26. Graining, as it has been hinted at already, has many operations which are common to the many kinds of wood imitated, the variations being the result of the difference in their application. Therefore it is well to give a general description of these, so that there will be no need of repeating them each time that the particular graining of different woods is presented. All that will be necessary will be to refer to the general directions given here.

27. The first operation for all kinds of graining is the painting of the grounds. In order that the superstructure should be lasting, the foundation must be good and appropriate to the character of the work being done or else trouble in the shape of cracking will be pretty sure to follow. If the woodwork is new and has not been painted before, it will be easy enough to lay this foundation rightly.

28. The wood should be well primed with raw linseed oil and white lead after the covering over with shellac varnish of all resinous and sappy parts in order to stop their coming through the paint coats. The second coat should be made from white lead colored up to something near the color of the finishing tint desired for the ground. This should be thinned with half raw linseed oil and half turpentine; it should be put on middling heavy after having first gone over the nail holes, cracks, loose joints, etc., with putty. The last coat should be put on stout, but well rubbed out and should be mixed from white lead tinted to the exact shade wanted for the graining ground. It should be thinned with one-fourth raw linseed oil and three-fourths turpentine. In cold weather or damp, non-drying weather it may be well to add just a trifle of drying japan, in order to insure the good drying of the several coats of paint, and it will be hardly needed to add that no coat of paint shall be placed upon the other until the former one has completed its drying. Three coats usually suffice to give a good, solid ground for graining.

29. As much of the graining done is over old painted work, there is always an element of uncertainty as to the results. If the woodwork has been painted only a few times, it will be easy enough to bring it to a good finish by the application of two good coats of ground color, where turpentine predominates, so that it will not be too glossy. If the woodwork has been painted a great number of times it will be useless to try to paint grounds over it, as then it will be apt to blister. It will be better to burn it off or get it off by using some of the paint removers, after which the painting of the ground may proceed as directed for new woodwork.

30. It also happens that graining is resorted to in order to hide the dark effect produced on cheap varnishes by age in the natural finish used over yellow pine, etc. It will be much safer to remove it with varnish remover, if many coats have been applied over it, which is usually the case. If it has only had three or four coats, the woodwork should be gone over thoroughly to remove as much of it as possible with steel wool, and afterward two good coats of ground color given it. The first one should be a trifle thinner than would be given over old painted work.

31. There is a rule for the proper tinting of ground which will always give good results if followed up carefully. It is this: No matter what wood one tries to imitate, either in its natural finish tone or in an imitation of one which has been stained to an unnatural color, always have the ground tint: as light as the lightest part of the wood which shows through. This will be the right tint for the graining of that wood.

32. It is refreshing sometimes to hear the discussions that take place among grainers as to the proper ground tints for various woods. No cut and dried rule can be given. The one given in paragraph 31 is as good or better than any. There is so much variation in the natural specimens themselves that no one nor two near-by tints would fill the bill. For this reason no ground tints will be shown in this manual. Under the several woods will be given the general tone of the ground by name only, as, for instance, the general ground tone for graining oak is a light buff, varying from a cream to a decided buff, according to the finished effect wanted.

QUESTIONS ON LESSON VI.

26. What is said of the general operations by which graining is done?

27. What preparations are necessary for the painting of grounds?

28. How is new wood to be grounded?

29. How is old painted work to be grounded?

30. How is old varnished work to be treated for grounding?

31. What is the general rule to be followed in preparing the ground work for any given wood?

32. What else is said regarding tinting the ground colors?