Foodie Theme

There's been a bit of a food theme recently, many people suggest it's due to one of the top chefs (who I won't mention, as an ex-chef I hate him with a passion) using wooden-ware on TV creating a new trend - I prefer to think of it as people returning to old values....
 Spoons, bowls, rolling pins and platters have all been commissioned...

Starting with the smallest; Spurtels (honey drizzlers) and spice/salt spoons, just a few inches long are a lot of fun to turn and will find a place in any home...

This Beech rolling pin is rather plain but was made with the clients choice of wood. The picture doesn't really give any indication of just how large & heavy this is but, believe me - you wouldn't want to make this baker angry when she has this in her hand!

 This very large chopping board was made for a local chef, at over 2 foot long & 15 inches across it weighs a whopping 4 kilos and is made from Ash & Sapele. Picture was taken before the final sanding - hence the discolouration to the surface.

This platter was one of 25 commissioned for a wedding party, the happy couple wanted to save on washing up at the end of the day so served all their food on platters. Rather than wash them up they let their guests take them home - with one platter per table I'm not sure how they decided who got to keep them, as long as they didn't split them up (sorry, couldn't resist the cheesy pun)...

 They weren't actually served oranges and salad, this was just my photoshoot so they could see what they would look like...

These next platters are much larger and have been made for Lodge Catering of London who are the official caterers for the National Geographic Society as well as catering at weddings & film premieres (I won't name drop but James Bond may soon be served from one of my platters :) 

At 16.5" wide they had to be made from 2 halves to prevent warping or splitting. Sapele was again chosen to re-inforce the ends due to it's longevity and durability.

To order or enquire about any of these items contact me at benjaminsbarn@hotmail.co.uk or visit my Etsy shop; BenjaminsBarn

Small Yew 'sofa end' Table

Would like to share a little table commissioned by a lady, designed to sit next to the arm of her sofa, just big enough for a drink and book to be in easy reach :) Yew was chosen by the client after looking at some of my stools shown further down this blog, one of my favourite woods with a very striking colour and grain.

After slicing a small log into planks, 2 adjacent pieces were chosen (the wrong side up in this picture)...

These 2 pieces were then jointed together, with a piece of tropical Sapele hardwood in the ends to relieve any stress from the glue joint

Round mortice holes were then drilled to take the tenons turned on the legs...

The legs were turned from this shabby looking log, fairly rotten on the outside but good solid wood underneath...

a quick rough turning to remove the soft outer rings reveals the good wood....

 

 which turned and polished up beautifully. 

a split wedge is then knocked in, the wedge on these is more decorative than structural so much thinner than used for stools, tables or chairs.

And after sanding and a couple of coats of wax buffed up, the beautiful colours and striking grain is revealed.

Yellow, oranges, reds and even purples are often found in yew like this. Now you see why it's one of my favourites?

Western Red Cedar Bookshelves

 Just finished these western red cedar bookshelves for a customer, at 2m tall and 1.5m wide they're my largest piece of furniture commissoned yet. Very pleasing to make a large set of shelves although I had to move my workshop around to make space to put them together!

Shame it's such a dingy pic and they're not yet waxed in the photo but I stayed up till 2am to finish them. Contact me for a quote on custom made shelving in any size and any wood or visit my Etsy shop; BenjaminsBarn Etsy shop

   

Yew, Oak & Elm Stools

Some of my stools and small tables recently finished, this Oak & Elm table is my 1st try at turning bracing as well as legs and the criss-cross design presented quite a challenge, considering the positiong of the legs being random it wasn't possible to work out the angles on paper - trial & error was the only way! 

        The Oak top is highly figured with a very rustic feel, the bark has been set in place to leave a natural look and cracks have been left open for effect (but reinforced to stop them opening further or weakening the structure).

 This next is also Oak & Elm, the top is a reclaimed Oak plank (approx 60-70 years old). The legs are English Elm, turned and highly polished with a shellac finish.

       Made as a kind of side-table/ occasional table. As with most of my stools and tables the legs are fitted using traditional mortice & tenon joints and fixed with split wedges.

 3-legged Yew milking stool, very pretty wood with lots of flaming red inclusions and interesting grain. Again, as much of the natural shape of the branch as possible has been left.

                          The legs were made with a draw-knife to follow the shape of the grain.

 This next is 130 year old Oak plank reclaimed from a barn, the beautiful dark patina comes from age, not a stain!

 The legs are Bone-Oak (branches which have died and seasoned still attached to the tree, the wind and rain strips all the soft sapwood and gives them the unique 'bone' effect. 

All of these are currently available from my Etsy shop, follow the link: Etsy shop