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As far as I know, Amber Shellac has been and always will be the classic retro finish for knotty pine. Our grandpas and dads were putting this orange-honey-gold finish on their unfinished knotty pine back in the 1950 and 1960s — and the product is still available today as Bulls Eye Shellac, by Zinsser, which is a Rust-Oleum Company. Shellac is a very interesting product — one of its key ingredients is insect secretions — I think that means, bug poop. (And you know how poop history always interest me.) Read on.

According to Rust-Oleum:

Bulls Eye® Shellac is an alcohol-based solution of lac, a natural resin imported mainly from India, that is available in Clear and Amber tones. Clear shellac dries transparent with a faint, golden cast that is much lighter than oil-base varnishes, while amber shellac has a warm, orange cast that gives a rich, antique-look to woodwork. Bulls Eye Shellac has many advantages over other clear finishes: it’s easy to use, dries quickly, is non-toxic when dry and cleans up easily with ammonia and water.

Digging into the “lac” on the Wikipedia, we learn:

Lac is the scarlet resinous secretion of a number of species of insects, namely some of the species of the genera Metatachardia, Laccifer, Tachordiella, Austrotacharidia, Afrotachardina, and Tachardina of the superfamily Coccoidea, of which the most commonly cultivated species is Kerria lacca.

The above-mentioned families are some of the 28 families of scale insects and mealybugs comprising a large group of about 8,000 described species of plant sucking insects, a few of which produce similar natural products (e.g., cochineal and crimson). Thousands of these tiny insects colonize branches of suitable host trees and secrete the resinous pigment. The coated branches of the host trees are cut and harvested as sticklac.

The harvested sticklac is crushed and sieved to remove impurities. The sieved material is then repeatedly washed to remove insect parts and other soluble material. The resulting product is known as seedlac. The prefix seed refers to its pellet shape. It is used in violin and other varnish and is soluble in alcohol. This type of lac was used in the finishing of 18th-century fowling guns in the United States. Seedlac which still contains 3-5% impurities is processed into shellac by heat treatment or solvent extraction.

The leading producer of Lac is … India. Lac production is also found in Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, parts of China, and Mexico.

…The use of lac dye goes back to ancient times. It has been used in India as a skin cosmetic and dye for wool and silk. In China it is a traditional dye for leather goods. The use of lac for dye has been supplanted by synthetic dyes. It is used in medicine as a hepatoprotective and antiobesity drug.

Back to knotty pine….I asked Rust-Oleum several questions about their shellac and also for their recommendations on cleaning knotty pine that already has a finish on it. They responded:

Q. Two finishes … and let’s talk “retro authentic”. Rust-Oleum Answer: We offer Shellac in a clear and Shellac in a traditional amber. The amber option is the one that will provide a warm amber-orange-ish color. It’s a personal preference whether or not you prefer the clear finish over the warm, amber finish. The classic Shellac does have that amber (a little orange-ish) tone, which is probably what you are referring to when you call it the “classic” or “patina” look. I would suggest using the amber option for a more retro look, but it’s a personal preference.

Q. Use a wood conditioner first? Rust-O A: If you are using Shellac on unfinished wood, wood conditioner is not needed. Wood conditioner is really only used on wood stains, not clear finishes including shellac.

Q. Is it oil or water-based? Rust-O A: Shellac is cut in alcohol with a little bit of water, but it is not considered water-base. When using a shellac, we suggest wearing gloves as its coating is extremely durable, hence you would not want to get it on your bare skin. 

Q. Cleaning knotty pine that already has a finish: Rust-O A: In regards to cleaning, a slightly damp cloth should do the trick. Never saturate the surface with water, instead a cloth is best to avoid puddling. Also clear topcoats should not be cleaned with the following:

• Any chemical cleaners with alcohol as an ingredient – it will may cause the shellac to gum up
• Vinegar – contrary to popular opinion, the acid in vinegar will slowly etch the surface over time and ruin the sheen of the wood finish
• Waxes and oil-based detergents: leave a sticky residue

Note: Clear shellac also can be used for a topcoat for wood trim, furniture and cabinetry. It’s not just for knotty pine.

Link:

• Bullseye Clear and Amber Shellac – available in spray can and multiple sizes of liquid cans, from Zinsser/Rust-Oleum.

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See my newest microsite: Knotty Is Nice!

How to decorate a knotty pine den, basement, sunporch or living room? Here are six ideas if you want to play up the classic 1950s outdoorsy kitschy look, using new sources available today as well as some vintage if you are up for the hunt.

more Full Swing

1. Barkcloth curtains: The pattern above is, quite aptly: “Moonlight in the Pines” from Full Swing Textiles. This would be so my favorite pattern to put in a knotty pine den, if I had one. As you can see, the intensity of the colors are perfectly dialed to harmonize with knotty pine walls. I am a big fan of this shade of green for knotty pine rooms. And the stronger pops of rust and black — great. I have several samples of Full Swing Textiles in my archives — this stuff is NICE, the best reproduction barkcloth that I have seen. They have more designs that would be great for knotty pine rooms – so fun to browse.  For other places that sell vintage- and vintage-style barkcloth see my story 7 places to buy barkcloth. Oh, and do I really even need to say it: You will transform this barkcloth into pinch-pleat draperies hung on traverse rods. Paint the traverse rods wrought iron black (assuming you have wrought iron cabinet pulls and the like.)

2. Braided rugs: Thorndike Mills is a Massachusetts company that has been making braided rugs since 1925. I <3 this company. And, I <3 braided rugs for midcentury modest houses, knotty pine or no knotty pine. Braided rugs like these are a great way to bring your accent colors into your knotty pine room in a subtle, pleasing and functional manner. These rugs can travel room-to-room easily, if you want to change up a look. And, these rugs will last forever — you will be handing them down to your grandkids. Braided rugs go on my timeless list. Note: Thorndike Mills’ website has been improved significantly since I first wrote about the company; so fun to play with their rooms selector — now we just need to get them to add a knotty pine room!

3. Early American decor: The vintage fire station sign above came from my mother-in-law, who bought it at a decorating store in Birmingham, Mich., in the late 1950s. It was new — not a real antique… all part of the Early American revival so popular throughout the post WWII period.

The horse saddle buckles are also vintage-1950s… and once I had three from my mother-in-law, I quickly received two more as gifts. Today, these varieties of Early American wall decora are not uber-popular. Yet, this stuff is also coming out of houses everywhere like crazy — because it was uber popular back in the day.Keep your eyes open, and you can find stuff like this very inexpensively. Once you get your head around Early American, you can see the loveliness — and this stuff is Well Made. In a knotty pine or wood-panelled room (like our cherry paneled basement family room), the strong colors really pop against the wood. Note: I have several decorative items with these same colors all grouped on the fireplace wall; you need things to make vignettes like these with a minimum of three items, at the least.

4. Wagon wheel lights: Okay, so you don’t have to go all-out for the antlers… but consider a wagon wheel light, or a wagon wheel-esque light… basically, consider Early American.
For example: I found the smallish “ship’s wheel” ceiling fixture above — with original hobnail glass shades — for like $5 at the Re-Store. I had it rewired, and it’s now in my office. I love it. The size of the light and its close-to-the-ceiling profile is just perfect for my small office. And there’s just something about its… retro gravitas. If that make sense.

5. Stiffel table lamps: If the kitsch factor of the wagon and ships wheels are a wee bit too much for you, take a look at vintage Stiffel table lamps from the 1950s and 1960s. They often have Early American styling — but sort of very classic, at the same time. They also travel room-to-room, house-to-house very well; we have two sets from my mother-in-law, these lamps are just lovely. They are abundant on ebay (above; *affiliate link), often at great prices. Get educated on what to watch for, and I bet you can find them at great prices locally, too. These were expensive back in the day — they are great lamps.

6. Wrought iron cabinet pulls and other accessory hardware: Wrought iron and knotty pine go together like peanut butter and jelly. Acorn Manufacturing is one of the top makers, but you can also find much less expensive knock offs. And remember, you’re gonna spray paint your traverse rod this color, too, before you hang your pinch pleats.

Readers, what other ideas do you have for
decorating a knotty pine room in retro-classic style?

And, have you uploaded your photos to our knotty pine interiors photo gallery?

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Can you help me tell the knotty pine story — by sharing photos of your knotty pine kitchens, dens, basements, sunrooms, tiki bars — all your knotty pine galore (bathrooms, even!) –  that I can use on the new website? It’s easy to upload your photos, below. I will be so grateful!  Get out your camera — most all cameras today do a great job, cell phones, too! Use natural light, and get artsy fartsy with your angles (get up on a ladder… lay down on the floor… take wide shots… take detail and accessories shots… Have fun — let’s show ‘em that knotty can be nice! Instructions on how upload your photos follow:

Upload photos of the knotty pine in your house, below… Tips:

• If you can figure out the setting, please set your camera to no bigger than “medium” images, so files aren’t too large — large files really slow down the slide show. 
• (2) Uploader DOES work but message you get on screen *may be* funky and confusing. Upload ONCE and trust the image it there — I just need to “set new photos free” from my control panel and will be checking hourly to do so. 
• (3) Terms of Use apply.

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