A sample of a few birch projects that i finished up not long before christmas; including N's new dough bowl.



peace
e

photo by eric berglund

Birch Bowl



Posted this bowl back in March. Finally got to sanding it, after fashioning my sanding rig, which helps to speed the task along. Pulled this birch off a friends property over in the Slate River valley, southwest of town, two summers ago. Grain came out really nice, especially after applying two coats of Clapham's Bees Wax Salad Bowl Finish.

peace
e

photo by eric berglund
bowl by eric berglund

Freeze, thaw, freeze thaw. Thaw. Thaw. Thaw. Thaw. Most, if not all ice and snow on land has disappeared, which is not totally the norm for these parts in March. It sort of feels like winter had just started to get rollin, before it was cut short by these temps in the teens.

Put this birch bowl aside to dry, several weeks ago now. I'll probably be able to pull it out and sand it later this summer, along with all the other projects that have been stockpiling on the drying rack.


Just another rad shot of the lakes from NOAA.


peace
e

photos: eric berglund

Download the full size satellite image from NOAA here.

Too warm for January in NWO. Rain to heavy snow, temp hovering around zero, strong east to ESE winds. Skiin' on month old snow up until now, so this should do something.

Break out the tools, quick tune of the edges with the strop and lay into some birch that has been sitting idle outside for the last few months. Fill the basement shop with the smell of fresh wood shavings. Oskar joins me for a bit and sits in his high chair to watch while he munches on an organic snack and smiles. Makes me smile.

Self shot


Tools- Mora, Ashley Iles, Granfors, and Hans Karlsson

In progress

peace
e

photos by e.

Got into carving spoons this past fall using axe and knife, mostly out of intrigue and because i was having a need to get creative. After coming back from Sweden i decided to get my act together and give it a try. I've got an uncle, Erv is his name, who has been carving some pretty deadly bowls of the Swedish form and design for several years now. Bowls that are both functional and aesthetically pleasing, a fundamental aspect to Swedish design.

A couple from his personal collection.


I finally had the opportunity to get some hands on instruction in his shop (read: basement) this past weekend and carve my self a bowl. Definitely more to it, once you start breaking down the steps and working through the process.

Tools: Gransfors Bruks Drawknife, GB carving axe, GB short-handle adze, Hans Karlsson Gouges (HK-08,HK-24,& HK-06).

First attempt at a bowl. Still needs drying time and sanding. Will post when finished.

Much thanks Erv.

peace
e

photos By: Eric Berglund