French Polish

[john4703]

We've got an old table that is French Polished and has a few stains where someone has put wet cups or vases on it.
I have a vague memory of French polish being a mix of shellac and mentholated spirits.
Can anyone tell me a bit more about how to prepare the surface and how to apply the French Polish?

 

[Notch7]

Sadly French Polish is melted by alcohol.
so makeup remover, wine, spirits etc ruin French Polish.

it’s a bit tricky to apply, you need a rubber - wadding in a lint free cloth. The shellac is applied in figure of 8 movements and the rubber needs a tiny amount of linseed oil to lubricate.

I tried it 35 years ago and never mastered it

 

[john4703]

Sadly French Polish is melted by alcohol.
so makeup remover, wine, spirits etc ruin French Polish.

it’s a bit tricky to apply, you need a rubber - wadding in a lint free cloth. The shellac is applied in figure of 8 movements and the rubber needs a tiny amount of linseed oil to lubricate.

I tried it 35 years ago and never mastered it

I remember being shown how to do it in a woodworking class at school but as I left school 57 years ago my memory has faded. The rubber and figure of 8 sounds familiar.