For years, whenever I went to the beach, I collected driftwood. I wasn't sure what I would use the driftwood for, I just liked collecting mementos from the ocean. Driftwood is surprisingly strong for having been tossed about in the ocean and pounded by waves on the shore. One day I thought it would be nice to combine some driftwood with ceramics. I made this water carrier with the idea of inserting a driftwood handle. I have five boxes of driftwood, but only a couple of pieces of driftwood were suitable to use as the handle for this piece.
Today I decided to make a wind chime with another piece of driftwood and some of my ceramic leaves. I drilled four holes equally spaced through a piece of driftwood. I noticed the driftwood has a fresh pine scent when it is drilled. As I was drilling the holes, I was imagining the piece of wood traveling down a stream from a forest above and finally entering the ocean below. I was quite happy to be reclaiming the wood and putting it to another use.
Since I was impatient to hear the sound a ceramic chime would make, I quickly tied hemp cord through holes in some ceramic leaves I made. I pushed the cord through the holes the leaves and then up through the holes I drilled in the driftwood and tied knots at the top. Then I drilled two more holes for another piece of hemp cord to hang the wind chime from. The stoneware leaves make a beautiful sound - a pleasing reverberation when hung near a building. I'm already thinking of how I can jazz this wind chime up a bit by staggering the leaves, perhaps adding some wood beads and other natural items I might find lying about.
Later I tried stringing some of my small porcelain pendants to make another wind chime, as I jiggled them about the only sound they made was a dull thud. There must be a formula for the mass and size the ceramic piece must be to make the appropriate chiming sound. Does anyone know a forumla for the size and thickness the ceramic piece must be to produce a pleasing sound? Anyway, it's fun finally putting some of the driftwood I have collected to use.
Hi Linda;
ReplyDeleteI too have a fascination with driftwood and collect it. I have been able to limit myself to only the ones that reach out to me in some way. I saved them for years then did a series where I threw a pot then smashed it with the wood, then tied it with rope and distorted the pot around the wood. Once the piece was dried I removed the wood, fired and glazed then reattached the wood. i called them my "Water Pods".
I will email you a picture.
Take care!
Chris
Love your style. The driftwood makes me homesick for the coast (: Nice wares!
ReplyDeleteLinda, go to www.chrismccormick.com, click on old work and you will see a variety of work with driftwood.
ReplyDeleteHi Linda
ReplyDeleteNice work. When I lived on the coast I also used driftwood in my work. Now that I'm in the high desert I use wood that I find on hikes in the mountains. On your driftwood wind chime you use ceramic leaves. Check out my autumn leaf tea bag rest, you'll love the glaze combination. see it on www.artsielady.etsy.com.
Hi Chris, nice to hear from you again. I looked on your website, Wow, your driftwood pieces are beautiful. My husband, Gary was looking at some of the driftwood I had on the table saying this one looks like a duck head and this one looks like a koala bear - saying I just need to make the body, then I looked on your site and saw how you encorporated the driftwood into your pieces - beautiful. I love the rough exterior and glazed interior of your bowls.
ReplyDeleteHi Teri, welcome to my blog and thank you, I am only about 3 hours from the coast, but I haven't even been this year - hopefully soon.
Hi Arsielady and welcome to my blog, thanks. I looked at your site and just love the glazing you did on your leaves - they are so beautiful. I also use some of my larger leaves as spoon rests, like the second one down on my flicker photos on the right side of my blog.
Gorgeous chimes, Linda! The water carrier looks very sculptural - I like when the use is ambiguous.
ReplyDeleteWhen I lived in Maine, we rented a seaside cottage for 6 months during the winter while we looked for a home to buy. (we got a screaming deal on seaside cottage rental and had the beach to ourselves.) We loved walking the beach every day and found so many cool things including driftwood, sea glass and other treasures - bizarre stuff that would wash up including an old salt glazed gray crock that I still have. I miss living there and would go back in a heart beat.
Sigh...I'm feeling nostalgic now after reading your post.
Hi Cynthia, thanks for your comments about my driftwood pieces.
ReplyDeleteWasn't it cold in Maine? That would be the only thing that would prevent me from living there. Hopefully one of these days we will get up to the northeast for a trip.
Wow a crock washed up - how wonderful for you, maybe some day you'll post a photo of it on your blog.