Glass Beads For Sale

How do I polish wooden beads?

I'm trying to polish some small wooden beads for making jewelry with varnish. The problem is how do I dry them without getting lumps of varnish? If I set them on wax paper it pools around the bottom, if I pierce and suspend them, the varnish runs down and hangs from the bottom. They are very small, so I don't want to sand them (it would take hours) and I can't run them through a tumbler/polisher. Any ideas?

Public Comments

1. Why varnish? Please compare the methods and results of using varnish, acrylic, and wax. The problem with the medium running down and hanging from the bottom is a result of apply a coating that is too heavy. The traditional methods of avoiding this is by applying more than one lighter layer. Pace yourself so you have several "jobs" going at the same time, in various stages of completion. When I've made beads of rolled paper, my favorite shiny coating was a diluted layer of white glue. If I wanted the beads to look older, I used used Elmer's Wood Glue, which has a yellow tint.
2. Since they are made of wood, paste wax would work. Acrylic floor wax would also work. Make sure you apply thin coats.
3. I would put your beads on a piece of old wire so you can hang them from anywhere and spray them with spray varnish for painting crafts. It comes in a can and you can get it in glossy or matte. Not expensive at all and found at Walmart or any craft store that sells painting materials for tole painting. I used this on some old beads I had that lost their color and added a little fine glitter then sprayed them a top coat when all was dry. They gave the grand kids a thrill to wear. Phyllis