garden Tote

   If you wonder around a museum featuring everyday objects from a couple of hundred years ago those objects commonly were embellished with carvings or some type of folk art painting. It seemed the goal of ancient Romans and Greeks was to and like a Baroque Church bling can be over done too.   Our current modern tastes have changed over time so that our day to day items are utilitarian and fairly stark not objects of beauty. Though I admit some of the clean pure lines of Scandinavian design rests easily on my eyes I still like a little but of flare, it helps to draw and focus my attention.

 

   The pretty box in the photo comes from either India or Indonesia and is no doubt a product that is churned out by workman in a nasty factory the like of which we can barely imagine. The box is also kept cheap to buy  because the workman is paid next to nothing for his/her labour.  I certainly don't  like to see work men exploited, but it is nice to see carving and a little bit of flash on everyday items.  Keeping my spare change, pocket knives and general 'stuff' in a nice container makes me smile. 

  That sort of thinking effected what I did with this recent project. 

 

 

 

   This tool/garden box is going on sale at our church, some of the guys at church recycled some odds and ends from their scrap bins while some of the rest of us screwed them together and brought the projects home to sand and paint.      

 

   After working the wood over with 120 and 220 grit sand paper I went looking for some paint to finish the box off, when I had an inspiration.  A couple of weeks ago I returned to a wood carving and have been making more wood chips than  clouds of sawdust just lately.  I like the quiet of the work environment, as well as the lack of saw dust and dust masks and shop vacs and all the other things that go with wood shop machines.  So instead of just painting the box I decided to give it a little hand work.

 

 

   The pattern is very basic relief carving using a "V" tool or "parting chisel".  I laid the pattern out after I had sealed the wood and put one coat of light orange/brown coloured water based stain on.  Once I had carved the pattern in the wood I went back and gave it a quick coat of oil based paste style stain so that it would darken the carved lines, but I was very careful not to let the stain colour the rest of the box very much.  All the oil stain did was deepen the colour of the first stain and highlite the carving.

 

 

    I do not labour under the delusion that my work is great art, or in fact even great craft but, you know, it was greatly satisfying.