The grain is not very fine on this invasive species which grows quite rapidly in the eastern panhandle of West Virginia. The finish is just a quick coat of oil. This is a very casual bowl for the kitchen. It was turned from wet wood and is now an oval. The foot is a tenon but less apparent than my usual approach, being recessed into the bottom of the bowl.
Bowl turned from osage orange logs harvested by an arborist, about 19 September 2008. After buying a new chain saw, I was finally able to start bucking the pile, much of which will find its way to the fireplace.
The wood was turned green, kept in a plastic bag as I struggle with its shape. Final dimensions are 7 9/16″ wide at the rim (7″ inside) by 5 5/8″ high (4″ deep inside). The foot rises 1/2″ high before breaking outward.
The sides and bottom, in particular, are thicker and heavier than I would like but I had a nice interior shape and was growing impatient with the time devoted to this bowl. Finish is salad bowl oil with three coats of wax.
Plans are to give this as a gift but I still need to tweak the finish. Some of the wax did not buff as nicely as it should due to vibration from the bowl (as it is no longer true-to-round at this stage).
Update: I gave this as a gift to my brother and it later developed a significant crack as it dried further. After some time, the shape came back into line and, to the best of my knowledge, the crack is no longer apparent.
Re-sawn and planed from reclaimed joists from a smaller industrial building on the same site, these treads and risers were each cut to fit into a stair case built by others. The fasteners are cut nails. The entire collection of treads and risers was laid out in the shop before installation, their positions being adjusted to present a pleasing range and transition of colors along the entire run.
Built for weeding the garden, this bench is 260mm high x 320mm long x 165mm deep. The wood is slavaged French oak timber hand planed to 45mm thick. The dovetails are hand cut. The seat edge chamfer appears on both sides. This was first cut with a router and then finished in the corners with chisels.
My second piece built during my time at the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship, the assignment being to make a case piece with at least one drawer and one door.
The door is counterbalanced with the rocks, such that only the lightest touch on the center spine, back to open and forward to close, results in the door moving on its horizontal pivot hinge as if engaged by a spring or pressurized cylinder.
The drawer on the piece is within the upper portion of the carcass, revealed only when the door is open. The splines are tapered, dovetailed, and pegged. No glue is used in the construction of the door. The carcass itself is constructed with dovetail joinery at the corners. The finish is tung oil.
The first project for the 12-week intensive course at the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship is a bench. The project is a test of planing stock flat and milling it to size; hand-cutting dovetails and mortise and tenon joints, and finishing.
thecaveforwood.work 