Category Archives: figure

Goose-Inspired Sugar Maple Bowl

What a dull world if we knew all about geese! Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac (1949) Geese still hold plenty of mystery for me. In this part of the world, they are Canada geese. Their abundance makes them easy … Continue reading

Posted in bird bowls, figure, finding wood, nature, quotes and excerpts, tools, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 28 Comments

Maple Branch to Maple Bird

A blank canvas can be daunting. I like how the peculiarities in a piece of tree focus the possibilities for me. I just finished this bird bowl from a twisted maple branch and I thought I’d share some photos I … Continue reading

Posted in bird bowls, figure, layout, tools, Uncategorized | Tagged | 12 Comments

Bird Bowl from Straight Grain

Most of the bird bowls I make come from crooks, with the form following the flow of the fibers. In designing and making this bowl, I tried to achieve similar lines and a sense of movement within the constraints of … Continue reading

Posted in bird bowls, figure, finding wood, layout, patterns, quotes and excerpts, sketch, tools, trees, Uncategorized | 8 Comments

Dealing with Interlocked Grain

Trees do funny things.  This cherry was taken down a few months ago in a friend’s yard.  This section has a 4 1/2″ radius and 55 growth rings.  We tend to think of the fibers going straight up the trunk … Continue reading

Posted in bowls, cherry, figure, finding wood, green woodworking, holding, trees, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 16 Comments

Revisiting Thoreau’s Tray

Our life is frittered away by detail . . . I say, let your affairs be as two or three, and not a hundred or a thousand; instead of a million count half a dozen, and keep your accounts on … Continue reading

Posted in drying, figure, green woodworking, historical reference, Lettering, quotes and excerpts, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Ambrosia Maple Bowl

A little bread—a crust—a crumb— A little trust—a demijohn— Can keep the soul alive— — Emily Dickinson, from Poem 159 (1896) Looking back, I was surprised at how long it had been since I’d carved a lettered bowl like this.  … Continue reading

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Playing With Cool Sticks

Green woodworking can imply more than just the general notion of working wood that is still relatively fresh with a high moisture content.  Among other things, the term connotes the idea of working with nature, sensitively considering the unique attributes … Continue reading

Posted in bird bowls, bowls, cherry, figure, finding wood, green woodworking, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 14 Comments

Feline Inspiration

You can learn a lot by watching cats.  They are studies in elegant movement and sinuous lines. Our cat, Mavis (named after a Thomas-the-Train engine), is sixteen years old.  Quick sketches of him appear here and there through my sketchbooks.  … Continue reading

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Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign

“Please, do not touch.”  There are certain posted signs that disappoint me, but perhaps none more than that.  I can deal with “Stay off the Grass.”  In fact, I may have had no desire to walk on the grass, at … Continue reading

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Carving like Caron

I often listen to audio books while carving in the shop, and I recently finished Irving Stone’s 1934 book Lust for Life, a biographical novel about the life and work of Vincent van Gogh.  Early on, as learning exercises, Vincent … Continue reading

Posted in carving, figure, historical reference, tools, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments