November 19th I was here last. Hope everyone had a great Xmas and we all have a fantastic 2020
Loads of stuff going on, as ever, which has occupied way too much of my mind. All done and dusted now so hopefully back on track.
The year is starting out nice and steady as I set about a revamp and add an extension to the shed. Really looking forward to getting it all back to rights.
End of last year saw a few things come together.
PHAAF's for starters.
Also decided to use some Black Palm, only a bit differently. This stuff can only be described as a soft brown spongy pith full of black needles, which get spat out at you.
In the picture you can see the black lines running across the top surface normally they run lengthways along the blank. Cross cutting it shows off the 'wood' really well.
Walnut burr veneeer and black pvc for the accents, Blackwood for the stem.
Bog Oak and alternative Ivory piece that went down to Brazil. Customer played around with some pictures until they had the stem the way they wanted it.
The Yew and Briar Burl acrylic case got it's stem.
Yew starts out very light coloured but with exposure to the air and light it really richens up.
No way of stopping this happening. UV inhibitors can be used but they only slow it down rather than halt it in it's tracks.
The Yew bowl was turned ages ago and you can see the foot is lighter than the underside, it's still darkened up.
Exposure to the light has really changed the top surface.
All woods do this, Osage being one of the most dramatic. Going from that vibrant yellow to mud.
Playing with an 18mm today, not many requests for them, difficult to make the fat bottom into anything slender looking. This one drops too far into the joint but it seals and shows it can be made to look a little less 'dumpy'.
Really busy first quarter of the year, too busy for my poor head to cope with.
All for the greater good and should allow a bit more idea exploration and improve a few more things.
Final drawing is in at the machine shop, not all of them will be like this.
