DIY Network

Inlaid Serving Tray: Finishing Touches From "Wood Works" episode WWK-508

	The contrast of the rich bubinga and delicate yellow satinwood strike a beautiful balance that's highlighted by the decorative marquetry of the center design.
	The decorative inlay was created using traditional marquetry techniques, four distinctive hardwoods and a technique known as sand-shading to give the leaf designs a three-dimensional appearance.

With the serving tray assembled and the glue dried, the final steps in the project are to create the decorative cove-cut on the edges of the frame, and to apply a fine lacquer finish to the piece.

Materials:

Table saw
Hand scraper
Gooseneck scraper
Sandpaper (220-grit) and wood dowel
Hand plane
Fine-tooth file
Lacquer wood-finish
Lacquer sprayer
320-grit and 1200-grit sandpaper
Naphtha
Pumice powder
Sanding block
Rags
Protective rubber gloves and respirator

Safety Alert: Always wear safety goggles or safety glasses when
working with wood, power-tools, saws, drills, routers, etc.

Safety Alert: Always wear protective gloves, and ensure adequate ventilation, when working with wood stains, solvents and other toxic solutions. When working with spray finishes, it's essential to wear a respirator mask.

advertisement

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C

Cove-Cut for the Frame

• Remove any excess hardened glue from the frame or panel using a hand scraper.

• For design, a cove cut is made along the edges. This decorative feature will also effectively serve as a handle. The sweep of the curve removes a fair amount of wood from the frame, but still accommodates the biscuits on the corner. Make the cove cut at the table saw, cutting 1/16-inch at a time and raising the blade incrementally until the desired shape is achieved.

• With the fence clamped at an angle on the table saw, cut the cove in incremental passes raising the blade at 1/16-inch at a time (figure A).

• It may take up to a half-hour to complete this gradual process of making the cove cut on all four sides (figure B).

• Use a gooseneck scraper to remove the saw-marks in the cove (figure C).

• Follow up with 220-grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel. Use a hand plane to soften the edges of the frame. Finish up with a fine-tooth file.

Lacquer Finish

For a durable, semi-gloss finish, we opted for nitrocellulous lacquer. This finish will be highly moisture-resistant, making it suitable for serving food and drinks from the tray.

	Figure D
	Figure E
	Figure F

• The lacquer finish is applied with a sprayer. Spray the lacquer evenly over the entire surface of the tray. Begin with the outside edge, and apply a light coat using an even, sweeping motion lengthwise along the tray (figure D). Apply a second coat, spraying in the opposite direction.

• Between each coat, lightly sand using 320-grit sandpaper.

• Repeat these steps until you have built up seven to ten coats of lacquer on the tray.

• To complete the finish, rub out the surface to remove any small imperfections (e.g., dust and over-spray) using 1200-grit sandpaper and naphtha as a lubricant (figure E). The naphtha prevents the lacquer from gumming up the paper.
  
  Important: Only rub in the direction of the grain.

• Finally, spray the surface with water and add fine pumice powder (figure F). Rub the surface with a cloth bob. The water speeds up the cutting action while the pumice smoothes the surface and takes down the sheen of the glossy surface.

Design Tip: If you have difficulty in deciding on a design for your marquetry, you can gain inspiration from books. Check your library, bookstore or craft store for books containing design clip-art and other artwork that's intended for reproduction.

Click here to order your tools and materials for this project from Woodcraft!