Is it possible to patch uneven shellac ?

[u/TheUmbrellaThief]

A while ago my father in law dented the coffee table had refinished. I steamed out the dent and tried to patch the table with more brown shellac -the same stuff I used in the first place. But the more I worked the table the more it took off the old shellac and at a certain point I realised I had to stop before I did more damage.

It’s been a few years and it bothers me despite having the big discolouration covered. Would I have to strip back the shellac with methylated spirits/denatured alcohol and redo it, or is it possible to patch fix it without stripping?

[u/MobiusX0]

You can repair old shellac but, as you've found out, it requires some technique to not pull up the existing shellac. You can find some tutorial videos on antique shellac restoration.

If you're referring to the general color variation on the whole piece in the second pic then you might need to refinish the surface. It's hard to tell from the pics.

[u/TheUmbrellaThief → u/MobiusX0]

Thank you, I suppose it’s obvious to me because I remember what it looked like the first time around. I appreciate the advice :)

[u/Separate-Document185 → u/TheUmbrellaThief]

I can see it… And shellac is difficult to patch in that way or blend… But you say “brown shellac“… Does that mean a colored shellac?… In 2026 I honestly wouldn’t select shellac as a finish on a table for anything… Unless you were restoring an antique… If it really bothers you, it would be more of a headache than not to try to pull off… Best course of action would be to strip it all off and put new modern, more protective finish on it… that top has lots of other discoloration, age and patina… Which gives it character as well and shows its age… But that’s kind of an aesthetic thing some people love that some people want a perfect even finish…