- Like most types of paint, shellac can be applied to wood and walls with a paint roller. The paint roller should be dense foam to achieve a smooth finish. Foam rollers are the best to use because they won't leave roller lint in the finish of the painted shellac, but short-napped rollers can also be used with success. Roll the shellac on the walls like you'd roll on any typical paint, using a "w" motion to keep the paint evenly dispersed.
- A paint roller can give shellac a smooth finish, but spraying shellac with a paint sprayer will give you smoother results. Dump the shellac through a strainer before putting it into the paint sprayer. Cover floors and other areas of the room that you don't want coated with the shellac with painter's tape and drop cloths. In most cases, the shellac should run through an HVLP sprayer without thinning. If thinning is needed, simply add a small amount of denatured alcohol and stir completely.
- Shellac can be easily applied with a paint brush. The biggest difference between painting shellac and painting another type of paint like latex is that shellac tends to dry very quickly. In fact, shellac typically dries in 30 minutes. This means that touching up and re-coating shellac too quickly will result in brush marks in the finish. The best technique is to work carefully, but quickly, using a synthetic bristle brush. Allow the shellac to dry completely before re-coating.
- There are many benefits to using shellac. One of the main reasons shellac is used is that it can be "rubbed out." Rubbing the finish of the paint will smooth out the imperfections in the finish, hiding divots and scratches. Shellac also levels easily when applied. Another advantage to using shellac is that it dries quickly, so several coats can be applied in one day.
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