Antique Tewa Blanket in Cedar Shadow Box

Take a look at this Antique Tewa Blanket that was my Great Grandmothers. It was purchased from the Tewa Tribe of Native Americans in Norther New Mexico in the 1800's (family places it in the family around 1885-1895). It was passed down to me and I made a special cedar shadow box. the box is about 38" X 18" X 4" deep. There is a wood dowel wrapped in Teflon to keep the natural wool fibers away from the acidic wood it hangs on. It has a UV protective coating on the Plexiglas to keep the blanket from fading.

Modern Black Walnut Table

Here is my latest project - A Modern Styled Black Walnut Table. This table is made of solid black walnut with walnut legs. This piece of wood was salvaged from a wind damaged tree. It is approximately 30" x 24 " x 4" thick. The green inlay is a resin material called inlace। It is the first time I've used this product and I'm quite happy with the results. At this stage, the table has been cleaned with mineral spirits to remove any dust and will be finished with two coats of tung oil followed by 6-8 coats of amber shellac. More to come:)


A One Minute Video on the Black Walnut Table! Check it out!

Dad, that's so Cool!

Now here is a newly designed and constructed modern styled headboard that incorporates niches and side table right into the headboard. This low slung bed sits about eight inches off the floor and has five niche’s for collectible, books or whatever pleases the bed’s user. The built in night stand (seen on the right side of the photo) is build directly onto the headboard. Constructed of ¾” plywood, the 48” tall x 60” wide headboard, has five off set niches and is painted with a bright yellow paint with Teflon that is easily cleaned. No the colors may not by of your liking, as they weren't mine at first, but eventually they did grow on me. My teen aged daughter just thought is was so cool and she had me make a matching one for her friend and partner in crime:)

There Are Planes, Then There Are Planes!

The use of planes in woodworking goes back thousands of years.  Amazingly, their fundamental design has not changed much, although the materials they are made of have.  Old planes were made of hardwoods like the one pictured above, now most modern planes are made of cast metal with hardwood handles or in some cases, just metal.  These tools are used to remove fine layers of wood to level or plane the wood to a desired shape.  There are a wide variety of plane sizes and uses beyond the scope of this blog so if you’re interested in learning more, visit Amazon.com that offers books, a variety of planes and related tools.

Old Mirror - New Light

Large Silver Leaf Wall MirrorTrademark CLC6000-ARM Army Wood and Mirror Wall Cue RackWall Mounted Etched Mirror Coat Rack - Wood Duck Art Etching - Solid Oak, Hand-Rubbed Finish, 26 x 22 inches

This old mirror project has had many moves. Originally built in 1994, if memory serves me right, it was a free standing unit. But after moving it from Santa Fe, New Mexico, to Boise, Idaho then again to Eastern California then once more to Enterprise, Oregon it got tired, lost its legs and now shines new light on our entryway art.
Constructed of 4" x 6" Douglas Fir, it is joined by wood dowels and has hand carved details that have been hand carved and painted in turquoise. The frame is about 5' tall and 3' wide.  It weighs about 60 lbs.