There is wonderfully helpful information on their site with recommendations of plants suitable for a variety of situations from hedgerows and native landscaping for a variety of situations from wet, dry or shady areas to plants that will attract a variety of wildlife including birds and butterflies providing natural cover and food for overwintering species. It is worth browsing their site and making a list. The plants are uber healthy and so reasonably priced, they are used to our climate and soil..I haven’t had any setbacks ever with the ones I have purchased there.

You can email in an order, set aside a day to pick it up and make sure you leave some time to wander around the beautiful grounds, take the dog and go for a hike on the great hiking trails that they have built. It is a favorite spot for Jack & Hazel..they start whining with excitement as soon as we turn unto the clay road to MacPhails in Kinross..wooded trails, water, bridges..it just doesn’t get any better for 2 Labradors.

A few years ago Paul and I decided to pull out a nasty old culvert that was in the small stream that runs a few feet behind my wood studio. We built a small wooden bridge to span the stream. The previous owners had planted lawn right along the stream banks and we wanted to restore the native cover that is found in the wild….So we shopped at MacPhails, the site was readily available to help us in our choices and we didn’t break the bank. With the native plantings we put in a few favorites from our other beds ..

All the shrubs and trees for this garden came from MacPhails Woodlot Nursery

We planted trees that like the moisture…and shrubs for wildlife..the birds are loving it…..as are the frogs, toads and little salamanders along the bank. dragonflies and butterflies bless us in the summer….These are photos from last spring, getting to this point this year almost…I had just set out the Mason Beehouse I turned from beech that was packed with eggs, stored in the shed for the winter and ready now for the big hatch.Jack is sitting in front of a patch of Meadowsweet a great showy native plant that is one of my favorites. These are native cowslips that we transplanted from river below the stone railway bridge that is behind our property and where the dogs swim daily. They are so beautiful along the waters edge and among the wild Blue Flag Iris we also transplanted from the Waterside Road marsh. There are also cinnamon ferns, the little fiddleheads are just popping up..they are so beautiful when they are in full show.This is the beautiful Red Oak in the fall that is among the red maple and yellow birch trees we planted, this is just a year after planting…beside it are the butterfly houses we make here to offer protection from weather and predators for the beautiful butterflies loving the native plantings. There are also MacPhail fir and spruce along with red dogwood for winter color and interest.

I wanted to show you what can be done with native plants in your yard and garden……..So before you dig in imported species, do yourself and the Island a favor..check out MacPhails…it is one of our treasures here. You can also take in native landscaping workshops and how about a late night OWL PROWL with the kids!!

Oh and seeing as I make my living from wood, I encourage mass tree plantings of various species from everyone !!

Last spring I made this twig maned pony..now I love this..it makes me feel good just looking at it and if I had zero bills to pay I could just keep all these creations for myself..such is not the case. This pony was admired all summer and commented on but still here…so while we were taking down works for the studio reno I looked at Mr. Pony and told him I just do not know why you are still here…I think you need a ‘makeover’ or a reno yourself….I have been doing live edge cutting blocks and  had a few pieces with nice bark on that didn’t make the grade for blocks….Maybe the base just didn’t suit the little ‘Twigger’…..so I gave him his redo. Woodland Rustic style…Complete with an antique set of brass spurs on carved walnut pegs…I like !! perfect for the Rustic Western Horsey Home.

Now, we will wait to see if it works !!

Not wanting to leave the nice base for scrap I gave it a redo as well…Little trendy shaped owls…I think better suited for the flowered knobs..CUTE !!So sometimes the best laid plans run amok…but you can change them, that is the beauty of taking a hard look and giving something a reno !!

Happy Sunday..weather is still fantastic on PEI..We are so blessed!!

Smiles, Brenda

Please leave a comment, love them !!

and take a tour of my store !!

Cattails Woodwork

To photograph them I made great pancakes with wild blueberries and Chef Micheal Smith’s recipe for “Southwestern Black Bean and Corn Chile”..best recipe ever for Chile, really vegetarian but Paul likes meat in his so I added ground beef…I was trying to keep him happy because he is was hard at work for me this weekend.

Love pancakes this time of year while it is Maple Syrup season..YUMMMY

We are expanding the Store here for the summer..this is the third expansion that we have undertaken…Now we will have one BIG room that should make display easier.

Last summer I had two smaller spaces and used the hall inbetween , really there just was not enough room for folks to explore and shop.It was awkward almost..NOW I am really excited. The back part of my studio is over 100 years old, an old carriage house that we moved here. The ceilings are high and we used old boards from a community hall that was being torn down for the floor. They look wonderful, everyone comments on the floor, thinking it is original.

This was my finishing room ……..Now it is gone…We are going to put in a couple of windows that will give nice eastern light and look out across the stream and into the ‘Lady Slipper Forest’.

Once the studs came down…UNREAL !! I think it will give a great space where the whales and owls will be displayed so much better.

My finishing room will now be in the south part with huge windows and lots of beautiful natural light. So much better for seeing the wood and keeping the mind healthy. YAY!!

Will update on the progress.

I have a tour coming in late April so it kind of puts us on a deadline..good thing tho. We will be sure to keep at it !!

PEI is expecting a March Nor’Easter tonite..hope everyone stays safe..

Smiles,Brenda

The boards are listed now in my store..Cattails Woodwork

Three little tin eared owls with their base coat of raw umber and black. I put their little carved beaks on after i have painted their faces.

The owls with the tin ears are so popular with people…I think they have personalities of their own..each one is different.. Our Stella checks on the progress …the cats are so funny, there is always one hanging around keeping an eye on you…..The labs just find a soft spot to have naps.…..unless you are having a snack

And number 3 with his bright golden eyes and his colorful chest..I like him !

I also did a small little labramaid leash holder…I had someone contact me who thought it might make a nice gift for her friend….just listed these in my store along with a hare much like the one I did last year…Easter is coming.

I also had the opportunity to work on my online shop, I had changed the theme for it but have just been picking away slowly to get it the way I want…..

Tomorrow it will be back to the lathe….I have some new ideas that I want to do…the days go by so quickly, never seems to be enough time and my list just gets longer. A good thing tho….. I am never bored.

I have been reading so many posts about how it may rob artists and craftspeople credit for their work..OH, maybe so in some circumstances HOWEVER I am finding it gives my work exposure to a huge audience and drives traffic to my site and my online store..folks who I never would have reached. I am thrilled when someone likes my work enough to ‘PIN IT’…sure maybe someone will copy it….. go ahead if you are that type of ‘maker/faker’ !!

I guess if that is your big fear as an artisan….you just go ahead, hide all your work and keep it private.  Me, I will take the exposure I get for my work AND the exposure to seeing the ideas and creations out there..

I see wonderful things from incredibly talented people on Pinterest or on the internet in general, Do I think ‘OH WOW, I must make that??...NO, many are mediums that I don’t even work in or have that much talent…even with wood it gives me a chance to see what others are making, new ways of doing something, how many great woodworkers there are and last but not least what is trending, what folks are liking. I admire great work and seeing it restores my faith in the creative life.

I try to pin from the source and not just repin so I will be sure the link to someones work is there …I think that is good practice.

Pinterest inspires me, it gives me thoughts of new pieces, really everything we see affects our work, I don’t know how many NEW IDEAS are out there but the things I make come from the things I see and think about every day. Sure a picture I saw somewhere would have an effect..here is an example of my ‘stealing others work’

I have a friend who does the most wonderful paintings..my walls are a shrine to her work.  I sell her cards and some prints in my studio..her name is Molly Poole, her studio Granite Dog. She has a yellow Labrador girl who plays a huge role in her life but also her work..below are her paintings inspired by her life with Lucy .

So I look at these paintings, admire these and they stick with me. She has two paintings ‘Scout in the Canoe’ and ‘Old Town’ which I LOVE…..how could you not, I have Labradors, if it is related to water, it is for them.

Then I saw this vintage whirligig on Pinterest from One kings Lane..Now I LOVE whirligigs..love that word and love that they are a true form of folk art..some crack me up, some blow my mind with their ingenuity and some are just beautiful …made by regular folks just like me or my Grandpa….so I want to make a few. While admiring this vintage yellow canoe with the First Nations paddler it occurred to me to make the Labbies in a canoe, probably because I have Molly’s labs in canoes rolling around up in my head…..I started with this small scale sample of one lab to try to get the paddles right… have a big one drawn up so I can put a chocolate, a black and a yellow…happily paddling down the river in their canoe……So I will make a few adjustments to the paddles, I turned then carved these, a little too heavy, me thinks….and the three labs would bring some more color, plus a longer ‘canoe’. This was a quickie to try. No wind this afternoon on PEI either to see if it whirls…

Maybe I will be cursed for doing this..[Molly, be sure to tell me]…..But know that your paintings had an effect on me, they stayed with me and inspired me, same for the old timer who crafted the yellow canoe….. it is a testament to your abilities as a creative person..true art should get a reaction from someone who sees it and gets it….. they remember it, it has touched them somehow…..

I get a reaction with Molly’s work…she has a gift.

So if someone sees her work on Pinterest….they will be drawn in to her world and can thank Pinterest for the opportunity to find her paintings, to find great things….Who knows what she may inspire !!!

I wanted to have the three lab whirligig for the Heart Dog Auction for Labrador Life Line that is happening now..I was into a couple of jobs that didn’t allow me the time. I did however donate a sweet carved Lab head & bread board, plus some tags…Molly has an original framed painting that is gorgeous. Check it out, oh there are some wonderful items, auction ends tomorrow, Friday at 5 central time. Help LLL help some labs and their families by taking part.

Smiles, Brenda

Cattails Woodwork

This week it is my Dozuki saw. ……If you browse the aisles of your local home improvement store or tool catalog you will see so many things you think you need, things that will make it ‘easy’, things that are all shiny & cool, things you plug in, things that are noisy & dusty….I call many of these tools ‘gadgets’…..and a waste of money.

This little saw does a pile of work for me, it is made in Japan and is not something new, they have been working wood over there for centuries, using these saws, without power tools and doing a fantastic job.

Japanese Dozuki Saw…Lee Valley Tools

I buy mine from Lee Valley Tools [not a paid supporter]. I  just purchase the replacement blade, I make my own carved wood handle [ it just makes it more special to me] but they do come with this wrapped handle if you don’t want to bother. I am not sure how many blades I have purchased through the years, each has earned its keep, they are not expensive so when you start to notice missing teeth on them..get a new one.

They cut a very fine kerf, they are very sharp and accurate. They cut on the pull stroke unlike traditional saws that cut on the push. This makes it effortless almost, to use, very little pressure and that helps with keeping your angle or your line straight. It isn’t like work at all, just a pleasure, hardly any dust or blade marks to sand off.

I am using it in the photo to cut dovetails for a drawer. When I make drawers I ALWAYS do dovetail joints, front & back, I cut all my dovetails by hand…you practice, lay them out well and it is surprising how quickly you get better at it. A nice quiet job to do at the bench and I would be lost without this saw to help me. If you look at old hand cut dovetails, they are small, of varying sizes and so beautiful, you can’t get that with a machine or a dovetail jig with the router…no Sirree Bob!

Here are the finished drawers that were cut with my Dozuki…and below the dovetails for the frame to hold the drawer in the single stand……

I also use my Dozuki to cut tenons, as on this table below that I built last winter…Oh but the fun doesn’t end there, other uses are cutting the ends off turnings, cutting off dowels, cutting ‘finger biter’ pieces that are too small to safely cut with a table saw, cutting wood to size, leveling chairs, table or stool legs……Really, if a person does any amount of house fix up, furniture repair or redo’s or any DIY work at all you should have one…..If I did not own any kind of power saw, this could do so much for me..safely, quietly. One of my favorite tools that I use daily.

Dozuki’s are also available in a rip saw, larger ones for pruning trees etc…trust me..they are worth every penny. So forget about the ‘gimmicks’ buy a quality tool that will have many uses and does all its jobs well….One that makes you wonder how you EVER lived without it.

You will love it!!

Smiles, Brenda

 Cattails

I made up a jig that would sit on the bed of my lathe to take off the corners on the bottom and to flatten a smaller octagon type profile where the rail will tie in. because the posts are so wide I had to have a larger bottom plate on my router to ride on the top of the jig.[this 3 hp Makita is the best router out there by the way, just a workhorse for me, I have tried others and have a big 3hp Ryobi in my router table but nothing is nicer to use than the Makita] . Had to stay awake to be sure that the plate stayed flat on the jig and did not dip off…couldn’t afford at this stage to make a mistake….oh that would spell disaster, I was nervous. Should have made up a bigger plate but sometimes you just are too lazy..bad on me.

You can see at the headstock of the lathe how you can index and lock the piece for the number of degrees you need to make an octagon. You just have to be sure your piece is sitting square when you start to calculate where to lock it…..

I made notes of what numbers were corners and which were flats, each post was different so it kept things from being confusing. Worked well though, set the bit at different levels for each of the three profiles[ X4] because the top octagon is smaller than the bottom.

After that was finished, I measured up the turnings, sharpened them up, turned the post top and sanded before taking them off. Sanding is so necessary but so time-consuming, that is the thing about woodwork, sanding takes TIME.

Then had to sit at my bench and sand each of the flats to remove machine marks, any dents they incurred..grits 100, 120, 150, 180 with the sander and 220 by hand, then softened the corners.

And they are finished, three left before I took pictures so these are the last two..ready to go. YAY!!. This has tied up my workshop and I will be glad to get at my spring things. I have new things in the works that I keep putting aside, cannot wait to get at them.

They are not sitting square on the floor so they may look a little dissimilar, it is a big challenge to get them exact, especially when they are so big..Hopefully I can get the homeowner to take a picture when they are installed and finished ….I am anxious to see them installed.

And that is the end of the newel post saga……I hope !!

Linked up with

Miss Mustard Seed

Whipperberry

At the Picket Fence

French Country Cottage

However on the subject of labs, I am getting ready to draw up and hook a new rug before the winter ends. Almost the end of January already so better get cracking….I saw this rug in a Celebration of Rugs magazine a few years ago, it was hooked by a lady who had adopted a Katrina dog..I LOVE the bright colors and the dogs, so I am going to hook a runner for my kitchen using a take on this.

Thinking of three or four dogs but in a single row, peeking out from under the counter.

Shirlee from Pastimes PEI Rug Hooking Studio came up this week and gave me some pointers on design and colors. I will go down to their wonderful studio to purchase my wool, usually I use rags but for this one I’m springing for a predetermined set of colors…YAY!! The girls[sisters] have a wonderful sense of color, they hook the most beautiful rugs using their own take on old Island patterns, they also sell kits, frames along with their award winning rugs. They are always willing to help someone, no matter what.

I took my little lap frame out of hiding that I made when I hooked my first rug, will start on it with the backing pinned to the flannel that is wrapped around it.  Then as I go along I will put it on my floor frame, Also checking out the linen for the backing, also a purchase from Pastimes.

The little frame is so lovely but I went somewhat overboard, could have made a suitable one in 1/10 the time..haha I would never make a living selling them. I am excited to start this rug, it is a wonderful way to spend long winter evenings. Hooking is something you can do when you are tired, not wanting to think or stress over a hobby.

Rug hooking is just the best past time ever in the winter. Last winter I didn’t hook at all, we were doing renos and I don’t know why but just didn’t get to it. If you have one on the frame and sitting there you tend to pick at it and all of a sudden you have something beautiful for your home.

Of course I can’t do a thing in this house without a cat supervising..Stuart was quite taken with the linen…….he hasn’t been around long enough to lay on the partly finished rug in a frame or chase after the strips..could be a circus for sure.

What do you think ?? bright colors and labbies for this old farmhouse??

Smiles, Brenda

So the design is decided, then the big job of making up the blanks..these are monsters. I won’t go into the milling, glue up and squaring the sides, save that for another project and post. It is too bad that wood couldn’t be had in the dimensions needed, I am not a big fan of laminated turnings. Because they are so big, 7 inches in diameter I can’t use my mitre or table saw to square the ends..I could make 4 crosscut passes through the table saw but the center where it has to be flat would still be rough, have to cut through the center inch and a half by hand, they are so freakin’ heavy, I would not be able to push them through easily or safely, a sliding table would make it easier but I would lose even more height from the saw blade…I have GREAT respect for a 3 hp saw…therefore I did some trickery.

I put a couple of guides squarely on the posts, put a false bottom of plexiglass on the router to give it some width and flattened a space to put on my face plate..though it is being turned between centers, I was afraid the drive spur might not hold it if I ran into trouble. This is a little work but turned out great. I marked the center and drew a circle to position the plate. oh yes, if it wasn’t square and flat on the bottom of the face plate with the blank being 54 inches long I would be in trouble with the shoulders of the base.

Now with the help of my husband it is mounted on the lathe and ready to go ..almost.

There are marks on a stick to give me the vertical measurements needed so each blank will be the same…I have to be sure to have the base and the top shoulders & flat that the stair rail joins to exactly where the plans say…… And I use a knife to cut the shoulder for the base in case during roughing out it splinters…once the wood is gone there ‘ain’t’ no going back. The vertical measurements are very important, the eye will pick up a variance in those before any in the diameters. Weird, I know.

So then the slow process of ‘roughing out’ , my lathe is heavy, about 950 lbs. , I have changed the belt position to give me more torque, allowing for the weight and changed the braking to long..start slowly and it is well centered, not any shake at all..Yahoo!!  One thing about turning wood, you cannot mind getting dirty…I spend the better part of my life covered in wood chips or sanding dust..oh wait…. throw in the ‘odd’ dog or cat hair… A  total mess most days..sigh… I hesitated to put these photos that Paul took in this post..but …..whatever, it is what it is.

After the blank is round I start to put the profiles in….I start with the largest diameters putting them closest to the tail rest…up near the drive I won’t get too much shudder when the narrowest cuts are made….I am using a spindle gouge to make the vase & cup profiles..will touch up with the skew. I am somewhat unorthodox when it comes to this…mostly I have taught my self..so don’t take my way as the best…it just works for me.

I will turn all 5 roughly then put them back on to sand..if something were to go terribly wrong and I ended up with a smaller measurement somehow, there is the opportunity to clean them all up to the same measurements when they are remounted to sand….

PLUS I have to cut hexagons on the base & handrail space..

I will do that with them mounted on the lathe using a jig and my ‘beloved’ router because my lathe has an indexing system to give me a lock up at what ever degree space I choose…that is for another day, another post. Maybe I will do a shop clean up and surprise you all !!

Hoping everyone has a wonderful remainder to the weekend..Enjoy the crisp January air. It was beautiful today in PEI.

Smiles, Brenda

With tables, beds, chairs and boxes, even turnings I draw to scale, mark in all the joinery, hardware, exact measurements with 2 views, top and side…It really helps before you cut a piece of wood to have built it once in your mind…you get a proper materials list and it is much easier to erase than mill more wood……

Here at home I get little distractions such as Blossom who knows exactly where you are working & tries to help…hmmm really, she just wants a good chin scratch..ha.

I am turning five very large 7 inch diameter Newel Posts for a new home under construction..The owner had picked out an antique post she liked and wanted something similar.. I can measure off the picture with my Architects Ruler from the one she loved and put onto paper where each profile should go full size..I will make a mock up and a story stick for the turnings when I finalize the profile..

They burned an old house near us a number of years ago, we bought these old posts from the owner before it was destroyed to make way for a new home…I like the turnings on parts of them and am going to work a bit of them in..they make a great reference for me as well for the diameters, what looks good to the eye and what might be too thin, although the largest of these is only 5 and a half inches dia. plus a layer of dust. [oh my, that is embarrassing...lol.]

The old boys were great turners…so much beautiful woodwork went into old homes…..it makes me very sad to see it destroyed, made by hand with old tools, cannot be replaced…I am happy the owner opted for non stock newels instead of the many out there that are cut on duplicator lathes by knives..not the same as hand turned.Here is the blueprint for the stairs from the architect, 2 at the bottom, 2 at the top and one along the rail upstairs……I will post the progress on how they are turned in a day or so..my blanks are glued up, squared and ready….hoping my arms are.

I am hopeful this sort of thing appeals to someone out there, you know the whole ‘how its made’ thing. I thought for the New Year I would let you follow a few projects and show you a few tricks that you all can do….I find it fun to write about the process. If there is anything you would like to learn about let me know and I will try to help if I can.

Cheshire Cat Smiles from Sweet Blossom and a cheery person smile from Brenda