The use of white glue (true pva, not buff x linked etc) for veneering was apparently developed by Unibond in the 1960's. Bob Wearing wrote about it in one of his regular magazine columns some years ago. Bob died a few years back, but as a young man trained at Loughborough after the War, and spent many years teaching, and thus taught a lot of folk new to pva veneering. He suggests the veneer should be taped at the edges to prevent curling, both surfaces primed with pva diluted 1 part glue to 5 parts water - ensure cover, but do not over wet. Allow to dry overnight. The bonding solution is also diluted, 5 parts glue to 1 part water. It should never be diluted more than 3 parts glue to 1 water for bonding. Some experiment may be needed - the dilution is soleley to make brushing an even coat easier so it may need varying to suit the make of glue. The bonding coat should dry overnight. Next day denib with fine abrasive paper. place the veneer, and tape down with veneer tape / water gummed paper.
Iron on through brown paper (NO newsprint!, NO steam iron) If steam iron all that you can find, ensure it's dry! Bob suggests it's helpful to speed up cooling by pressing down with a cold iron (he used a cast iron antique).
Joints should be pre taped, and ironing is towards joins. Overheating can shrink the veneer. Bubbles require a little of the hot iron again.
As you can see, no water is introduced in the process, but both sides should be veneered to prevent warping.
