Wesley C. Rolley on thu 11 may 00
Many people have written on this forum about the sensual appreciation of
clay and how then enjoy just working with it. Last evening, I became
jealous of those craft artists who work with wood. I have some well
seasoned (5+ years) olive wood that I was ripping into 1/4 inch slabs from
which to fashion ribs to fit my hands (large) and paddles. Just the aroma
of that freshly cut olive wood was a treat. Since I have a lot of it
available, I shall enjoy for a long time.
Actually, I could not stop working with the wood so I took a piece that had
split off and fashioned a letter opener. A rasp, plane blade scraper,150,
400 and 1000 grit sandpaper and some tung oil. The grain is beautiful and
meets at the point where it had originally bent around a knot. Lovely.
I also plan to make lids to tea caddies and small jars from the various
hardwoods that I have (olive, madrone, manzanita). All are beautiful woods.
Since my favorit objects are bowls, maybe I should get a lathe and have the
best of both worlds.
Wes
Karen Fisher on fri 12 may 00
my husband and i share a 2-car garage for our studios. my wheel, slab
roller and kiln are in one half and his lathe and tools are in the
other. while the wood chips and dust from his turning are not always
compatible with what i'm doing--especially at the glazing
stage--wood-turned bowls are truly wonderful. each wood has its own
characteristics, scent and grain pattern.
i love your idea of using the wood for lids on ceramics, and i'm sure you
would enjoy woodturning bowls, too.
Karen Fisher
d027087c@dc.seflin.org
Whatever
David Hendley on fri 12 may 00
I love wood almost as much as clay, and have
made wood handles and lids for pots on a lathe.
The aroma is indeed wonderful, but the smell
of wet, green wood is even better. Musty.
Now I get my 'wood fix' with my wood fired kiln.
I love loading the freshly cut slats at the saw mill
and stacking them by the kiln. For weeks afterwards,
I catch that aroma every time I walk over to the
shop. Oak is my favorite.
Some people hate the smell of green oak, but, hey,
they probably can't appreciate the earthy odor of a
bucket of clay trimmings soaking in throwing water,
either.
I have a stack of boards from the saw mill that are
just too good to burn in a kiln. I get a few every
time I make a trip to the mill. I made a nice pine
TV/stereo cabinet out of kiln wood 'save-backs' a few
years ago. Now I have a good-sized stack of red oak
boards waiting to be made into a piece of furniture.
I built my kitchen cabinets out of Eastern Red Cedar
(cedar chest wood). Every morning, when I open
the cabinet to reach for one of Tony Clennell's or Ron
Roy's mugs, I get that subtle whiff of cedar. It's
a real treat. Smell is one area where a pot just can't
compete with a wooden object.
I will, however, never be jealous of people who work
with wood. They actually measure things down to 32nds
of an inch! I prefer the 'about this much' measuring in the
pottery shop. I also like having 10 fingers, and want to
keep it that way by avoiding working around spinning
blades on a regular basis.
--
David Hendley
Maydelle, Texas
hendley@tyler.net
http://www.farmpots.com/
----- Original Message -----
From: Wesley C. Rolley
To:
Sent: Thursday, May 11, 2000 4:41 PM
Subject: Sensory Appreciation of Work
| ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
| Many people have written on this forum about the sensual appreciation of
| clay and how then enjoy just working with it. Last evening, I became
| jealous of those craft artists who work with wood. I have some well
| seasoned (5+ years) olive wood that I was ripping into 1/4 inch slabs from
| which to fashion ribs to fit my hands (large) and paddles. Just the aroma
| of that freshly cut olive wood was a treat. Since I have a lot of it
| available, I shall enjoy for a long time.
|
| Actually, I could not stop working with the wood so I took a piece that
had
| split off and fashioned a letter opener. A rasp, plane blade scraper,150,
| 400 and 1000 grit sandpaper and some tung oil. The grain is beautiful and
| meets at the point where it had originally bent around a knot. Lovely.
|
| I also plan to make lids to tea caddies and small jars from the various
| hardwoods that I have (olive, madrone, manzanita). All are beautiful
woods.
|
| Since my favorit objects are bowls, maybe I should get a lathe and have
the
| best of both worlds.
|
| Wes
| |
|
