To prevent dried glue marks when applying a finish, it is crucial to have a bucket of warm water and a white cloth readily available on your workbench. This is because when glue hardens, it cannot absorb finishing products. Therefore, it is important to soak the cloth in the bucket of water and immediately clean up any glue spills once clamping is complete. 

The affected areas should be cleaned twice, wiped with a dry cloth, and repeated until no glue residue is visible. After the wood has dried, the water used for cleaning will have raised the wood grain. It will then be necessary to sand with sandpaper of the same grit as the rest of the project to achieve a uniform finish.