Serious question, my kid asked why I sand so much before staining

I was working on a maple dresser in the garage last weekend and my 8 year old asked why I spent 'a whole hour' sanding when the wood already looked smooth. I tried to explain about raising the grain and getting a clean surface, but he just said 'it seems like extra work'. It made me stop and actually think about how I explain the craft to people who don't get it. How do you guys talk about the prep work to clients or family who think it's just slapping on some color?

3 comments

3 Comments

garcia.jake3d ago

Man, that hits home. My sister watched me wet-sand a tabletop once and asked if I was just making sawdust for fun. I told her it's like getting a good sunburn before a tattoo, you know? The skin has to heal smooth first or the ink just looks bad later. That weird comparison actually made sense to her. Sometimes you just need the right picture in their head.

quinnm773d ago

Haha the sunburn before a tattoo thing is perfect. I once tried to explain sanding to my dad as "giving the wood a really close shave" and he just stared at me like I'd lost it.

quinncoleman3d ago

My buddy had a client who kept asking to skip the primer on some old pine shelves. He finally took a scrap piece, stained one half right on the raw wood and did the full sand and prime on the other. When he showed them how the raw side drank up the stain all blotchy and the prepped side looked even and rich, they got it. It's one of those things you have to see to understand why the boring steps matter so much.