While I was making this Rustic Candle Holder Centrepiece I stumbled across this Birch log. This project was super quick and simple. I started off by finding a log that was about 6 inches in diameter, something that I could easily and safely cut on my Miter saw. Once I had marked approximately where I wanted to make my cuts it was time to chop the ends off of the log making it nice…
After thinking about it for a while, I realized that the best way to make the board was to simply create a walnut and maple cutting board. Buy gluing up strips of maple and walnut I was able to cut strips off of that and reassemble them into the classic chessboard pattern.

I originally thought of turning these on the lathe but quickly gave up on that plan, as I lack the skills to do so. But I am a huge fan of modern art and minimalist objects. And started to do some research and eventually came across a set created by Lanier Graham in 1966 and fell in love with its simplicity and really enjoyed how all of the pieces fit in a tiny little box.
This has to be one of my favorite things to look at. I love how Walnut has so much character.
This puzzle is actually very simple to make.
Starting off I took some stock that had a number of ugly checks and cracks down the length. After processing the wood I marked my first piece to get an estimate for now long each piece would be.
Well, it was a cold day in the shop, sitting around -10c. I wanted to build a Burr puzzle that I had come across in a store and thought it would be a fun project to recreate using some scrap walnut.
After cleaning up the boards, I cut them into strips making sure to orient the grain for stability. Cutting the new boards into sections and gluing them I ended up with a sizable end grain cutting board.
I saw an old puzzle called “Original IQ puzzle” and figured it was simple enough that I could also build one. I bought…
Last week my wife requested some wooden bowls for a market she was working. She sells custom-dyed yarn, project bags, and stitch markers. You can find her stuff here on her Etsy.
This was the first of about 5 that I made in around 2 hours, Checkout and follow me on Instagram for more up to date projects 🙂
I came across a hand full of test tubes ( new ) and thought that they would make an interesting vase. I took a very cupped piece of white oak and worked it flat and reasonably square.
I drilled 3 1″ holes into the block, gave it a quick sad up to 320 grit. I applied mineral oil and a Beeswax and mineral oil salad bowl finish.
Watch as I make a bottle opener out of an old rusty railroad spike!
The finish that I applied after cleaning the spike off is a pure beeswax. After heating the spike to a straw yellow I applied the beeswax and continued applying heat until the metal turned black.
