Some of my recent projects

Here are some of my recent pieces of woodwork.

Pair of random-strip chopping boards:



I was really proud of how these turned out. Here's what I did:

• Start with boards of different coloured wood.  I used walnut, purpleheart and maple.
• Plane them all to the same thickness.  Tip: run all the boards through the planer without changing its height, you won't be able to find the precise height a second time.
• Rip to random widths using the table saw.  Start by ripping thin widths ff the side while the board is still wide; it's much easier than trying to split a thin strip into two.
• Spend plenty of time arranging the pieces for the best effect.  I think I spent more than 30 minutes on this step and I feel like it paid off.
• Glue and clamp (I used Titebond III).  Tip: the ten-minute working time of the glue passes very quickly; try a dry fit first and consider gluing the board up in two halves and then gluing them together.  I wasn't quite quick enough on the bigger board and the first joint wasn't as tight as it should be.
• Plane the glued up board.
• Cross-cut on the table saw to trim the ends.
• Use round-over bit in the table router to round over the corners. Tips: 
• If your boards are as thin as mine, use the fence rather than a bearing to set the round-over distance.  If you don't, the bearing will be in empty space when you flip the boards over to do the second side.
• Do the endgrain first.
• Follow the piece with a scrap block to prevent tearout.
• Sand to desired grit.
• Finish with butchers block oil.

Christmas snowman ornament:

 

This is one of my favourite turnings.  I finally got the hang of cutting beads and then finished him off with a pyro pen and a purpleheart hat.

A bowl and turned apple: