Monthly Archives: May 2011

New life for the Old Elms

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This big puppy has been transformed………..
A big plank of felled elm, we lose so many here… age, dutch elm disease, most go to landfill [a big beef I have, so much history, such wonderful wood, such a shame]…… Bill Best, a large animal vet rescued this one from a cemetery in town, it took a big crane to load the huge tree trunk unto his tractor & trailer so he could take it to the mill. His wonderful wife Mary has been planting young Elms on their farms hedge rows to be sure there are still some elms around in the future, she has planted 100′s, no mean feat with a shovel [did I mention I admire these people, both busy professionals]…they took this big plank from Bill’s ‘tree rescue’ to me wanting a rustic coffee table made from it.Hmmmmm …..
I had to think on this one, I wanted only to use the plank, nothing more, had to be 48-50 inches long.

Oh what to do…what to do, Will I leave the bark on ???? 
The ‘old boys’ say it will stay on depending on what phase the moon is in when it is cut…this bark didn’t want to come off & I like the dark on the outside of the light sapwood so it remained.

 

Here it is letting the glue dry in the mortise & tenons, joining the base ‘legs’ [that were cut from each end and shaped] to the top. I will put some braces on it just to be sure the joints stay strong because it is going in their log clubhouse for the new disc golf course they and their family are building. The old log ‘church’ was also salvaged by the Best’s, transported and rebuilt.And here is the big ‘Reveal’ today after the first coat of oil was flooded unto the surface….The wood is beautiful, a lovely tawny color with gorgeous figure where the tree had branches growing from it.

Now I will keep my fingers crossed that it makes the Best’s smile …….
So very pleased that the weather allows outdoor picture taking these days.

So have any of you ever played ‘disc golf’, this will be our first course on PEI.

A friendly face…

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to greet you when you come home….this is the third in a series of ‘Porch Dawgs’ that I have laughed myself into making..wonderful to sit on to tie your shoes..I think the next will be a beaver, then maybe a cat…
he is carved from butternut, with turned paws and a little walnut tongue and belly….
See I have a sense of humor.
The little fellow will be leaving this week to hang out in the house with the Kauri table I posted earlier.
He is well trained…….and sooo friendly!!

Come join the Imperfectly Perfect Furniture ….. My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia….Furniture Friday at Miss Mustard Seed       SAS Interiors Saturday Spotlight   Freckled Laundry  link up Parties..
Wonderful pieces to see, you could show off your own work.

Fit for a sit…

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The shop is dusty, finish is drying, like working in a madhouse…..I LOVE making stools & benches, this is just finished, will go in my studio waiting for a behind to “sit and fit”. I can’t begin to count the Windsor stools I have made……..


Turned from solid black walnut, the legs are wedged through the seat that has been turned to a dish shape..perfect for settling in………
 This black one below is my 3 legged ‘shop stool’………have spent many hours settled in to this one….fits perfect !!

A nice cherry, the wood just gets lovelier with age…
Find a stool that fits..one for your height & your size.

 

How to Care For Your Cutting Board (It Has Feelings Too) !

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How to Care For Your Cutting Board (It Has Feelings Too): bonappetit.com

A good article to read, just click on the above link …I make & sell many kitchenwares, they do love you to give them some attention. They should last for years & years.
I like to use sunflower oil on the wood…it is one of the 3 oils that will dry. 100% tung oil is lovely but it has a very unpleasant odor, walnut oil is anther one that will dry, but is expensive & hard to find, sunflower is readily available on grocery store shelves, will dry after a day or so..LOVE it.
After the first coats of sunflower, I use a mixture of the sunflower oil & melted beeswax ..called ‘spoon butter’  ……great for your wooden utensils of all sorts. Smells heavenly.
Happy oiling…….