New Wood Boxes - Black Walnut

Here are a few boxes I turned, using Black Walnut branches hanging over my roof. I can't recommend enough the virtues of using wood for your immediate area! I've made probably 30-35 pieces now, and almost all are made from wood I'v cut on my own property. I live on 1/2 acre in North Carolina - just enough to keep me stocked.

Cut a branch in your yard - save the larger pieces in your garage or shed - let them dry out and you'll have some great stock to work on. I recently went to a woodworker's show here in town and I was shocked at how much some of the wood blanks cost - $30-$35 for a relatively small block of wood!!

Keep your eyes open for neighbor's throwing out wood (old furniture, yard waste) and don't be afraid to stock up.

These boxes were relatively easy, although I did have some rough spots. Clearing the inside bent up a small spindle tool pretty good, when it caught on the wood not once but three times. I still haven't got it quite figured out, but, I completed them!

Like I said - Black Walnut from a branch, finished with sandpaper, tung oil and beeswax. Nice enough to give as gifts for my mother and mother in law!

My First Turning

Here it is, the very first piece of work on my new lathe.

I made this spindle turned project from a 2" x 2" piece of pine. It's a soft wood, so it was easy to rough from a square blank to a cylinder. I used a few different tools to experiment and see what I could do.

I will say - the piece looked much better while it was spinning on the lathe then in my hand. It's a good idea to start with something small, something soft, just to get your feet wet. Since it was 2" square, it was easy to mark the center on each end (two X's) and easy to mount between the lathe centers.

I found it satisfying to be able to make something, anything, with my new investment. At the same time, this brief exercise gave me insight into the complexity of wood turning, and gave me an appreciation for the art. All at once, I knew this was something I could master, but also that I knew almost nothing and had everything to learn.

And so my journey begins.