Subscibe to RSS
Subscribe to Email
Follow me on Twitter
Subscibe to RSS |
|
| Red Eucalyptus Burl Birthday Bowl Published On 02-13-2008 , 2:36 PM  Jump over to my portfolio to see more images of this piece.This is a Red Eucalyptus Burl natural edge bowl measuring 3.5"h x 3.25"w. There is a purple Swarovski crystal on the bottom of the bowl. I made this natural edge bowl for my boss in celebration of his 60th birthday. I wanted to make something special but was intimidated because he has done quite a bit of woodworking in the past, not in the artistic realm, but fine furniture and cabinetry.  I'm not thrilled with the surface of the inside of the bowl but considering the time I had to make it (2 days) and the lack of any means of power-aided sanding, I guess it will have to do. I sanded the outside to my usual 12,000 grit and applied a friction polish. The inside was finished with a brief sanding (those edges are SHARP) to 400 and a hand rubbed and buffed Kiwi shoe polish. I'm also unhappy with the engraving on the bottom. The lettering is not smooth or neat. I'll be looking for alternative means of applying my "signature" this Saturday at a huge woodworking show in Somerset, NJ. I'll be evaluating a pneumatic engraver as well as burning tools. I'm actually thinking of trying to have the letters made up into branding irons so they look like the header of the site and are always consistent and neat. I'll have to see what is available.UPDATE: Someone just put up photos from the party. Here is my boss opening my gift. Mind you, 125 people were watching and we had limited time to use the room. But, it was a great surprise party. Comments | ||
| Extreme Sanding Published On 02-06-2008 , 9:42 AM  There is a discussion on one of the turning mailing lists I'm on about sanding and whether or not it is worth the effort to go beyond 400 or 600 grit.General woodworking projects are normally sanded to 320 or 400. Your standard carpenter thinks the "finish" on a 2x4 from Home Depot is good enough.  I've heard some turners of the male persuasion say they don't sand, that the surface they get from a skew chisel is good enough, then again, these same fellas think that everything must be done with a skew chisel to prove you're a manly man. (For those not in the know, skew chisels are not overly friendly and can lead to catastrophic results in the untrained hand). I prefer to use a razor sharp spindle gouge or a negative rake scraper to get a smooth surface. Back to sanding, here is my response (typos edited) when I was outted as the one who goes to the "scary 5 digit" grits: "I've been outted! ;-)
So, there you have it people. True confessions of an "Extreme Sander"! Yes, I sand all the way to 12,000 on every piece. In fact, I may get to 3,600; see imperfections, and go back down to 320 and start all over again. On many pieces I may very well spend just as much time sanding and finishing as I do in making the piece. Does it make a difference? Most certainly. I get turned off when I pick up a piece that feels gritty or does not have a smooth and inviting surface. At a turning meeting several months ago there was a discussion on segmented pieces. One guy made this massive segmented vase and went on and on about how wonderful his piece was but folks grimaced when they felt it and quickly put it down. Another guy had a much quieter (different maples) but still large vessel. When I felt that piece I was over the moon in love. I quickly plunked down $2500 to add it to my collection. The other piece was much more elaborate and the guy was miffed that everyone drooled over the piece I bought. If he took as much care with the finish as he did in using his engineering degree to build it, I would have bought his. The one I bought feels like satin sheets. It is damn near orgasmic to hold this piece. I don't care if the correct term is "polish" or "sand" above 400 grit, it makes a HUGE difference in the finished piece. People have a hard time looking at a hunk of firewood and believing that wood has a natural glow. By spending the time to finish my pieces to their best, people can enjoy the amazing luster that wood has, even without an additional finish. Look at this piece: [above] Look at the larger shot: [click the picture to see the larger shot] It feels like glass. It looked like this BEFORE I applied a finish and the only reason I applied one was to protect the wood. There is no way you will get that kind of result stopping at 400 or 600 grit. At best, it may have a dull sheen like the maple finial. The results can be seen and felt. Do not rely on just your eyes when working on a turning. FEEL it. close your eyes and allow your fingers to feel the piece as it is turning on the lathe. You will be amazed at what your fingertips can tell you about the surface that you don't see with your eyes. Then again, I'm an "Earthy" kinda gal. I feel a strong bond to wood (and it ain't the CA on my hands!). I'm very tactile and hands-on. I appreciate what Mother Nature has given us and want to show it off the best I can. To do justice to what she created. What I do is not "woodworking", what I do is art, it comes from my soul. To not go that extra effort to finish a piece, to me, would be blasphemy." Different woods will give different results. This Rhododendron has a dense structure and internal oils which contribute to the extreme polish, similar to Pink Ivory, Blackwood, Cocobolo, etc.... Locust is another local species that has a high polish. Comments | ||
| Briar Root Ring Pot Published On 02-04-2008 , 1:25 PM  This sweet little Ring Pot looks like I dug it up from an ancient archaeological site.It looks far prettier now than when I took the Briar Root of of the box! As you can see below they are quite gnarly and look like large orange-ish ginger roots. The actual piece I used for this piece is the one in the lower left of the image. I hacked the 4 outer blobs off and used the bulk of the root. This piece has 2 natural voids that help add to the "ancient pottery" look. I like how the opening looks slightly scalloped and how I got it to curl back by undercutting it. The grain is all over the place, some sections look like snake skin, other areas have some faint striping. It cut and hollowed very well. It is a bit rough on tools because of the dirt that is embedded, but a quick trip to the grinding wheel solves that.  Apparently, Briar Root is used for making smoking pipes; yeah, I know, yeck!  It is a good choice for pipes as it resists burning and does not get damaged by the tar left behind (even more yeck) . These roots are domestic, from Ohio. The more common "pipe-worthy" species come from the Mediterranean region. "Made in America" works for me! Look for more items in the Gallery made from this. I have a boxful! Comments | ||
| Maple Burl hollow vessel Published On 02-02-2008 , 7:40 PM  I had some new hollowing tools that I wanted to break in and this piece of Maple burl happened to be sitting on the bandsaw and caught my eye. It worked up quicker than I thought. I had rough shaped the outside and had it hollowed out last night. Today I refined the outside shape and made an African Blackwood collar. I spent about the same amount of time applying the finish and buffing as I did making the piece. Sanding was quick, but I wanted to try a different finish and buff the surface. I tried a Liberon finish, then buffed; didn't do much for me. I had used black Kiwi shoe polish on the collar so I used Kiwi natural color shoe polish on the body, then quite a while buffing. It has a nice warm glow that begs to be picked up. Hop on over to my Gallery to see all 6 of the images for this piece. Comments | ||
