Thursday, June 19, 2014

Gnarly Man, Gnarly Tree, Gnarly Wood

In the 1980s when we lived in the mountains in the Sierra Nevada in California, our neighbor, Fred, carved this gnarly man for us. We unpacked him the other day and hung him on our wood retaining wall in our front yard. I started thinking about how trees grow in so many different shapes and sizes with burls, knots, and growth rings, hence my choice of the word gnarly. I thought about all the uses trees provide such as the raw material for art, shade, fruit, furniture, and homes. Trees also clean the air by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen.

After we unloaded the lumber for my painting projects I was inspired to make this gnarly tree bowl. The bowl is about eleven inches in diameter and about three inches deep. We had an electrician over yesterday and it won't be overly expensive to get the wiring done for a kiln so he's coming today for that. So it looks like I'll be getting a kiln after all. 

We couldn't think of a place to store the gnarly wood we got yesterday so we put it under my studio table. It's not optimum but I wanted to keep the wood in a dry location out of the weather. All the wood I am getting has been harvested from dead or downed trees. It has been kiln dried and cut to lengths and widths manageable for my purposes. Gary worked at a mill in Arkansas and we learned the lengths of wood placed under the stack are called 'stickers'. These are used to keep lumber up off the ground and also used between stacks of lumber to keep air circulating around them.

I chose several sections of Eastern red cedar, sycamore, and walnut. As we loaded the wood into my car I couldn't help thinking some of the pieces would make a beautiful natural edge table top. Who knows where this recent foray into wood will take me. I'll pull off the stack one piece at a time and set it up on saw horses and belt sand the pieces. Then I'll fine sand them. Next I'll stain them with a water based stain and then I'll paint on them. Of course today I'm wondering what I've gotten  myself into. We shall see. Stay tuned for more details. Thanks for reading and for all your comments.

17 comments:

  1. Linda I love that tree bowl you carved! And that gnarly man kinda looks like Santa :) only 190 more days til Christmas!!

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  2. Hi Keith, thanks, I've actually slip painted the tree on the bowl, it will be fired and a clear glaze put over and then fired in a kiln again. xmas isn't my favorite holiday due to all the commercialization of it, but he does look a bit like a santa.

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  3. Great wood projects on the horizon! Love Mr. Gnarly. So glad you've worked out a kiln situation at home for firing all your clay creations. I love trees, and use them often in my own designs. Enjoy, and blog so we can continue to see and share here!

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  4. Hi Barbara, thanks, I had forgotten about Mr. Gnarly till we unpacked him. I can't wait to see what the wood will lead me to. If only there was a wood working mentor I could find around here, we shall see.

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  5. Hooray for the kiln. I like wood, too, knarly is the best.

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  6. My sister-in-law is a painter and she has been painting on weird wood the last couple of years. I wish she were still on fb, I could point you to some of her work.
    Look forward to seeing what you do with your wood slabs. They are gorgeous.

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  7. Hi Joanne, thanks, is it spelled knarly, what do I know. Ha.

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  8. Hi Michele, thanks, oh I'd love to see what your sister-in-law does, I just sanded some wood and was also thinking of wood burning, we shall see what I come up with.

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  9. Oooh. Looking forward to seeing your wood magic.

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  10. Hi Elephant's Child, thanks, I sanded a piece of cedar today and got a wood burning tool, we shall see where all this leads me.

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  11. I am sure your creative enthusiasm will produce some wonderful art pieces. I look forward to seeing them.

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  12. Hi Dee, thanks, well I hope so; I'm now thinking I may practice on some scrap wood before I use the good wood. Ha.

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  13. I love the gnarly man, he's fantastic.

    I'm so happy that you'll be able to get a kiln. That will be really nice for you.

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  14. HI Linda... Exciting times, getting your kiln wired and working!..and the wood pieces are great..so many kinds and such different colours and 'textures'.. have fun. T.

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  15. Hi Lori, thanks, these gnarly men were quite the rage when we lived in the Sierra mountains. Yes I need my own kiln because I can fire my pieces with a slow cool which I like much better than the community firings.

    Hi Trish, thanks, I just love the textures and colors of the wood.

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  16. You continue to amaze me with all the varied interests and projects you have. I have always admired those who stay busy with creative projects. I often thought I'd take up pottery, or painting to a real degree and not just occasional slapdappery, but I have not ... yet. Hope springs eternal.I love reading about your projects, though, and your recipes always sound delicious.

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  17. Hi Teresa, thanks, when I went to school art wasn't offered and I took it for summer school for fun, I think I should have been an artist all my life and now I seem to be trying to make up for lost time; I am somewhat driven to do more and more the older I get. I feel like I am running out of time for all that I want to do.

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