First try at portrait

[Daddy Daycare]

I have only been at this for about 3 days and figured I would try all aspects to see what I like the most. Once I have a little more experience and some better blades I hope to be able to do more elaborate fret work.
Here are 2 I slapped together today.

Does any1 know what oil to use to bring the grain in the wood out more?

I have tape on the sides of each one because I have not finished them yet. They are taped to black painted cardboard.

[KtownScroller]

Hi Double D! That's some mighty fine cutting for a first attempt. I use Minwax Fast-Drying Polyurethane Satin on all my work. Thin coats dry fast (2 hours to the touch). One coat works real good when I make animal puzzles. Two to four coats works well for most projects.

[minowevie]

Hay there DADDy. this only your first try's. Shazammmm. they are good. I am not sure about the oil thing. sometimes the grain can take away from the portrait. I would just glue it to the back ground. and spray with some deft. or laquour. your friend Evie

[wood-n-things]

For a first attempt...Yer pretty darn good. Keep em comin.

[Scrolling Days]

Looks really great, DDC!

Generally tung oil finish does a great job bringing out the grain without raising it much. But I agree with Evie's point. Accentuating the grain on a portrait might have undesirable results and take away from the portrait itself. I'm sure there are exceptions, though.

[lucky788scroller]

Looks very nice indeed. I would danish oil them, then give em a few coats of aerosol Deft semigloss. Your did great cutting out those!

[Bill Wilson]

Couple of suggestions. First wipe your portraits with some mineral spirits before applaying any kind of finish. This will give you a pretty fair representation of what the wood will look like with an oil finish. If it is what you want, then you can proceed.

Next, it's always a good idea to test finishes on scrap, if you are unfamiliar with them. You don't want any surprises on your finished piece.

As for types of oils, the simplest one would be boiled linseed oil (BLO). It isn't great as a stand alone finish, but is often used to bring out the richness of wood grain, especially in darker woods like cherry, walnut, mahoghany, etc. You can also use tung oil, although many products that call themselves a tung oil finish, aren't really tung oil at all, so watch for that. There are no set standards for what can be called a Danish Oil, Antique Oil or Tung Oil finish, so it can be confusing as to what you are actually getting. Some are simply a thinned wiping varnish. Some are an oil/varnish mix, but keep in mind these are both meant to be a used as a topcoat, so if you intend to topcoat with something else, make sure it's compatible. Read the labels and the application instructions. Oil/varnish mixes will recommend that you apply, let the finish soak in a bit, then wipe off the excess. A thinned varnish is just wiped on and left to dry without wiping off.

[Haggard3230]

Very nicely done for your first's. I just spray mine with satin Deft lacquer.

[ubgoofy2003]

Hi, D D, great job cutting those. It is very satisfying when you finish a portrait, isn't it? I finish most of mine with Fornby's Tounge Oil. It doesn't over do the piece & treats it good. If you want a gloss finish, then just repeat the covering again until you get the gloss that you desire. I used painted card stock when I first started & now I use a black felt or foam for backing. You are doing a fine job for just starting. Keep it up. Perk

[Forester21]

Those look great!

What ever finish you decide on, after the first coat is dry, take a piece of brown paper bag and rub over the wood - this will remove the "fuzzies" that tend to pop up when finishing wood. Then your second coat will be much smoother.
T