So before I got too far along in the finishing process, I made up a sample board for The Client so she could compare a few of the available finishes:
Much to my everlasting glee, she opted for my all time favorite finish: Danish oil with a poly top-coat.
I did decide to use some gel stain on the backs, as I kind of wanted them to be dark so they'd tie in with the edge banding. I gotta say: this stuff is great! It goes on really easily, it penetrates evenly across the wood, and doesn't raise the grain at all. My only real issue is that it didn't seem to get any darker with a second application, so I kind of wasted some time and stain there, but thems the breaks.
I did use a wood conditioner first, and it certainly seemed to help as I didn't get any weird blotchiness, even though the wood was pretty pale for such a dark stain. (General Finishes "Candlelite", for the record. Highly recommended.)
And then it was just a matter of putting down two coats of Danish oil and three coats of wipe-on poly, with a little steel wool burnishing in between. (This picture represents about two weeks of dust and fumes, three foam brushes, and a half-dozen rags.)
And then they were done.
Finally.
Here are a whole bunch of pictures.
And this is what they looked like in her living room, waiting for some books.
This was an insanely challenging project and I loved every minute of it. (Except for that first attempt at a glue up. That sucked.)
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