more.

I’m a big fan of the osmo polyx stuff at the moment. The satin clear has brought out the worktop and other pieces of wood really nicely and has been the easiest to use for me.

Osmo Polyx oil.
Try it on a small area (offcut) first. Its ptetty good for a clear oil
Natural and breathable

To really bring out the grain You’ll have to use a darker oil.