Archive for the ‘wood’ Tag
My love/hate relationship with the Pig Business is well chronicled.
I’ve raised pigs. Didn’t take to it.
I do find a certain joy in delivering a smile when people see my wooden pigs, however. Some use them as cutting boards, some as charcuterie or cheese & cracker boards, and some use them as wall art.
Which just goes to show that my Pig Business today has little to do with my business of, uh, 50+ years ago.
Thank goodness.
Here are a half dozen Pigs that have made it to the finish line. Another half dozen are on the way … some day soon, I believe.
Pig 18 – 603. Black Walnut, Hard Maple, Purpleheart & Bloodwood.
Pig 18 – 606. White Oak, Black Walnut, Hard Maple & Mesquite.
Pig 18 – 607. Black Walnut.
Pig 18 – 604 . Oak, Merbau, Canarywood & Yellowheart.
Pig 18 – 602. Hard Maple, Canarywood & Padauk.
Pig 18 – 604. Purpleheart, Hard Maple & Bubinga.
I had no clue that Trivets would prove to be this popular.
They have become the source of the #1 question I get at craft fairs: “What’s a trivet?” Or, the #2 question, “What is this?”
Trivets.
They’re made from the same hardwood as my other pieces, but these have wide slots cut in them to help dissipate the heat from hot dishes. Use these on a well-appointed table to protect the table top’s finish.
Or, use them as a conversation piece. They certainly are working that way for me!
All are 8-1/2″square, and about 3/4″ thick.
Trivet 18 – 720. Hard Maple, Purpleheart, Yellowheart & Hickory.
Trivet 18 – 721. Jarrah, Bubinga, Purpleheart, Yellowheart, Padauk & Hard Maple.
Trivet 18 – 722. Jarrah, Jatoba, Hard Maple & Black Walnut.
Trivet 18 -723. Hard Maple & Padauk.
Trivet 18 – 724. White Oak & Padauk.
Trivet 18 – 725. White Oak, Purpleheart, Bubinga, Bloodwood, Hard Maple & Black Walnut.
Trivet 18 -726. Black Walnut, Hard Maple, Purpleheart & Jatoba.
Trivet 18 – 727. Purpleheart, Mesquite & Black Walnut.
Trivet 18 – 728. Jarrah, Purpleheart, Black Walnut & Honey Locust.
One of the challenges in a 1-man shop is how you can get more efficient. When it’s just you against the world, you can’t afford to waste time.
I decided some time ago that I would not hire an assistant … so I bought one.
My CNC router is a computer-controlled carving machine that will do what I tell it to do, generally. It will work on one project while I’m doing other tasks. I’m now doing some processes for many of my products on the CNC. Magic Bottle Openers, Trivets, Coasters and Pigs all go through the CNC now.
And in this case, “more is better” is definitely a true statement. I’m slowly adding more products. Wall plaques are now happening, along with some 3D carving. As I gain more skills there, you’ll see Cribbage Boards (I promise!) and new Cheese Slicers make it to the finish line.
For now, here are some of the ideas I have delivered sing the CNC.
CNC Sign 18 – 04 – Family. Hard Maple. 12″ x 16″ x 3/4″. Sold in it’s first showing.
CNC Sign 18 – 03 – Family. 12″ x 16″ x 3/4″. Sold in it’s first showing.
Wine Bottle Coaster 18 – 502. Cherry.
Cheese & Cracker Server 18 – 202. Hard Maple. 13″ x 16″ x 1-1/4″. 2 sided use, with the flip side being a plain surface for cutting or charcuterie or ….
CNC Sign 18 – 05 – Family. Cherry. 12″ x 16″ x 3/4″.
CNC Sign 18 – 06 – Family. Cherry. 12″ x 16″ x 3/4″.
CNC Sign 18 – 07 – Family. Cherry. 12″ x 16″ x 3/4″.
CNC Sign 18 – 08 – Family. Cherry. 12″ x 16″ x 3/4″.
Lazy Susan 18 – 12. Hard Maple, Cherry & Sapele. 18″ diameter.
Lazy Susan 18 – 13. Padauk & Spalted Maple. 18″ diameter.
CNC Sign 18 – 09 – In This House. Hard Maple. 13″ x 16″ x 3/4″.
I enjoy making these hearts.
Can they be cutting boards? Of course.
Most people, however, view them as either display pieces or cheese servers. Works for me.
What I know is that every heart has Bloodwood in it (wouldn’t you?) and no heart ever has Yellowheart or Black Walnut in it (because those do not belong in hearts).
I trust that you’ll agree that those are good decisions to make a nice heart.
If you’re out and about this weekend, come see us – Mrs M is finally joining me! – at the Montrose Arts & Crafts Festival. We’ll be there 10-6 on Saturday and 10-5 on Sunday. Hope to see you there!
Heart 18 – 915.
Heart 18 – 926.
Heart 18 – 925.
Heart 18 – 924.
Heart 18 – 923.
Heart 18 – 922.
Heart 18 – 921.
Heart 18 – 920.
Heart 18 – 919.
Heart 18 – 918.
Heart 18 – 917.
Heart 18 – 916.
Last week, I was on a crash course to finish this batch of trivets. The inventory was too low for our big event this weekend, the California Strawberry Festival.
So, one crash later, I was done with 23 new trivets. I put them in a prominent position in the booth’s outside corner, on a temporary pile of containers and in a crate … which invites people to flip through the pieces as they look for the right ones.
I learned two things:
- Many people have no idea what a trivet is. The word doesn’t translate into Spanish, I’m told, so a large number of people with a Mexican or Central American heritage have no idea what the sign means when it says “Trivets.” Of course, there’s a large number of people that are Americanized that have no clue, as well. “Trivets.” A mystery. Who knew?
- People love flipping through a crate of trivets. Oh so many people did that on Saturday.
And that’s a good thing. Some of the flippers even bought one or two.
The flipping continues today at the California Strawberry Festival in Oxnard. Come and flip some, if you please. I would truly appreciate it: load out starts at 6:30pm, and I hope I have a lighter load to come home.
And that, of course, will begat a new crash course for next week … a problem for another day.
Trivet 18 – 709. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 718. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 708. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 710. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 711. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 713. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 716. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 717. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 712. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 719. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 714. 8.5″ square.
Trivet 18 – 715. 8.5″ square.
I use coasters. Don’t you?
I’ve seen other woodworkers make them, but they always bugged me. I think a wooden coaster should do 3 things:
- Protect the table underneath.
- Catch the condensation from the glass.
- Sit there, look pretty.
Many coasters, in my estimation, fail in at least one of these goals. With that in mind, these coasters were designed somewhat differently than my traditional cutting board & serving piece offerings.
For one, the finish on these coasters is a urethane, which could be used on wooden counters or tables. It’s food grade – but not cutting board grade. It does provide more moisture protection for the wood. Because, you know, condensation.
Secondly, I’ve added another wood to these coasters that’s very soft: cork. The round cork inserts provide a soft landing pad for your glass, and the small well around them will contain a few drops of moisture as well. Because, you know, condensation.
These coasters are not small: they are 5″ square, with the cork insert being 4″ round. They are the perfect size for the large drink containers that many favor these days.
I’m offering these coasters in sets of 4, and Mrs M and I have a disagreement about that. She insists that I only sell them in matched sets, but I believe that’s a mistake. Given that I made them, I get the final vote. (For the record, she gets the final vote … on her side of the booth.) I’ll be fine with anyone that wants a matched set of 4 … but I’ll also be fine if they want 4 different wood designs in their set.
Each coaster is $10. Buy 4, and you get a bonus coaster holder. Those holders are currently made from Black Walnut or Jatoba. There are 7 sets plus 3 single coasters in this first batch. Can’t wait to hear your thoughts on this new product, made possible by my CNC!
Coasters 18 – 01. Purpleheart, Cherry, Bloodwood & Cork.
Coasters 18 – 02. Black Walnut, Jatoba, Padauk, Hard Maple, Morado & Cork. Shown with Black Walnut holder.
Coasters 18 – 03. Chaos Coasters. Jatoba, Cherry, Purpleheart, Black Walnut, Bloodwood, Yellowheart, Jarrah & Cork. Shown with Black Walnut holder.
Coasters 18 – 04. Cherry, Teak, Bloodwood, Morado & Cork. Shown with Jatoba holder.
Coasters 18 – 05. Jatoba, Black Walnut, Bloodwood, Cherry & Cork. Shown with Black Walnut holder.
Coasters 18 – 06. Chaos Coasters. Yellowheart, Jatoba, Bloodwood, Cherry, Hard Maple, Jatoba, Purpleheart & Cork. Shown with Black Walnut holder.
Coasters 18 – 07. Jatoba, Hard Maple, Bloodwood, Purpleheart, Yellowheart & Black Walnut. Shown with Black Walnut holder.
Coasters 18 – 08. Cherry, Purpleheart, Jatoba & Cork. Shown with Jatoba holder.
That’s what I call them.
Most people see them, and say, “Those look like surfboards!” While that may be true, now that I make boards with actual surfboard shapes, it seems wrong to call these pieces surfboards.
Because they’re not.
In my personal lexicon, though, I call them large surfboards, because that’s less cumbersome than Large Cheese & Cracker Servers.
Which is more accurate. As if that matters. If it walks like a duck, and talks like a duck….
You call them what you like. These pieces are a unique design that I’ve developed. The underside of each piece has massive “cove cuts,” which are made on the table saw by running the board not through the blade, but across the blade at an oblique angle. The curves underneath the boards, therefore, are the shape of the saw blade as it passes through the wood.
These cove cuts allow the piece to sit very lightly on the table. Combining the oval shape with the curved handles underneath result in curves going in multiple directions with this piece; it’s very pleasing to the touch.
All of these serving pieces are 12″ x 20″ x 1-1/4″. As with all of the pieces I make, the finish is food safe: mineral oil and board butter, which is mineral oil mixed with locally-harvested beeswax. All have rubber feet, held on with stainless steel screws.
The first one shown, and the last two shown, all sold in their first showing.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 09. Black Walnut, Padauk, Purpleheart & Goncalo Alves. Sold in its first showing.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 11. Merbau.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 06. Bubinga, Hard Maple, Jatoba, Purpleheart & Canarywood.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 15. Hard Maple & Goncalo Alves.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 07. Hard Maple & Padauk.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 12. Black Walnut, & Goncalo Alves.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 13. Hard Maple, Purplheart & Jatoba.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 05. Merbau.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 04. Jatoba, Hard Maple & Purpleheart.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 08. Black Walnut.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 02. Hard Maple, Canarywood, Purpleheart & Bloodwood.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 03. Merbau.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 10. Padauk, Hard Maple, Jatoba & Purpleheart. Sold in its first showing.
Cheese & Cracker Server 17 – 14. Black Walnut, Canarywood & Goncalo Alves. Sold in its first showing.
My love/hate relationship with the Pig Business is well chronicled.
