131. Rosewood has never been very extensively used in interior finishing. Its dark, somber tone unfits it for most situations and its great cost unfits most people from even thinking about its usage. Therefore, while the last reason has not been a factor in discouraging its graining, the first one given has sufficed to confine its use to that of a few fancy articles of bric-a-brac or fancy pieces of furniture, and in the latter it has been mainly in the stained form that it is seen. As, however, it sometimes happens that a grainer is called upon to produce it upon a fancy box or something else, he should know how to do it.

132. The ground for rosewood should be compounded from venetian red brightened up with vermillion and lightened with white lead, but not too much. It should be of a decided red, and while but little of it usually shows through the dark superstructure of veins, and that little in the natural wood is always of a decided red tone, some grainers add ochre to the red, but that only serves to muddy up the red tone and should never be resorted to.

133. The main character of the wood should be put on with a sponge with distemper color consisting chiefly of ivory black, to which a trifle of umber may be added, but which is not necessary really. The main character of the wood is laid out in long, wide stripes, which should consist chiefly of a number of fine lines or veinings. The first laying out should be put on rather thin and allowed to dry, when the fine line work can be put on with the fan overgrainer, and the parts of the ground which have not been covered with the first wide stripe lay out mentioned should be gone over with the fan brush and a number of fine lines made running into the dark straight ones. It is between these that a little of the ground will show here and there only. The character of the wood should be well understood in order to make a fair imitation, and no one will attain that by being told “how it looks,” for that is impossible, rosewood being so unlike any other wood.

There is usually no overgraining necessary if the work has been properly done. Nor should the fine line work done with the fan overgrainer be blended, as the veining stands out sharp. As sometimes the beginner will be apt to have it show too much of the red ground, it may be well to give a glazing coat of ivory black in oil over the whole surface and to wipe up a few of the parts where the red ground is desired to show through. This will act as a protection to the work, too, and when dry a coat of varnish can be given it which will usually suffice then.

134. Many more woods could be given, but of all the rest yellow pine is the only one which is ever likely to be imitated, and very little of that excepting in the matching of some repair work. There is no reason for giving it a special description, as that given in paragraphs 94 to 99, and especially in 99, will come as near to it as it would be possible to make it.

QUESTIONS ON LESSON XXV.

131. What are the principal characteristics of rosewood?

132. How are the grounds for rosewood to be prepared?

133. How is rosewood grained?

134. What else is said regarding the graining of yellow pine and other woods.