Jessicaml, I assure you I never meant to offend, and kitchenaddict, I am glad no offense was taken. I think sometimes we get so close to a project that it can help to have more pairs of eyes looking at the result. I know that I have seen suggestions here that people have made that I may not have considered, or didn't notice, and I thought it was great that they did - otherwise, that might have been an opportunity missed. Speaking of the old master painting, what about moving that to the space where the Baroni pix is now, and putting the one from the DR wall where the old master was hanging? I think it would draw great attention to the piece, plus because it IS so different from the feel of the other pieces in the space, it might be a better fit there.

I used it on my guest bath cabs. It flaked off in one spot not long after finishing the project - prob due to my less than stellar prep job! But other than that spot (which I have yet to fix & was over a year ago) it has held up well. That bathroom doesn't get a ton of use though.

I believe the problem is more common with (boiled, i.e., catalyzed with a drier) linseed oil than with varnishes. Problem is, you don't always know what's in that can, so err on the side of safety. The oxidation (i.e., curing) of linseed oil is exothermic (generates heat). The general rule is these sorts of chemical reactions increase their rate with every rise of 18F / 10C in temperature. So it goes like reaction generates heat --> heat increases rate of reaction --> faster reaction generates more heat ---> more heat increases rate of reaction -->...repeat... --> ignition temperature reached with ready supply of oxygen and fuel. Despite what the Arm-r-Seal label says or used to say, "Oil and Urethane Blend" it's a thinned varnish. The label is finish doublespeak for varnish. I tell people it's like picking up a loaf of bread whose label reads "Flour, water, and yeast blend." But I do as the others, hang the rags up and dry until hard. I use the top edge of an empty metal trash can outside, throw them over a bush leaf-bare in the winter, etc. Every one of those safety cans I've seen has prominently displayed "Empty Every Night" stenciled across the front.

Thanks everyone. :) Terri_pacnw, I lightly sanded with 220 sand paper and then cleaned very well with Method spray cleaner and a sponge with a soft scrubby side. I think that is more important than the sanding. If you do a search for Celticmoon (garden web poster) and gel stain (search in Yahoo) you will find some great instructions. I also looked thru a bunch of blogs with instructions and took bits and pieces from all of them. I used a microfiber cloth and followed with tack cloth to get dust before each coat. Gry_Falcon, good look with your project.