Acrylic dispersions with very small particles and specially designed particle morphologies can be used to formu¬late waterborne wood coatings which do net appear milky and meet the mechanical and chemical resistances of conventional solventborne systems. When modified with an additive, these systems exhibit a dual-cure mechanism and feature characteristics that reach or outperform those of common D.I.Y. parquet coatings. Over the past decades acrylic dispersion wood coatings used in the do-it-yourself sector have proven excellent dry film performance combined with ease of use. Also, the inherent environmental and safety benefits of this water-based technology favoured its increased use. A specially designed formulation additive leads to an ambient dual self-crosslinking mechanism, providing wear resistance properties that make the system suitable for the formulation of parquet coatings.