When blending shellac, especially if you are using a dark color like you'd use on skirting boards then always ensure that you use 99% ethanol. Obviously it depe

When blending shellac, especially if you are using a dark color like you'd use on skirting boards then always ensure that you use 99% ethanol. Obviously it depends where you live so availability may be a problem as that strength may not be permissible. Often consumer-grade industrial ethanol is only available at 95% strength the remaining 5% water and denaturant. The 5% water doesn't seem much but it can cause the shellac to go slightly milky in color. This can be quite noticeable if you're trying to match colors during the touch up of some old work. The transparency of the schellac isn't the same so even when you match the color you can still notice the difference. Also, if there's too much water in the alcohol then the shellac won't harden properly - or you'll notice a textural difference in the finished surface.