Matting agent

Jake Kaner <jkaner01 [at] bcuc__ac__uk> writes

>We are currently in painting and retouching a piece of Gerald
>Summers plywood furniture, which is coated with an orange pigment
>suspended in a cellulose based finish. Does anyone know of a
>reliable matting agent which we can add to this surface finish,
>bearing in mind that we do not want the result to be too opaque?
>Alternatively a matting agent for shellac may be another option that
>we could consider.

I have used a product called 'Shellac Flat' made by
<URL:http://www.homesteadfinishing.com>.  It is composed mainly of
silica and has been formulated for conservators.  If they cannot
ship to the U.K., I would recommend contacting a company like
<URL:http://www.wsjenkins.co.uk> or <URL:http://www.mylands.co.uk>
as I am sure they carry some type of flattening paste for adding to
shellac or nitrocellulose lacquer.

Martin O'Brien
conservator in private practice
Winston-Salem, NC


                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 19:43
                  Distributed: Monday, March 13, 2006
                       Message Id: cdl-19-43-010
                                  ***