The process of my wood art:

• Cut it
• Sand all sides
• Danish oil sealer 3x on the back
• Burn it
• Seal the 5 burnt sides with Danish oil
• Let cure for 2 to 4 weeks depending on the wood density
  • Pine 2 weeks
  • Maple 6 weeks
• One coat every third day.  Sand between coats. Continue applying coats until the indentations from the burning are filled. Number of coats required ranges from 20 to 32.  I leave a tiny bit of indentation except the line work.
• Cure another 2 weeks before it is ready for sale.

My older finish process is the same except after the Danish oil:

• apply paste wax for a buttery sheen.. paste wax is 6 coats
• leave on for 6 hours before hand buffing with an old t-shirt.

Material used:

• Systems 3 Boat varnish. Oil base only
• Watco Danish Oil
• Crystal Wax
• All finish materials are bought at Woodcraft of Greenville

You can contact Leslie Leuthold on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/leslie.leuthold.3