A New Love In Wood

I have said many times that I like finding a new and unique woodworking pattern.  Not so difficult that I get frustrated but something that makes me say, "I love that!"

I wanted to make a few more gifts that would "wow" people but still not take weeks to make.  I found what I was looking for with a designer named Diana Thompson. She has a site called Scroll Saw Inspirations.  That site some of her patterns for sale.  I also found that she has book published in the scroll saw family.  I was so impressed with her flowers that I had to try my hand at make them.  I bought several of her patterns hoping that they were easy to make yet had that "wow" factor that I was looking for.  Her patterns did not disappoint!

I started with the "Vase of Valentine Flowers" pattern.  I carefully chose my wood and went to work.

I used walnut for the vase and oak for the flowers.  I also chose colored wood stain instead of paint.  That way the grain of the wood is still visible so that people could see that they were indeed made of wood.

Here is my end results:

 

 

And here is a couple of close ups of the flowers:

 

Every component of this project is wood (even the stems and they are also hand cut.)  I had a few issues putting those petals together and this was certainly a lesson in compound cutting. Later I found out some tips and tricks for putting those pieces together.  I loved doing this project so much that I went back to the site and bought almost every flower/vase pattern the woman has to offer on her site.  

I can't wait to try more of these unique flowers and vases.  

Happy Sawing  ! ! !

Brenda

Sometimes Bad Is Good

Mistakes happen when you are crafting.  Those mistakes can either ruin an item or make it look totally different than what was expected or desired.  This is one of those instances.

I love using different colors of stain on my wooden projects.  I am not much on painting them.  I love the look of natural grains and the earthy brown tons of stain.

My husband had just brought home a new color of stain called 'Early American.'  He explained that this stain darkens the grain of the wood but is lighter everywhere else on the wood.  He said he was going to use it on one of the necks of his guitars.  He convinced me to try it.  I had two projects completely cut out, glued, and sanded that were ready for finishing.

I was horrified when I dipped the piece in the stain and it turned the entire piece very dark, almost black.  I thought I had ruined the little boxes.  My saving grace was that these boxes were made from scrap wood and I was only out my time.  I just set them aside and figured I would do one of two things with them, either paint them or throw them away.  I decided to try to salvage them first.

I waited to the stain to dry and then decided that I would try to knock off some of the dark stain with my new sanding mop.  I was pleasantly surprised that the sanding mop was pretty easy on the detailing of the basket box and left an antique look to the piece.

Here is a couple of pictures of the end result:

Then there was also a square box that I also had ruined with this stain.  I used just a regular orbital sander on the sides of this one.  Here is the end results of that box:

 

This box actually looks like it is made from different types of wood.

These two projects were rescued and I am thankful that my time was not wasted.  I am also thankful that I was no too hasty in throwing them away.

I guess this is where I ask you have you made any artful mistakes lately and how did you fix them ?

Happy Crafting ! ! !

Brenda