Timberturner & Bowlwood Woodturning

The Woodworking Show - Jan 13-15 2012

2012-01-11T14:39:00.001-05:00

Come see us at the Springfield, MA, Woodworking Show, to be held at the "Big E" fairgrounds, West Springfield, MA. The annual event draws woodworkers of all kinds from around New England and elsewhere.

I'll be joining other members of the newly formed Western Mass Woodturners club in our booth there. We'll be promoting woodturning, and doing some turning for you to see. If you're new to turning, or are curious about it, this is a good opportunity to ask all those questions you've thought about. And you're more than welcome to join the club, no matter what your turning skill level may be. We help each other learn more about the craft, and are happy to help newcomers get started. The club holds monthly meetings, which include a live turning demo to learn from.

This national show is a great chance to see woodworking equipment vendors and demonstrators up close and personal, and to go home with some good buys too. There's plenty to see (and buy!).

The show runs Friday 12-6, Saturday 10-6, and Sunday 10-4. I'll be there Friday and Saturday, but the club booth will be manned all three days.

Hope to see you there.

Why Woodturners Love Bad Storms

2011-11-14T19:02:00.001-05:00

Western Massachusetts has had a record year in 2011-- an F3 tornado ripped a 39-mile scar; a microburst hit Wilbraham a month later, toppling trees the tornado narrowly missed; a mild earthquake rumbled through; hurricane Irene swept into the neighborhood; and now, at the end of October, a freak snowstorm has dumped a load of extremely heavy, wet mush that was the worst thing to happen to our trees in my memory. A late fall meant lots of leaves were still clinging to the branches, and an early snow meant trouble- lots of trouble.

It started snowing on Saturday afternoon; the wet, heavy, snow stuck like glue to the leaves and branches, forcing even the largest of limbs into descending, ominous arcs. POW! It began to sound like the 4th of July around the neighborhood, as limbs strained against the snow load, then gave out. By 5:30 pm, the power was out over vast areas of the northeastern U.S. The storm paused, then restarted with a vengeance around 9 pm. All through the night and into Sunday morning, there was a continuous series of explosion-like sounds... CRACKKK... POW ... THUD !, as limbs crashed down onto rooftops and yards.

Siberian Elm Stripped of Most Branches

Sunday morning brought an end to the snowfall, and a bright, sunny day. But it wasn't a pleasant sight for homeowners or travelers; it was an incredible tangle of downed limbs, utility poles, and power lines. Like nothing we've seen in my lifetime. Power was out just about everywhere, across many states. No stores were open, gas stations all closed. Travel was difficult, to say the least. It would be 8 days before electric power was restored to my area, and even longer for many others.

Heaps of Fallen Branches

As just a typical resident of the area, I felt overwhelmed by the sight of the devastation to our trees, and the huge amount of woody debris dumped on my property and house. Two 70-foot Siberian Elms that flank my house were stripped of most of their small- and medium-sized branches, which completely buried my front yard.

Garage Buried Under Honeylocust Limbs

Deb Saves a Dogwood

But, as a woodturner, I knew this storm was likely to be a bonanza for those of my ilk, as was the July tornado. And so it was.

My friend, Al Richmond, has brought me a small truckload of eclectic, mixed species... Yew, Chinese Chestnut, Amur Cork Tree, Mulberry, Hawthorn, Umbrella Pine, and even a hunk of old Privet Hedge. All were taken down by the overwhelming weight of soggy snow.

Black Willow Burl Harvest

Bob and a Black Willow Burl

Fellow woodturner Bob Labrecque and I have made more than one foray into forests and backyards to harvest woody victims of these storms. One of the recent hauls was a truckload of Black Willow burls from a tree that came down in a New Hampshire backyard. This tree had followed the latter option of "Live Free or Die", having blown over and crushing a large wooden play structure.

We spent hours, much of it in the rain, surgically removing the burls that covered this trunk from one end to the other. Thank goodness Bob had borrowed a sawmill's chainsaw with a 30-inch bar, because we'd have been lost without it!

Of course, the largest burl was at the base of the trunk, on the underside, the toughest place to get at. The trunk was about 3 feet in diameter in that area, and it took some doing to liberate that section from the base of the tree, which was still rooted but leaning over at a severe angle. The quest for the elusive burl is not a pursuit that precludes work!

Yours Truly, Loading Willow Burl into Pickup

Black Willow is a lightweight wood, generally without remarkable figure, but we'll see what the burls have in store. It's all about the anticipation.


Partial Load of Willow Burls

We returned to Western Mass from New Hampshire tired, wet, filthy, hungry, and smelling of chainsaw exhaust fumes. In other words, we were happy woodturners.

The Northampton Monster Apple Tree

Our most recent adventure was to the wilds of a backyard in Northampton, MA, where a monstrous old apple tree had met its match in the snowstorm. The owner said she had been told it was the largest apple tree in the state. We haven't been able to confirm that yet, but it certainly was a contender. A double-trunk beauty, it had stood two and a half stories tall, each trunk being somewhere in the 30-inch diameter range. You can see from the photo at right that the combined diameter of the two trunks is easily 5 feet.

I Think Bob's Meditating Here ...

Another woodturner from New York had already been there and slabbed off all the burls (George, we're onto you!!). But there was plenty of gorgeous, large diameter wood left. We set about liberating as much of the crotch wood as we could, in the expectation that it would be the best-figured of the lot.

Naturally, as is our karma, it began to rain. With hundreds of pounds of saturated apple to load into the truck, we had to leave as much wood as we took. But look at the photo below ... the color of that wet heartwood doesn't get any richer. I just love the contrast between sapwood and heart.

Apple, and more Apple !

The requisite carpenter ants were of course occupying galleries in the center of much of the trunk, and, being lethargic in the cold November temps, they weren't quick to leave the security of their dark recesses. But we did evict most of them.

Although Apple is notoriously difficult to successfully dry without cracking and checking, I'm sure the gods will look down on us with a smile. After all, we didn't cut the tree down. And who would want this spectacular wood to get chipped up into mulch, or unceremoniously chucked into a stove? Besides, we advised the owner that what remained of the standing tree didn't have to be removed; it would undoubtedly sprout new growth next spring, and can live on. She was thrilled to know that maybe she hadn't lost her beloved old Apple after all.

Bob Contemplates an Apple Harvest Bowl (or a back brace)

As we finally finished loading our treasure into Bob's pickup (need I say it...in the rain), I turned around to take a last look at the tree. Bob was stepping over the tailgate from the bed of the truck, where he had been rearranging some of the slippery load. As suddenly as a thunder clap, I heard a whoosh, then a solid whump! I spun around to see my buddy flat on his back on the wet ground, motionless, a grimace on his face, a groan in his throat. The first thought that raced into my mind, of course, was "man, am I glad we were done loading this stuff, and I don't have to do it alone !!". Can you believe I've actually been called callous for that ??

But Bob was ok. He just likes to play the crowd for pity over a splattered spleen and a few shattered ribs. Well, sorry Bob, there was no crowd out there in the rain that day. Just me, and I'm wise to it.

So, off we went back home- tired, wet, filthy, hungry, and smelling of chainsaw exhaust fumes. In other words, we were happy woodturners. Again.

American Elm Burl

And the ride home wasn't without more excitement. On many a country lane, we were taunted by the sight of burls of all sizes, proudly protruding from trunk and limb. But these were for another storm adventure, and that's a good thing. They were all on trees that had withstood the tests that nature inflicted.

The finest one of all, happily, was a behemoth on a wonderful American Elm, a graceful species from grand avenues of the past.

As much as we'd love to see what's inside it, we don't ever want to be standing over this beauty with a chainsaw in hand.

And now you know why woodturners love bad storms.

----------------------------------------------------

Update:

Here are photos of some of the first bowls off the lathe from these two adventures:

New Hampshire Black Willow Burl Bowl

Pair of Apple Wood Bowls

The Black Willow Burl bowl has a natural-edge rim that retains some of the bark; the rest of the rim has been flame-scorched to heighten its definition. You can see the varying tones in the swirls of the burl's grain. The large dark patch is a bark inclusion. This is a very lightweight bowl, owing to the low density of Willow wood.

The Apple bowls are a "mother and daughter" set, the smaller having been cored from the inside of the larger bowl.

These bowls are available for purchase at Bowlwood.com.

How Can a Tornado Brighten Your Day?

2011-09-28T19:36:00.000-04:00

If you or your property suffer the fate of being in the path of a tornado, your day isn't likely to be better for the experience. So, how can a high speed twister brighten your day?

Red Cedar Table Lamp

Well, one of these storms terrorized Western Massachusetts on June 1, 2011. During a trek through the forest to explore the aftermath, I found left in its path two small Aromatic Red Cedar trees, flattened by larger trees that had been blown over. One of these Cedars has become this table lamp.

Turning Eastern Red Cedar on the lathe is just a joy, its scent quickly filling the air. And the freshly exposed colors in the wood bring a smile to your face. That's how a tornado can brighten your day!

Oh, right... there's one other way too... turn the lamp on!!

This and other handmade wooden lamps are available at Timberturner.com.

The Natural Enquirer: Tornado Mysteriously Produces Salad Bowls !

2011-08-17T14:28:00.002-04:00

August, 2011 - - Western Massachusetts -

There are more than enough sad tales to be told about the ravages of the tornado(s) that bore down on western Mass on June 1, 2011. But now, it seems there's something really odd that happened in the affected, enchanted forests...

While hiking - er, clambering - through a thick, nearly impenetrable jungle of twisted tree trunks and amputated arboreal appendages, we began to find peculiar chunks of wood that had obviously been ejected from the fractured tree trunks during the high-wind assault. They appear to be nearly perfect, nested sets of what could be described as "salad bowls".

Amazing as it seems, the tornado winds apparently have the ability, probably only in rare conditions, to excavate layers of wood that separate into these nested sets, with smaller bowls fitting neatly inside larger ones.

So far, we've found several of these sets in the forest, scattered about in the tornado's swath, and all have been of Maple. The sets contain three or four bowls, nicely matched because they are all from the same hunk of wood. No one has yet offered a satisfactory explanation of how these oddities were created. If you have any theories about this, please post them, we'd love to hear plausible explanations.

At any rate, unlike most other after-effects, they're a welcomed memento of this powerful weather phenomenon, the tornado of June 1, 2011. And we plan to search the local forests for more! Maybe we'll see you out there.

Tornado vs Trees, Western Massachusetts, June 1, 2011

2011-06-27T16:03:00.003-04:00

Western Massachusetts (USA) experienced the fury of an EF3 tornado on June 1, 2011. Tornadoes are rare in this part of the country, thankfully, so this was quite an event for us. We're just not used to this kind of abuse. Sadly, four people lost their lives in this storm, and hundreds of homes, businesses, and other structures were destroyed or damaged. Most of my family and friends who live along the path taken by the funnel cloud were lucky to narrowly avoid its wrath; it passed by my neighborhood and struck down homes just up the road. But there wasn't even a noticeable wind at my home.

The cleanup of the chaotic mess created by this tornado will go on for a long time, and the character of the landscape destroyed by it will not be the same in my lifetime.

There are many videos of the twister and its 39-mile track available on the web, thanks largely to the many camera-equipped cell phones out there today. The most dramatic footage I've seen so far was taken by a camera mounted on the roof of a tall building in downtown Springfield, MA. It captured the newly formed twister as it crossed the Connecticut River from West Springfield to Springfield. The funnel doesn't contain a huge amount of debris that would give it that ominous dark color we're used to seeing on tv. But as you watch the shot, you see the twister suck huge amounts of water up and out of about a 2-mile stretch of the wide Connecticut river, pulling the currents back upstream like the proverbial parting of the Red Sea. Just amazing.

Since the tornado passed through, I've seen most of the towns it affected. Surprisingly (at least to me), after it swept across the flat terrain of the Connecticut River Valley, wreaking havoc on West Springfield and Springfield, it widened to a half-mile and flew up and over the high hills of Wilbraham, Hampden, Monson, Brimfield, and Sturbridge. These are rural towns, and many lost homes and businesses, but the winds mostly tore up trees. What surprised me most was that the hills provided no interruption to its contact with the land. It swept up one side, over the ridge, and down the other side of each and every hill in its path, for the most part through sparsely populated forested lands, never leaving the ground along the way. High ridges and deep ravines were equally smashed to bits, little in its track escaping it. I would have guessed that it might skip across ridge tops, leaving the hollows and ravines relatively intact. But that was not the case.

Now obviously the primary concern in all of this is for the devastating effects this has had on people's lives and property, no question. But although my property was spared, I was personally affected in another way. As a woodturner and one who greatly appreciates trees both singly and in forests, I couldn't help being both awed by the raw, unrestrained power of the tornado, and dismayed by the sight of literally millions of shattered trees in a 39-mile by half-mile scar across the land.


Tornado-devastated forest area

Trees young or old, unremarkable or stately, short or tall, softwood or hardwood, fragile or mighty; all were at the mercy of the winds, and most didn't withstand them. Hundreds of thousands were ripped off their roots and thrown down, often onto homes. Even more were unceremoniously snapped off at the waist (particularly white pines), and now stand as shortened, grotesque, defrocked monuments to what was once an inviting, shady grove. Some were obviously tenacious, but were twisted about the axis of their trunks, only to be defeated and left shattered. I've seen hardwoods whose trunks were twisted into a corkscrew; now there's some tough, interlocked grain!

Where forest stands were smashed down, there is no way a person could traverse the area; trees of all types and sizes lay strewn in every direction, in an impenetrable, criss-crossed maze of trunks and limbs.

Armies of tree crews, linemen, national guardsmen, etc, etc, have been laboring tirelessly (well, I'm sure they're tired!) to clear and re-open roads, and restore electrical power and other services. And they've done a remarkable job. But in forests, where there's no emergency need to remove the wreckage, the trees lay heaped on each other as though they had been mowed down by a giant lawnmower in the sky. Actually, I guess that's just what did happen.

I've found it's no easy task to take photos that convey the scale of the damage. The impact it had on me was minimal until I witnessed it in person. But I'll share a few photos that might be of interest. Out of respect for those whose homes and property were destroyed, I'll not show any close-ups of their losses; my purpose here is to discuss the effects on the trees. The first photo above shows what's left of what was a dense forest tract; you wouldn't be able to see sky here like this before the tornado struck. What few trunks remain standing are broken off at about the 25-foot level; this seems to have occurred mostly in white pines, whereas most hardwoods are blown over. In the background you can see the side of an unaffected hill, with its dense forest cover (click on photos to enlarge).

The next two photos show a low hillside where homes were hit after the twister crossed a highway and a pond; to the right side of the first shot you can see unaffected, young forest cover just outside the twister's track. Notice how there are few trunks left standing in the wind's path, and those that are have been stripped of all limbs .


Up and over low hill, untouched to the right.

Ravaged Hillside, Homes Lost

Below are scenes in a state forest... the entire hillside on the left in the first photo has been decimated. In the distance is another hill outside the tornado zone. Click the photo to enlarge it, to get a better sense of the destruction. This road was just recently cleared and re-opened.

State Forest Damage

My friend Bob Labrecque and I clambered over the hopeless tangle of trunks and limbs for a short way off the road to get the second photo. Without exaggeration, I can say that it would be taking your life in your hands to try to traverse this landscape. We made it about 25 yards off the road, and that was all we had the will to do. Fallen trees were lying helter-skelter, over and under each other. Many, though fallen, were still 10 feet or more off the ground. There was so much tree debris down that it was virtually impossible to penetrate this jungle. We couldn't walk more than a few feet without having to climb over or under a huge tree trunk, all the while trying to avoid tripping over countless branches going every which way. If we were to fall off one of those logs and break bones, nobody would find us for who knows how long.

Bob Labrecque Standing on Fallen White Pines

It's very disheartening to see so many trees destroyed in a matter of minutes, mile after mile of them. Because of the huge burden on emergency crews to clear them out of the way as quickly as possible, their carcasses are mostly being carted off to temporary work areas to be ground up in giant shredders. In my town, acres of huge piles of chips have quickly appeared. Convoys of logging trucks bring in the debris, and nearly as many semi trailers haul the chips away to be burned in power plants, or turned into mulch. All the while, machines with grappling claws constantly feed the hungry shredder. Similar operations are underway in other towns too. I have no idea how many thousands of tons, or millions of board feet, of torn-up timber are being chewed up this way, but it's sad to see it happen, especially when you realize that it'll be fifty to a hundred years before the land will be as it was.

Hickory Tree Twisted Apart

It's just awful to see the personal losses many have endured, their homes ripped apart, or even totally demolished. Huge trees laying atop a crushed house. Power lines down everywhere. Roads an impassable tangle of limbs, trunks, wires, utility poles, building wreckage, crushed cars.

Despite the severity of the damage, most buildings will be restored or rebuilt in a relatively short time, certainly within a couple years. But the denuding of neighborhoods that just minutes before were cozily tucked into quiet, stately stands of tall, mature shade trees is a loss that it will take decades to reverse. In all respects, it's a sad thing to witness.

"Night of the Tiger" Wall Hanging

2011-05-10T12:04:00.002-04:00

Night of the Tiger

In the Land Down Under, Eucalyptus trees produce some really spectacular burls. This slab of Salmon Gum Burl suggests to me a tiger skin, hence the name. Thankfully, no majestic predator ceased to exist to have this symbol displayed on a trophy room wall. Even the tree from which it came probably still stands, since the Australians harvest the burls without cutting the host trees down.

This is not a woodturning; it was made using power carving and sanding tools, from a slab that had been sawn off a huge burl .

It's a wall hanging that begs to be the focal point in a board room (no pun intended there!), lobby, or living room.

Wavy Grain Lines

The dark lines of the pattern are fissures that permeate Salmon Gum, and other species. There is beautiful wavy grain around the perimeter, in the gold colored areas. The gradation of color, from deep red in the center to amber at the edges, suggests the color changes you would find in a real tiger skin.

"Night of the Tiger" is 241/2 inches tall, 22 inches wide; it has a wire on the back by which it can be hung. It's available at Bowlwood.

More Manzanita Burl

2011-05-10T11:18:00.002-04:00

In February, I posted an article about my first experience turning Manzanita Burl. Since then, I've purchased a few more of these burls, and turned two of them. One is a lidded box. True to their heritage, the burls were wildly cracked from the shrinkage associated with drying.

Many woodturners might discard such hunks of wood, and I couldn't blame them if they did. Spinning such a piece on a lathe can be really unnerving, and is potentially dangerous, because a cracked chunk of wood can fly apart when spun. So, basic rules of turning dictate that we don't do this. But, with careful precautions, it can be done safely. I wrapped tape around the piece in the areas not currently being worked on, to ensure it couldn't take wing; also, the lathe speed was kept on the slow side.

Typical Manzanita Root Burl

Here's a photo of a similar burl before any turning has been done. It is a "root ball" burl, so you can see where the stems of the shrub were cut off at ground level. This was mounted on the lathe and turned to shape.

After roughing the shape of the box, inside and out, and separating the lid piece from the body, I spent hours laboriously filling the cracks with crushed turquoise. The final turning was completed, followed by sanding and finishing.

Manzanita Burl Box w/ Turquoise Inlay

The results were well worth the effort, and I'm really pleased with the box. The depth of Manzanita's red color can be outstanding, and its grain is rich-looking as well. I think the turquoise infill looks stunning against this deep burgundy.

Manzanita Burl Box w/ Turquoise Inlay

You can see by the width of some of the turquoise just how wide the cracks were. But I consider them a welcome opportunity for enhancement, not as a detriment.

Inside of Manzanita Burl Box

The rim of the lid piece was too ragged to be used as it was, so I added a Bloodwood ring to the rim, which comes very close to matching the Manzanita's color, and gave the lid a nice finished rim.

This box is already spoken for, but if you'd like a similar box, check the Bowlwood site.

The second turning recently completed is a vase form, "Rising From Roots", yet another example of the beauty of Manzanita Burl. Heavily cracked, it speaks of the rugged nature of these burls. I chose to not fill the cracks with turquoise (or anything else) this time, letting the wood just speak for itself. And I think its voice is eloquent.

"Rising From Roots" - Manzanita Burl

"Rising From Roots" is available at Bowlwood.

Dyed and Gone to the Heavens

2011-03-16T19:45:00.002-04:00

Never having been much of a fan of coloring wood, I was slow to experiment with applying colored dyes to my woodturnings. It seemed wrong somehow to add artificial color to a beautiful piece of wood. But I have to admit, reluctantly, that there are instances when the use of a transparent dye can really add punch to a piece.

I've recently been quite pleased with the results of dyeing Boxelder burl, a light-colored wood that has plenty of interesting grain and birdseye figure, and generally needs no help to look great.

"The Bermuda Triangle"

But here's an 81/2-inch tall hollow vessel that took on an entirely new life as a result of being dyed with a teal green color... as soon as I saw the results, I felt as though I was looking down from space on the oceans of Earth. The dye (and finish) makes the burl figure "pop", causing the swirly grain lines to suggest the major current flows of the seas, and the jet stream clouds above them. Even the neck of the piece now reminds me of an ancient volcanic caldera atop a mountain rising from the sea.

I wanted to name the vessel... something related to the sea. While debating different names with my loved one, I noticed the shape of the bark inclusion on the upper surface... a triangle. And "Bermuda Triangle" instantly came to mind.

Dyed Boxelder Burl Hollow Vessel

There are so many interesting little features that are intensified and highlighted by the dye... with the whole of the piece now representing an oceanscape, the grain patterns come to life as swirling currents of both cloud and water, and the birdseyes look like columns of plankton or jellyfish.

This was a striking and dramatic transformation of the character of this Boxelder burl, which now has real depth and attention-capturing qualities. I'm very pleased with how "The Bermuda Triangle" looks, and look forward to more experimentation.

This piece is available at www.bowlwood.com.

Man! Love that Manzanita Burl !

2011-02-23T18:56:00.001-05:00

One of my woodturning quests is to find burls of as many North American (and other) species as I can. I'm always on the hunt for a new favorite. My latest acquisition is a good-sized Manzanita burl, from California. Manzanita burls are infamous for being composed of as much air as wood, being peppered with voids, holes, and drying cracks. They can also contain gravel, rocks, and other fun things that endear these burls to a woodturner who just sharpened his turning tools.

But these "minor inconveniences" can be well worth the effort to overcome them (well, at least to accept them). The blood red color of fresh Manzanita gets your heart thumping, and is a treat to see for the first, oh, maybe one or two hundred times (I'm not up to that count yet though).

Here's the first bowl I've turned from my latest botanical love ...

"From the Earth", Manzanita Burl Bowl

"From the Earth"

This piece required a fairly delicate touch while turning it on the lathe, for fear that a chunk would fly off due to all the cracks in it.

But it's all those cracks and other natural defects that make "From the Earth" so appealing to me. The finished piece conjures up thoughts of an ancient pottery remnant unearthed by an archaeology professor who now is content to retire, having just found his prize.

"From the Earth", Manzanita Burl Bowl

The turning went fairly smoothly, but great care had to be taken to avoid breaking the bowl. It was rewarding to see the results sitting on the bench though.

"From the Earth" is available for purchase at Bowlwood.

Giant Pine Cones (Coulter Pine)

2011-02-11T20:02:00.001-05:00

A lot of folks appreciate the mundane pine cone, including me, although I'm not quite sure what it is about it that intrigues me. The structure of a typical pine cone is interesting, but somehow seems like overkill for the purpose of holding some seeds. But evolution has forged it into what it needs to be to ensure the propagation of the trees. In its ripened form, the pine cone becomes a wood-like object, which maybe is why I find them so attractive (since I love working wood).

But there's one species of cone that draws attention- nay, awe - and respect from virtually everyone who sees it, and that's the Coulter Pine cone (California). It's the largest of all. With a length commonly in the 12 inch range (reportedly up to 16"), and diameters of 6 or more inches, these monsters can weigh 5 or more pounds when fresh.

I remember my introduction to these oddities. Years ago, a niece asked me where she could get some pine cones to put in a bowl for her fall dining room table. Here in New England, we have only a few species of pine, all with fairly small, unremarkable cones. Shortly after, I happened to be talking with my brother, who lives in California, and asked if he could get any large cones for her (mind you, my concept of a large cone was maybe 4" long, possibly 2" across). He said he was sure he could come up with some, and would mail them to me.

Was I perplexed when a box 4 feet long, and 2 feet high, showed up in my driveway one day? I'd say, "um, yup!". Inside that war chest was a collection of weapons the likes of which I had never imagined. And I only owed him $57 in postage! Thanks, Ron.

Staring back at me were various sizes of Coulter Pine cones, several of which were just incredibly dangerous looking things. The scales on these behemoths are, I'm sure, old bear claws. I can't imagine sitting under a Coulter Pine on a nice day, picnic basket propped open, anticipating a nice lunch in the sun with my gal. You "Holy Grail" fans- remember the line "...for death awaits you all, with nasty big pointy teeth" ? It applies.

At any rate, like I said, many of us are impressed with these giants, and we just have to have one on display. So I came up with a way to do that. I drill a hole down through the center of the cone and glue in a wooden dowel; then I turn a wooden base on the lathe and insert the other end of the dowel into a hole in the base. The cone can then be displayed (upside down) like a small Christmas tree. In fact, some people use them as a miniature Christmas tree.

Coulter Pine Cone on Oak Base

Coulter Pine Cone, Mulberry Base

Here's one (left) mounted on an Oak base. Notice how it dwarfs the coffee mug.

And one (right) on a Mulberry base.

You can see that there's still pine pitch on the scales (but it's dried and hardened, not sticky).

What do you think of them?

Cones like these are available at www.Timberturner.com.

Sample of Items Available in the Timberturner Shop

2011-02-11T15:31:00.002-05:00

Here are just a few of the many items available in the Timberturner shop (at Etsy). Click on any photo to go to that item. There are wooden vases, wood bowls, keepsake boxes, lamps, candlesticks, and more.

The Wood Rose

2011-01-28T13:57:00.002-05:00


White Campion Flowers in Autumn

For more years than I care to admit to, I've enjoyed exploring autumn meadows and woodlands here in Western Massachusetts, always on the lookout for interesting discoveries hidden away from casual view. And there have been many, almost on every venture. There's a lot to see, and much to learn... everything from trees, weeds, grasses, insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals, even rocks.

A lot of those years were seen through the lenses of still and motion picture cameras, and two one-hour films were produced as a result ("Life Near a Beaver Pond", and "The Snakes of New England") (film, not video... raise your hand if you remember film).

But now, as a woodturner, I'm especially drawn to anything and everything that might be usable in that craft, from downed trees for raw material, to shapes for inspiration.

One of the fascinating little finds is that certain wildflowers seem to try to immortalize their delicate, tiny flowers by drying them out in autumn, hardening their tissue paper-like petals into woody structures that might endure, at least for a little while. Some, like Campion, look like miniature unopened roses made of wood.

Bladder Campion in Autumn

I've wanted to turn a hollow form inspired by those "wood roses" for a long time, and finally got around to doing the first one recently.

"The Wood Rose" - Spalted Maple

A small chunk of spalted Maple has been calling out for attention; it had the requirements for the task at hand (hard, close-grained wood; spalting), so now it's officially "The Wood Rose".

The block was turned to shape and hollowed on the lathe,then the rim was carved to resemble the Bladder Campion's five lobes, though not as sharply pointed. The rose is 3-1/2 inches in diameter, 4-1/2 inches tall.

Several coats of finish later, followed by buffing and polishing, the wood rose was completed. There will likely be more to follow!

"The Wood Rose" - Spalted Maple Hollow Vessel

A second foray into the world of flower buds resulted in "The Rosebud", a hollow vessel turned and carved from Boxelder Burl. The natural pink and red blushes in Boxelder Burl add a warm, inviting dimension to a turning, and make this species a perfect choice to form into a flower bud.

The Rosebud - Boxelder Burl Vessel

The piece is hollow, weighing about 5-1/2 ounces; the rim was carved into the opening sepals of the bud. Some natural bark inclusions, common in Boxelder Burl, are the focal point on the front of the vessel, and they're surrounded by random spots and flashes of pink and rosy red.

The vessel is 5" tall, 4" in diameter.

The Rosebud - Boxelder Burl

"The Wood Rose" and "The Rosebud" are available for purchase at Bowlwood.com.

What's Happening During the Blizzard of Jan 12, 2011

2011-01-12T17:41:00.001-05:00

As this is written, the eastern half of the U.S. is being either blessed or cursed, depending on your outlook, with a blizzard. In Western Massachusetts, where I live, it's still snowing, and there's 16 to 19 inches of powdery stuff already down.


The Timberturner Shack under 19 inches of snow

Does that bother me? No, not at all. I'm a woodturner, after all, and my lathe is situated in a timber framed "shack", just six feet from an old potbelly wood stove (that's where all the "mistakes" go). Does it get any better than watching the snow silently fall just outside a big window while the wood chips fly around inside, and the fire crackles, and polished turnings emerge from a chunk of Cherry Burl? Hardly.

Here's a few glimpses of pieces recently completed...

Cherry Burl Hollow Vase

A small, hollow weed pot of Cherry Burl, about the size of a plump sparrow.

A striking natural-edged bowl of Cherry Burl, with bark left intact under the rim. The lichens that grew on the bark are still attached to it.

Cherry Burl Bark-Sided Bowl

Large Spalted Silver Maple Bowl

This bowl is Spalted Silver Maple, from a tree whose toes were sunk in the wet, fertile soil of the Connecticut River Valley.

And finally, another burl bowl, this one of Boxelder Burl, featuring a large bark inclusion as its focal point.

All of these turnings, and more, are available for purchase at either www.timberturner.com, or www.bowlwood.com.

Enjoy the snow!

Some Recent Turnings, Tall and Tiny

2011-01-03T13:55:00.004-05:00

It's been a busy and rewarding fall for me, with holiday orders and a new, larger lathe on duty in an expanded turning shack. With the help of my brother Ron, I added 40 square feet of space to the building; not a huge addition, but it was all I have room for, and it made a nice difference during the Christmas rush.

Thank you to all my customers who purchased turnings of all kinds from the Timberturner and Bowlwood websites... you're all appreciated ! Happy New Year !

Now that the shack addition is finished, and the new Powermatic lathe is installed, it's time to get back to full time woodturning at a normal pace.

Mini Black Cherry Burl Hollow Vessel

Here are a couple of the most recent items I've turned... first is a diminutive hollow vessel of Black Cherry Burl, a "mini weed pot". It's just 3-1/2 inches tall... hollow and lightweight. Note the many birdseyes in the photo below.

Birdseyes in Cherry Burl

A few of the Cherry burls I have on hand are very small, just big enough to end up as something such as this.

Even the small ones are prized.

Another favorite wood is Yew, probably best known by most folks as a short-needled evergreen shrub typically used as a foundation planting. But left to its own devices, Yew can grow to become a small tree. When one bushy beauty had to be removed to make way for progress on an Amherst campus, the wood became available to me-- I eagerly trucked it home, because I know it well.


Yew Weedpot

Weedpots turned from Yew have been among my most popular, and sell well. I've not encountered anyone who didn't appreciate its deep, warm orange-red color and attractive grain patterns.

I prefer to leave some patches of cream-colored sapwood on these vases, to provide a striking contrast with the heartwood.

Yew Weedpot, 12-1/2" tall

Notice the grain lines in and around the sapwood on this 12-1/2" tall vase... like smoke wafting from a cigarette.

The dark brown patch within the creamy sapwood is a bit of the inner bark; the still-darker spot at the very bottom is a small knot.

These, and many other turnings, are available for purchase at www.timberturner.com.

Cherry burl bowls, and Yew bowls from the Amherst tree, are available at www.bowlwood.com.

"Twisted Sisters" Bittersweet Vases

2010-12-02T12:52:00.004-05:00

"Let's Twist Again" Bittersweet Vine Weedpot

As a woodturner, I'm always on the hunt for unique and peculiar pieces of wood to make something "different". Here are two very unusual weedpots (ie, vases for dried materials, such as weeds, dried flowers, grasses, feathers, etc) hand-turned on the lathe from a large Bittersweet vine .... actually, two vines that grew twisted around each other, spiraling up into the canopy of a large Cottonwood tree.

Turning a piece of "wood" like this can be dangerous, because, although the two vines had grown tightly wound around each other, they were not fused together, and you must be careful that they don't fly apart when spinning on the lathe (um, a lesson learned the hard way).

"Two As One" Bittersweet Vase

The photo below shows another chunk of the same vines, so you can see what the piece looked like before it was turned. These are fairly old, mature vines; it's difficult to find vines that are old enough and large enough to be turned into a vase. I've been lucky to find some Bittersweet vines up to the 6-inch diameter range, which were approximately 45 years old. As the vines climb into the crown of their host tree, they often kill it, cutting off light and choking off the smaller limbs. The host tree will slowly fall apart, dropping dead limbs; eventually, it will topple, taking the vines down with it. If not for that fact, the vines might live many more years, growing ever larger.

To make a vase, a suitable length of the vines is cut and mounted on the lathe; the blank is then hand-turned to shape, and a hole is bored down into the neck. After some sanding, several coats of finish are applied to complete the vase.

Twisted Bittersweet Vines

"Let's Twist Again" (top) is available at Timberturner.com.

Handmade Victorian Replica Lamps

2010-10-05T15:51:00.001-04:00

Honeylocust Table Lamp

If you find antique Victorian kerosene table lamps appealing, such as those made by Aladdin, you might appreciate these handmade wooden replicas. Turned on the lathe from solid hardwoods, they're charming and nostalgic.

I search for antique glass lamp shades in mint condition, then build a lamp to live under it. Of course, they're electric lamps, with 3-way sockets so you can have your choice of light settings, similar to the variable settings of the old kerosene versions.

The lamp above is turned from a large chunk of Honeylocust, a dense and beautiful wood.

Yew Lamp

This lamp is a beauty, turned from Yew wood, with an amber shade. It now has a happy home in Ol' Kentucky.

Wormy Butternut Lamp

The third lamp here is of wormy Butternut, a wood that's disappearing from our eastern forests due to the spread of Butternut canker.

It's milk-white glass shade gives it a clean, bright look; the wormy wood adds country charm and a warmly rich color. It's currently available for purchase at www.timberturner.com.

American homes had an inviting nighttime glow radiating from their parlor windows in years long gone. Does yours have that charm?

Handmade Jewelry Box - Black Cherry Burl

2010-09-13T16:55:00.003-04:00

Most handmade jewelry boxes I've seen have been rectangular, and, while often very beautiful, they're made from "flat wood" (ie, boards). So, being a woodturner (a "round wood" guy), I of course have to be true to my craft and make boxes on the lathe.

The latest piece is this jewelry box of Black Cherry Burl, featuring a shallow lift-out tray for smaller items.


Black Cherry Burl Jewelry Box, w/ Lift-out Tray

A steamy, sweltering day this summer found me in the Berkshire hills of Western Massachusetts, loading a purchase of gorgeous Cherry burls into my truck. The battleship-gray clouds that had quickly rolled in over the hills without my noticing them suddenly burst open, and I was drenched in a flash. But I was already pretty well soaked from perspiration anyway; doing any kind of work in the woods on ultra-humid days like that guarantees you won't be dry, so a little thunderstorm didn't make all that much difference. I was just thrilled to be hauling away a precious cargo of gems in the rough.

The lift-out tray in place

The landowner, who lives in an idyllic forest setting, had taken down some Black Cherries nine years ago to make room for a small cabin home he built, tucked away in a huge forest of Oaks, Hemlocks, White Pines and plenty of those Cherries. He wisely left most of the trees standing, taking only enough to make room for the cabin and a bit of open area to let the sun in.

But the most interesting thing to me about this retreat in the woods was the incredible number of burls that these Cherries produced. Virtually every one of them still standing in this grove (and there were dozens) had at least one burl on it, and many had several. It was the greatest density of Cherry (or any other) burls I've ever seen. I stopped counting at 36 burls on the trees within approximately a half-acre of woods. That doesn't include those he had cut down.

Lid and tray removed.

It was from one of these fragrant Cherry burls that this box was turned. The lid, tray, and box were one piece of burl wood, so all three pieces share the same color and figure.

Woodturners often pride themselves on making a box whose lid fits snugly, and makes a little "snap" when closed, and a "pop" when opened. That's nice craftsmanship, but many folks find it a bit annoying that they have to use two hands to open the box. So, my choice is to make the lid just loose enough to allow you to remove it with just a gentle grasp of the finial. It's a detail that eliminates one of life's little annoyances.

As for the appearance of the wood... it's Black Cherry Burl, which is synonomous with "richly colored, highly figured, prized North American hardwood".

This and other lidded boxes are available for purchase at www.bowlwood.com, and on Etsy at www.timberturner.com.

Sea Urchin Ornaments

2010-09-03T22:42:00.002-04:00

This month's newest turnings are delicate hanging ornaments, incorporating various sea urchin shells and turned wooden "icicles", or finials. Woodturners have been making ornaments for a long time, and after seeing some at a meeting that fellow turners had made, I decided to have a go at it. So, I purchased a sampling of different shells, and turned some hardwood caps and icicles, which are glued to the shells.

Sputnik Sea Urchin Ornament

The shells are hollow, some being very lightweight and fairly fragile. Probably the most intriguing species of urchin shell is the "Sputnik", shown in this photo.

Although it may appear to be nearly pure white in the photo, the shell actually has subtle violet coloring in the vertical stripes between the "spikes", which are nodes where, I assume, there actually were spines attached to the live animal. The icicle in this example is made of maple that has been dyed deep-purple. This shell is 2 inches in diameter; the total length of the ornament is 61/2 inches. The icicle tapers to less than 1/8 inch in diameter.

These ornaments are very light, weighing less than one ounce; so, they would be ideal for use as Christmas tree decorations (it isn't that time of year already, is it??). Of course, they can be appreciated in a non-holiday setting too.

Green Sea Urchin, Bloodwood Icicle

This piece (left) is a Green Sea Urchin, a really attractive shell, mated to a Bloodwood cap and icicle. This species has hundreds of tiny bumps on the surface of the shell, giving it an interesting texture. The color is superb, and lends itself nicely to a Christmas decoration.

Alphonso Sea Urchin Mushroom

And finally, while not a hanging ornament, this Alphonso Sea Urchin shell mushroom is, well, ornamental. The shell's shape suggests a mushroom cap, and so its new life is to be as a "mantle mushroom". With a turned maple stalk emerging from a gnarly hunk of bark-covered oak (with lichens still attached), it's the perfect whimsical toadstool.

These ornaments are available for purchase at www.timberturner.com.

"Pilgrim's Harvest" Maple Burl Bowl

2010-08-27T20:06:00.001-04:00

"Pilgrim's Harvest" Maple Burl Bowl

One of the latest bowls off the lathe is this one of spalted Bigleaf Maple Burl, measuring a bit over 15 inches in diameter, 31/2 high.

In addition to some spalting, it features some birdseyes, a warm honey-gold color, and an area of curly figure that appears three-dimensional as you move it in the light (this effect has a fancy name, "chatoyance") ... see the closeup photo below.

Birdseyes, spalting, and curly figure

With the approaching autumn season, crisp air, blazing New England foliage, and ripening crops, many people look forward to celebrating the harvest season. This gorgeous piece of wood, fashioned by hand into a functional piece of art, can be the focal point of a handsome harvest table. Its glass-smooth finish begs to be handled, and its glow warms your heart.

This bowl, and others, are available at www.bowlwood.com.

Treasure Boxes

2010-07-21T22:24:00.002-04:00

Segmented Mahogany & Bigleaf Maple Burl Box

Small, round lidded boxes have been popular for probably as long as woodturners have spun wood. They're favored by many who want or need an attractive container to protect their smaller "treasures", such as jewelry. They can be more than just functional, and often are cherished as a treasure themselves, being passed down as heirlooms through the generations. In days gone by, grandpa may have kept his cuff links (remember those?), or maybe his spare change (remember that?!), in one. Maybe grandma saved buttons in a wooden box, or lovingly kept her special ring in it. In either case, the box was probably worn smooth, like a banister post polished by hands that pivot about its top on every trip down the stairs.

Today, people still stash their keepsakes in turned wooden boxes, and still clink their spare change into one, but they also buy them just because they value them as art pieces that happen to have functionality to boot. There's no other substance like wood, with its infinite variability of color, texture, warmth, figure, lustre, and feel. It's one of life's little pleasures to see a piece of finely turned wood on your dresser each day, and to lift its lid off to peek inside. It even smells good.

The box pictured below is especially distinctive because it was turned from a remnant chunk of the once-mighty American Chestnut, which had been the dominant tree of America's eastern hardwood forests, but was virtually wiped out by the chestnut blight some 70 years ago. Chestnut built America. It framed our barns, our houses, factories, churches and schools. It provided crops of sweet nuts for man and beast. Chestnut posts fenced millions of acres of land, and bedded thousands of miles of railroad.

American Chestnut & Kingwood Box

Although there are millions of Chestnuts still sprouting from unseen root systems, they quickly succumb to the blight, rarely growing to more than perhaps 6 or 7 inches in diameter before they die. Scientists and enthusiasts are busily cross breeding blight resistant specimens of American Chestnut with other resistant species, such as the Oriental Chestnut, to hopefully re-introduce a resistant American Chestnut into the forests someday, but we will never see a mature American Chestnut forest in our lifetimes. So, this box represents a lot of history, a reminder of the huge role that Chestnut played in the building of America.

Camphor Laurel & Ebony Box

When a lidded box is made from a fragrant wood, it can be a delight to open for many years ... each time you pop off the lid, the aroma wafts up to brighten your mood, and you can't help but smile as you purposefully lift the box to your nose. Who'd guess that such a simple thing could change your outlook on life?

One such fragrant wood is camphor laurel. Its aroma never fades, and can easily fill a small room each time a box made of it is opened. And, it's a really pretty wood too. The photo at left is a camphor laurel box with ebony pull. What striking grain! You never forget the name of this wood- it instantly comes to mind each time you open the box.

These and other turned boxes are available for purchase at www.timberturner.com, and at www.bowlwood.com .

The Amherst Yew

2010-06-17T12:26:00.001-04:00

A yew tree on an Amherst campus had to come down, having had the misfortune of being planted where a new building will eventually be planted. If only trees could pull up stakes and walk away! But at least its memory will live on in the form of a few striking bowls and other items.

Look at the warm orange/brown heartwood color and swirling grain of this beauty. It features patches of contrasting, cream-colored sapwood, some dark brown bark inclusions, and even some subtle purple highlights (second photo)!

Yew (Taxus), a short-needled evergreen of several species, is typically planted as an ornamental shrub, often around foundations ("spreading" yew). But left unchecked, "upright" yew can grow to be a small tree, typically as a clump of multiple trunks. Its wood is hard and dense, and is a joy to spin on the lathe. You can read and see more about this bowl at http://www.bowlwood.com/ (where it's available for purchase).

The Summer Visitors, and Cherry Burls

2010-06-14T19:15:00.003-04:00

Piles and piles of wood chips are accumulating in the "shack" these days, as many bowls, weed pots, and other items take shape on the lathe. The compost pile is growing while it tries to digest all these wood bits. As I make the trek to it, and back to the shack again, I'm often greeted by the high-pitched chirps of one or another of the summer visitors here, ruby-throated hummingbirds. They're probably scolding me for interrupting their sipping sessions at the feeders they think are super sweet flowers. The feeders are strategically placed just outside the windows of the shack, so we can take a break from work every so often to watch these tiny winged jewels fanning the air with their high-speed antics.

This is a female (note the white throat); she samples the feeders about every 15 minutes or so, then makes the rounds to all her favorite flowers. There's also a male around, but I haven't been able to photograph him yet. He sports a brilliant, ruby-colored throat, but seems to be more shy about coming to the feeders. These birds will spend the summer here, to then head south in the fall. It would be a hoot to find their tiny nests.

I've acquired some more Black Cherry burls from the Berkshires of Western Mass, and will be turning several bowls from them soon. They'll be posted on http://www.bowlwood.com/ when they're available.

Turnings in new Grow Gallery

2010-04-22T15:07:00.008-04:00

On May 1, 2010, a new gallery will hold its grand opening in Shelburne Falls, MA. The Grow Gallery is a project of the husband and wife team of Jonathan Winfisky and Lesley Grow-Winfisky, and will showcase Jonathan's blown glass art, as well as works by a number of different artists in various media.

Jonathan's glass sculptures have been shown in art galleries, museums, and private collections worldwide. He has been designing and producing unique, original blown and cast sculptural glass vessel forms for over thirty years. He graduated from the University of Massachusetts with a degree in sculpture. His work has been featured in The Corning Museum of Glass, The Corning New Glass Review, The "Art's In The Embassy" Worldwide Exhibit, The Wheaton Museum of Glass, and is shown in over 300 galleries worldwide, as well as in public and private collections. Each piece is a signed and dated original work of art glass created locally in Winfisky's studio, a renovated 100-year-old barn in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.

Lesley worked at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute for the past four years as their Events Coordinator, and is a classically trained painter who has had more than a decade of gallery management experience. Grow Gallery is the realization of her lifelong dream to bring a highly curated fine arts gallery to Western Massachusetts. Grow Gallery will be an immersive art experience that grabs the customer's senses from the minute they walk in the door, encouraging the visitor to focus on the art as a reflection of both beauty and functionality.

Also featured will be a collection of turned pieces by Ray Asselin for sale, including Fencepost Vases, Lidded Treasure Boxes, and burl bowls. Some of the popular fencepost "weed pots" will be of Red Cedar, with moss and lichens still attached, as in the photo below. Other turned vases will also be available.

The grand opening, "Into the Light", will be Saturday, May 1, from 4 to 7 pm, and the public is invited. The gallery is located at 55 Bridge St, Shelburne Falls, MA (near the famous "Bridge of Flowers"), a short way off Rt 2, the Mohawk Trail.

Preserving a Memento From Your Tree

2010-03-01T20:01:00.009-05:00

Many of us have a cherished old tree on our property that, unfortunately, has to be cut down for some reason, or has fallen in a storm. We may want to have something made from its wood, particularly if the tree holds nostalgic significance. Or, maybe we just think the wood is beautiful, so why not have something made from it?

If you're considering having a woodturning (or other object) made from your freshly cut tree, here's some information to help you get the most from its wood. Since I'm a woodturner, I'll discuss it from a woodturner's point of view.

There are a lot of things that can be turned on a lathe from a chunk of wood. Some common ones are bowls, vases, platters, candle sticks, and hollow vessels (eg, urns). There are many more. Obviously, the larger the object that you want, the larger the chunk of wood must be; conversely, the larger your piece of wood is, the larger the turned object can be. Small limbs generally aren't very usable. But some of the most attractive wood figure ("grain") comes from areas of the trunk where a branch exited ("crotch" figure). If your tree happens to have a sizable burl on it (see the blog post about burls), that might be a very desirable piece to have something turned from, particularly a bowl.

Before you cut your downed tree into smaller chunks, it's important to consider some things. As freshly cut wood dries, it shrinks; as it does, something has to give, and that means the wood will very likely crack. And that lessens its usability, generally relegating it to the firewood pile. It would be better to leave the tree in log form than to cut it up into many small chunks that will then be left to dry and crack.

Better yet, if you know the length of the chunk that will be needed to make your desired object, cut the log somewhat longer, and seal the ends of the chunk to prevent rapid drying. Wood dries fastest through the end grain of the log, and slower thru the sides of the log (think of the log as a bundle of straws packed tightly together, side by side; water can leave the straws easily via the ends, not so easily thru the straw walls). The goal is to have the wood dry evenly, from the inside out. If moisture is allowed to escape rapidly thru the end grain, the drying will be uneven within the wood, and internal shrinkage stresses will build up, causing the wood to crack.

What do you seal the ends of the wood with? Well, there are commercial products designed specifically for that purpose, but you could use melted paraffin wax, or any latex paint. You want to paint the sealer onto the cut ends of the chunks as soon as possible; amazingly, the freshly cut wood can crack within minutes on a dry day. Just look at the ends of your firewood... see how each piece has "checked" (ie, cracked)?

Even with the ends quickly sealed, a section of log that's still in the round (ie, has not yet been split down its length) will most likely crack at the ends. Why? Because, although you've slowed down the drying rate by sealing it, the wood will still be drying, and due to the structure of wood, it will want to shrink. When it does, the shape of the log will want to distort, and stresses build up in the round log; those stresses are most often relieved by cracking. Splitting the round section at least in half will allow those halves to shrink with less chance of them cracking (as long as the ends are sealed), although there's no guarantee they won't. Some species of wood are more difficult to dry successfully without cracking than others (like apple, for instance).

So, now what? Well, the answer is ... don't leave the cut chunks "in the round". The best thing to do is to split the chunk (or saw it) right thru the "pith", which is the very center of the log, as viewed from the end. Actually, it may not be the center of the circle formed by the end of the log, but rather, it's the first year's growth ring, which may be offset from the center of the log. The annual rings form more-or-less concentric "circles" on the ends of the log, but the pith may be offset to one side, depending on the tree's growing conditions. At any rate, you should split the chunk thru the pith. You don't want the pith to be left in the chunk of wood that will be used to produce a turning, because it's almost guaranteed to crack, outward from the pith. Look again at a piece of firewood that's still in the round. More than likely, there's one or more cracks radiating out from the pith.

Now that you've split and sealed the ends of the log chunks, you're in much better shape to have something made from them. Be sure to cut the chunks significantly longer than needed, so that if the ends do crack, they can hopefully be trimmed back to uncracked wood.

If you want a bowl made, its diameter can't be greater than the diameter of the half-log chunk; and of course, the chunk's length must be at least as long as its diameter. These diagrams show two possible bowl orientations on the end of a log, with the pith (small circle) at the center. Each bowl would be made from one half of the log, which will be split across the pith so that the pith will be discarded. In the first diagram, the rim of the bowl is oriented nearest the bark side of the log, with its base nearest the center of the log, so its rim diameter will be smaller than the log's. In the second diagram, the bowl's rim is placed near the log's diameter, so it can be larger than the first. The point of all this is just to demonstrate the fact that you don't want the pith to be in the finished item, with rare exceptions.

If you're interested in having a woodturner make something from your tree, probably the best course of action is to contact the woodturner before the log is cut up. A discussion with him of what you'd like will give him a chance to plan the best cuts to be made, and he can advise on the proper handling of the wood. But most importantly, remember--you must take steps to prevent the improper drying of the wood. If you do nothing else, at least cover the wood with a tarp, and keep it out of direct sunlight until it can be gotten to the woodturner.

Rustic Fencepost Weed Pots

2010-02-22T11:05:00.005-05:00

In the last week or two I've been turning some rustic weed pots (vases for dried materials) from weathered old fenceposts and limbs of various woods.

The trick is to find pieces that have been ravaged by the elements on the exterior (hopefully deeply furrowed), but still retain a durable, attractive heartwood within.

The first photo shows one made from Red Mulberry; it has a bright yellow heartwood beneath the grizzled surface, but in time that will slowly, gradually turn to a russet red on exposure. There will be a striking contrast between the weathered surface and the exposed heartwood over the entire color range.

I've also turned some from Cherry, and an as-yet unidentified wood that's quite pretty (second photo) (6/8/10 Update-- the "unidentified" wood is Common (or European) Buckthorn).

The most appealing to me, however, are those made from the remnants of the great American Chestnut. This once-mighty tree of the eastern forests is all but gone now, wiped out by the chestnut blight of the last century. Its legendary durability has kept a few fallen trunks lying about the forest floor, slowly crumbling away to dust. If I'm lucky enough to find any of these with enough wood intact, I make weed pots to keep their cherished memory alive. Old Chestnut fenceposts are still occasionally found in the forests here, remnants of long abandoned New England farms.

These handmade, rustic weed pots evoke a certain nostalgic feeling, particularly in those of us whose roots lie in the countryside. There's just something about the look... a rough, time-worn, weather beaten outside that speaks of the struggle and will to survive what nature (literally) throws at us; and then that bright, smooth, polished heartwood rising out of the grizzled grey, a testament to endurance! Maybe we can relate.

Some of these pots will be available for sale at http://www.timberturner.com/.

New Store Opening

2010-02-02T12:34:00.002-05:00

Just before Christmas, 2009, an interesting new shop opened in Wilbraham, MA, called "Inside Out Home and Garden", featuring an eclectic variety of items for you and your home. Owners Norm and Lois have accepted a number of my turnings for sale in the store, and they're doing well.

If you're in the area, stop in and take a look. The store is located in the Wilbraham Shops complex, at 2341 Boston Road, Wilbraham, MA 01095-1152 (tel (413) 279-1515‎).

So, Milton ... exactly what is a BURL ???

2010-01-29T15:30:00.028-05:00

What are burls? Why are they prized?

Good questions, glad you asked.

A burl (aka "burr") is an aberrant, more-or-less rounded growth on a tree; you've no doubt seen at least one- it's a bump on the trunk (or possibly on a limb, or even on the roots)... it looks like a large wart or canker. Picture a bubble in the sidewall of a tire. Below is a photo of an Elm burl.

Some speculate they're caused by some form of stress to the tree, such as insect damage or fungus invasion, but not a lot is known about the causes. Often a burl will contain a mass of growth buds that never developed beyond small knots, and look like birdseye figure within its wood (note: birdseye figure also occurs in non-burl wood, such as birdseye maple). Burls are covered with bark as they grow, just like the rest of the tree. They do not kill the tree.

The random, contorted grain within the burl often produces some spectacular results in items made from it. Relative to the number of trees there are, burls are not common. They're considered to be defects by many lumbermen, but are prized by woodworkers because of the beauty within them. Here's a bowl turned from a Black Cherry burl.

Many tree species can produce burls, but not all are highly desirable. Those that have strong coloration and birdseye-like figure are probably the most valued. Those that lack birdseyes still probably have at least an interesting wavy, undulating grain pattern, due to the annual growth rings bulging out of the trunk and into the burl. Here's a bowl of Black Ash burl showing areas of birdseye figure, and an area of curly grain.

When a limb is cut off, or dies off, the tree will gradually heal over by enclosing the stub in new bark. The resulting bulge is mistaken by some to be a burl, but it is not, it's a branch stub. Below is a photo of a healed over Elm branch stub.

In my area of New England, the most sought after burl is probably that of Black Cherry, although there are many other species, including maple, oak, birch, spruce, willow, etc.

Members of the Cherry family are susceptible to Black Knot disease, which causes unsightly growths on twigs, and can kill the tree, or at least the infected branch. These growths are not burls. Here are 2 photos of Black Knot cankers on Cherry branches.

There are beautiful burl woods found around the world; some of my favorites (besides our North American ones) are found on Australian trees, particularly on their many species of Eucalyptus. Some grow to monstrous sizes, weighing thousands of pounds!

Here's one of my favorite Australian ones, the Red Mallee burl.

I use a wide variety of burls in my turnings, and continue to seek out species I haven't experienced yet.

Have any burl stories to share?

Aged Cherry Burl Bowls

2010-01-29T14:17:00.010-05:00

I was fortunate to obtain a small truckload of old Black Cherry burls from the family of a deceased country woodturner. They're bone dry, having been aging for years in his rural barn in Western Massachusetts.

These gorgeous, aged burls have mellowed and darkened in color over the years, taking on a deeper tone than fresh-cut Cherry has. Some have been invaded at various times by powder-post beetles and other insect larvae, leaving them with the scars of those attacks, which adds to their character.

They also typically contain the dark streaks of bark inclusions, some cracks and voids (which I usually fill), maybe a bit of creamy sapwood. But the prize is the mass of birdseyes and the swirling grain lines; that, combined with the mellow color, just begs you to handle these beauties.

These are the finest Cherry burls I've yet had to offer, so if you want one of these bowls, don't wait too long.

Music Boxes

2010-01-29T13:15:00.011-05:00

Spalted Bigleaf Maple Burl Music Box

Remember that intriguing wind-up music box of mom's that you played with as a kid?

If you'd like one of your own to enjoy and pass down to your own children, consider ordering a custom-made one.

I handcraft them on the lathe from various woods, and install a quality wind-up movement, typically an 18-note Sankyo. There are many, many tunes available in these movements (see the list below); they will play for approximately 3 minutes per wind-up. If there's a particular tune and wood you'd like, let me know and I'll check on availability and quote a price. Prices will vary, depending on the wood chosen, size, etc.

Spanish Cedar & Cherry Burl Music Box

I currently have the Spanish Cedar music box pictured here posted at http://www.timberturner.com/ ; it plays Brahm's Lullaby, that classic song that lulls a baby to sleep.

------------------------------- Available Tunes -----------------------

The following is a list of tunes available, although I cannot guarantee their availability at all times. Some are in limited quantities, and may become unavailable. I don't stock any movements, I have to order them, so availability depends on the supplier's inventory. Some have sample audio clips available; let me know if you would like to hear a particular clip, and I'll see if it's available. There are other tunes available too, but possibly at a higher cost, from other suppliers.

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
Adestes Fideles (O Come, All Ye Faithful)
Aloha Oe
Always
Amazing Grace
America The Beautiful
Anchors Aweigh
Angels We Have Heard On High
Anniversary Song
Anniversary Waltz
Around The World In Days
As Time Goes By
Ave Maria
Away In A Manger
Be A Clown
Beautiful Dreamer
Beethoven's Symphony No. Five
Bless This House
Blessed Assurance
Born Free
Brahms Lullaby
Camelot
Candy Man
Carousel Waltz
Chariots Of Fire
Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire
Chicago
Clair De Lune
Close To You
Daddy's Little Girl
Dance Ballerina
Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairies
Danny Boy
Deck The Halls
Deep In The Heart Of Texas
Ding, Dong, The Witch Is Dead
Dixie Land
Dominique
Easter Parade
Edelweiss
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik
English Country Garden
Entertainer, The
Evergreen
Feelings
First Noel, The
Friends
Frosty The Snowman
Funeral March/March Of The Marionettes (Alfred Hitchcock's Theme)
Fur Elise
God Bless America
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
Great Is Thy Faithfulness
Greensleeves
Happy Birthday To You
Hark The Herald Angels
Hava Nagila
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
He's Got The Whole World In His Hands
Here Comes Santa Claus
Home On The Range
How Great Thou Art
Hush My Babe
Hush, Little Baby
I'll Be Home For Christmas
I'll Never Fall In Love Again
I'm A Jayhawk
I've Been Working On The Railroad (A.K.A. Eyes Of Texas)
I Left My Heart In San Francisco
I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus
If I Only Had A Brain
Impossible Dream
In The Good Old Summertime
Irish Eyes Are Smiling
It's A Small World After All
It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
Jesus Loves Me
Jingle Bells
Joy To The World
Just The Way You Are
Lara's Theme
Let It Snow
Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear
Let Me Call You Sweetheart
Little Brown Church
Little Drummer Boy
London Bridge
Look Of Love
Love Is A Many Splendored Thng
Love Makes The World Go Round
Marines Hymn
Mary Had A Little Lamb
Mickey Mouse March
Misty
Mona Lisa
Music, Music, Music
My Funny Valentine
My Old Kentucky Home
My Wild Irish Rose
Nocturne (Chopin)
O Canada!
O Holy Night
O Little Town Of Bethlehem
O Tannenbaum
Off To See The Wizard
Oh What A Beautiful Morning
Oif'n Pripetshok (From "Schindler's List")
Old Macdonald
Over The River
Over The Waves
Pachelbels Canon
Parade Of The Wooden Soldiers
People Will Say We're In Love
Peter Cottontail
Pomp And Circumstance
Red Roses
Rock-A-Bye Baby
Rock Of Ages
Romeo And Juliet Theme
Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer
Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
School Days
Sesame Street Theme
Shadow Of Your Smile
Silent Night
Silver Bells
Skaters Waltz
Smoke Gets In Your Eyes
Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Speak Softly
Star Spangled Banner
Stars & Stripes Forever
Sunrise, Sunset
Swan Lake
Take Me Out To The Ball Game
Talk To The Animals
Teddy Bears' Picnic
Tenderly
Tennessee Waltz
Thank Heaven For Little Girls
The Lord’s Prayer
The Unicorn
The Way We Were
This Is My Father's World
This Old Man
Those Were The Days
Tomorrow
Toyland
Try To Remember
Turkey In The Straw
Turntable
Twelve Days Of Christmas
Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star
Up On The House Top
Victory In Jesus
Waltz Of The Flowers
We Three Kings
We Wish You A Merry Christmas
Wedding March (Mendelssohn)
What A Friend We Have In Jesus
What The World Needs Now
When Peace Like A River
Whistle A Happy Tune
White Christmas
Wind Beneath My Wings
Winnie The Pooh
Winter Wonderland
Yankee Doodle
Yesterday
You Are My Sunshine
You Light Up My Life
Younger Than Springtime

Welcome

2010-01-29T11:47:00.007-05:00

Welcome to the Timberturner / Bowlwood blog. I'm Ray Asselin, a woodturner in Western Massachusetts, a scenic and beautiful part of New England.

This blog is associated with my two woodturning sites:

- Bowlwood (http://www.bowlwood.com/)

- and on Etsy (the home of "all things handmade"), www.timberturner.com

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As a woodturner, I have a few purposes and goals. Primarily, turning gives me a means of creative expression. I've always worked with my hands, but not always in a particularly artistic or creative way. Turning allows me to shape things in ways that please me and that naturally appeal to me. Gradually converting a raw chunk of log into a finished piece is a process I enjoy.

The natural world has always been a draw for me, and I feel rooted (pardon the pun) in the forests of my "home range". There is no other place for me that could be home. And so, I thoroughly enjoy exploring the woods and hills around me.

Trees, for some reason, hold a fascination I can't easily explain. I suppose it's their grand stature, wide variability, strength, stability, longevity, and structure that appeal to me. But there's also a range of other values: food (ie, fruits, nuts); shade in the hot summers; scented flowers; den and nest sites for birds and mammals; fuel; shelter from wind; serenity of the forest. Even the silhouette of a tree against the moonlit night sky is something I find very appealing and intriguing.

And, of course, when a tree's life is over, it really lives on in the lasting wooden products we fashion from it. So another of woodturning's purposes for me is to explore the fascinating diversity of wood species- to see what stuff each type of tree is made of, and its inherent beauty in a finished piece.

A third attraction that turning presents me is simply the joy of the hunt for new species I haven't yet turned, and for those special, unique, variations in wood structure (such as burls, figured grain, etc) that can emerge from the lathe as such beautiful art.

When you consider how much trees and their wood provide humankind, it's difficult to come up with any other aspect of nature that can compare. There's an old poem called "Prayer of a Tree" from the book "Spanish Sunshine" by Elinor Elsner, circa 1925, which was a notice found on a tree in a park in Seville, Spain; it sums up the gifts that trees give us ...

To The Wayfarer

Ye who pass by and would raise your hand against me, harken ere you harm me.

I am the heat of your hearth on the cold winter nights, the friendly shade screening you from the summer sun.

My fruits are refreshing draughts, quenching your thirst as you journey on.

I am the beam which holds your house,

the board of your table,

the bed on which you lie,

and the timbers of your boat.

I am the handle of your hoe, the door of your homestead, the wood of your cradle, the shell of your coffin.

I am the bread of kindness and the flower of beauty.

Ye who pass by, listen to my prayer; harm me not.