I would like to wood burn some designs into a nightstand but may want to add more burning down the road, after I coat it with shellac. From what I could gather, people mentioned to only burn and then seal, otherwise the burning after the shellac could cause issues, like releasing inhalants. Is that really an issue with shellac since it is “natural”?
it is definitely still a problem, the “naturalness” of the finish is irrelevant
even burning wood itself releases compounds that can be harmful (hence why we advise against breathing in smoke)
I second the idea from a separate poster that if you want to burn, seal, and add more burns-- just use a solvent to remove the seal before you do the second set of burns. Or burn it all at once before sealing