Playing With Wood

John and I really enjoy working with wood. He carves, turns pens and is starting an intarsia project. I like turning bowls and am trying to expand the types of turning projects I do.

A year or so ago we saw something made with slices of tree branches and decided to try a project like that ourselves. Here are the slides of mesquite wood we (mostly John) cut.

That was the easy part. The next step is to cover them with epoxy for a shiny table top or wall hanging. I had never worked with epoxy before. The project has turned into more of a learning experiment than a finished decorative item. I put on too thick a coat of the epoxy. First it ran all over the place and we were quickly using newspaper and trash bags to catch the overflow. Then, as it dried, bubbles developed. The white spots in this photo are where I sanded down the bubbles.

Hopefully, we can clean it up enough to put on another thin layer of epoxy or two and improve the appearance.

At the ver least, we have learned a lot that will be useful on the next project.