Black Walnut Studio

Working on the pattern next starting off in what will be the top right corner. This will end up being a tray that I’m teaching at Fleming College in Haliburton this July. More to come…

Part of softening is you get to see what it will look like with some finish on it.

One of the requested courses at Fleming College in Haliburton last summer was to create a tray with some parquetry. That’s happening this July so I thought I would do something along the way of a Bauhaus style after seeing some dyed veneer at Exotic Woods.

I really struggle with adding more than two or three colours of wood on a piece but I’m breathing in through my nose and out through my mouth as I become one with my veneer…more to come…

When you come to Rosewood Studio you learn to become one with your plane. It has been an awesome week teaching a great group how to Veneer With A Curve. More to come…

Slapping…or should I say vacuuming…on some skin. I’m using the slightly larger Roarockit Thin Air Press bag with an adapter for my VacuPress pump. Wiggle wood is awesome to work with. Creating curves with it and some veneer is my favourite way of staying away from straight. In fact I’ll be teaching Veneer With A Curve at my old alma mater Rosewood Studio starting this coming Monday.

It only takes 1 minute and 33 seconds to make a bending form. It’s actually not that hard as long as you have a good square setup, check for square often and use some Titebond sticky stuff in a bottle. And some pin nails to make it stay put while the glue cures. Next up laying on some skin…

MDF is awesome for jigs, bending forms even veneer substrate. Consistent, beautiful shade of brown…some might even say dusty rose. However, when you drill into it, there are little”nibs” that are slightly proud of the very flat surface. Perfect job for the Blue Spruce Tools chisel plane. Thanks to a good friend I even have the spearhead version (Thanks Tony). Those small little nibs would cause the bending form even to be out of square…never mind the disturbance in the force it would leave.

Rinse…repeat…about 75 times. Making exact duplicate ribs for a bending form for my Veneer With A Curve class at Rosewood Studio next week! While it may seem mind numbing at times it’s actually good work. You can’t fall asleep otherwise you’ll cut into the form and have to start over or have the assembly fly away on you at the router. It’s like sweeping the floor at the end of a good day. Rewarding.