wish I could say that I honed my woodworking skills at the side of my father, who gained his knowledge that was passed down by his father. But unfortunately that was not the case. It wasn’t until I moved to Vermont after college and then not until 40 years later that I find myself creating hand carved bowls, using traditional methods.
There was an old Butternut tree that fell on my property, which made me wonder if there was any lumber value in it. My brother-in-law, who is an 8th generation Vermonter and owns Clifford Lumber in Hinesburg, Vermont, was over for Thanksgiving a few years back and I asked him about it. He told me there were too many turns in it that detracts from its value, but said I should try making some bowls out of it! Hmmm. I know he was thinking about turning bowls on a lathe, similar to what his father had done… a true artisan who developed a style of marquetry whose trays and other examples wound up in some local museums.
Now the last thing I wanted was another piece of noisy machinery, producing lots of sawdust. I already had a selection of power tools located in my shop/garage and the thought of adding one more wasn’t appealing. However, I’ve always thought of myself as being creative and have dabbled in clay sculpture and some woodworking and the idea of creating a bowl from a log was appealing.
I began looking on-line and was quickly exposed to the simplicity and artistic process that was being utilized in hand carving green wood using traditional practices. This practice is twofold… except for the chainsaw used to fell the tree, the only tools I use are traditional hand tools, such as an adze, carving ax, drawknife, spoke shaves, assorted gouges, etc. The other practice element is to use only local Vermont hardwoods, such as Black Cherry, Maple, Birch, Poplar, Ash, etc. I’m fortunate enough to have a 6-acre wood lot, mostly hardwood, that with good management and selective cutting will provide a never ending supply of potential bowls.
As I carve out a bowl, I am continually amazed at the colors and grain patterns that were hidden below the outer bark and now appear. These qualities of the wood make the carving process continually changing, never finished till the drying is complete and the finish applied. Even then, time will continue to enrich and darken the colors and with continually handling, result in a changing patina. (Use and Care Page)
I can only hope that the excitement I get when I begin to carve out a bowl and discover what it has to offer continues for a long time to come. If you have any questions about my bowls, the process or anything at all, please feel free to email me.