Originally Posted by Glenn

Hi Kwendt, I restore antiques and have for years. Learned the trade in Germany when stationed there in Army. The best thing you can do on the raw wood with smoke and tar is to wipe down the surface with household ammonia(damp only) and do this twice. When dry coat the raw wood with clear or orange shellac from Lowes or Home Depot. You can also wipe down the wood with denatured alcohol which is better than ammonia. Use two thin coats of the shellac. I would recommend using shellac as the final finish on the outside of the cabinet. Most sewing machine cabinets that are fairly old all had shellac. You can tell what finish was used by rubbing a small spot with alcohol, if it desolves the finish then shellas was used, if not it is varnish. The shellac will block orders. I only finish my cabinets by stripping if needed then stain with a anline dye(water soluble). You can get in walnut and oak or any color you want. Then finish off with three coats of shellac. I hope this help and I will be glad to answer all your questions. Glenn