Finishing a driftwood wand

[LadyCelt]

Hi there!

During a recent trip to southern Oregon, I picked up a piece of driftwood. About 8 inches long, perfectly shaped for my hand, already smoothed by the ocean. I'm not sure what kind of wood it is. There are many coastal redwoods in the region where i found it, but I don't think it's redwood. It's too light in color - most likely it's some sort of conifer: pine, spruce or fir.

What would be the best way to preserve it? Right now I'm letting it dry out and some rough edges are appearing around some of the age rings. Should I sand it once I'm sure it's completely dry?

Thanks!

[Corwen]

Sanding with fine sandpaper (240 grit) will probably be alright, but you have to be sure to work with the grain to avoid tearing fibres out of the surface.

Assuming it is only going to be handled occasionally no finish should be necessary (unless your house is full of woodworm or termites!). Anything you put on it will darken it and make it shiny, it won't look like driftwood any more, so I'd just leave it.

[wyeuro]

you're obviously connecting with it strongly, and loving it will preserve it better than anything. with my wands made of found material i usually wait for inspiration about any decoration at all, and corwen's right - if you love it because of its driftwood qualities, any kind of varnish would cover them, and you'd lose the beauty.
i've got unvarnished wands that have not deteriorated in a decade or so. they get oiled enough just from handling.
wyverne /|\

[Lily]

I was thinking sanding but if it has that nice silvery surface sanding will take that away. Try a tiny spot of wax to see what that does to the surface?

[LadyCelt]

Thank you all!

I was thinking oil or wax, but perhaps it's best to leave it alone. I will try Lily's suggestion, but on a different piece that's the same color and not planning to use. Just to see what happens.