WoodWabbet: When Worlds Collide

At the beginning my project, I asked if I could ebonize the legs of my coffee table. Jim Budlong said "it's never been done before" and David Welter followed with "some people believe the color of the wood is enough". That took me back to thinking about the purpose of this school and what it is we are here to learn. One of the most difficult yet most beautiful aspects of CR Fine Wood program is choosing the wood for each project. The grain and color of the wood play such important roles in the look of a piece.

Note how Russell Gale, a former CR student, used straight grain in the linear parts of his chair but for the back splats, he chose a grain to compliment the curves.

Awhile back, Laura Mays, made 10 boxes using a variety of woods of different colors. When I first saw these, I thought "she's using color so I get to ebonize my legs!"

A couple of weeks ago, some of us took a marquetry class taught by Greg Zall, another former CR student. His work is a perfect example of how one can use wood to paint a canvas. And again, note how he wraps the grain around his piece.

And here is my attempt at marquetry.

On day two of the class, we had a visit from Michael Cullen. Prior to starting school at CR, I took a class of his where we learned how to use milk paint and carving tools to create a different style in wood...texture and color.