Ok, so I have, once, seen wooden bookmarks that looked like they were made in the same fashion as inlay banding – thin slices off of a glued up stock piece. I have also seen scroll-sawn wooden bookmarks, and I’ve seen very thin wood-burned ones as well. but I’ve never seen one done in inlay before. And maybe I just haven’t looked in the right place. But, I had to give it a try.

These were, truthfully, just a couple of practice pieces done in scrap that I didn’t want to go to waste. Cut using the window method, and a sharp xacto knife. They are very thin veneer (1/64th?) So after I finished assembling the window pieces, I laminated a blank peice of the background material to the back. I once again wish I’d had some kind of identification guide for the pack of scrap veneer I’m working from. If anybody has any idea I would love the advice. Particularly the peanut shell, I have several more pieces of that.

Finishing these provided an extra bit of challenge. They were small enough that it was difficult to hold them with one hand while sanding/finishing with the other. The answer came from my darling wife – tape them to my cutting board.. Finished with several sessions of hard rubbed shellac.

Finally finished the rocking chair for my Neice’s bedroom. This was a bit of an adventure for me, I’ve never made a rocking chair before. The rockers themselves are 16” long and the chair is about 14” wide by 24” tall.
Made from SYP and finished with two coats of Rustoleoum. Construction is mostly dowel joints.
There are a few cahnges I would make if I were going to make it again. First, I would make it a little narrower, as it kind of gives a too-wide look. Though that does mean she has plenty of room to grow and still fit it, but then it might need slightly taller legs. I also think my rocker geometry might need a little more attention in the next version, as the rocker sits almost stright up and down instead of leaning slightly backward. Finally I would want to make it from hardwood. SYP was used for this one for a variety of reasons, not the least of which the fact that it was going to be painted to match other, storebought, furniture peices in the room. Second, strenght wasn’t a huge concern, given that it was for a small child.
My lovely wife gets the credit for applying her name to the back.

My first marquetry project, finished and gifted. I think it came out okay, there’s a few things I would do differently, like be careful and make sure I’m gluing the right side down, and not the side that has all the pencil marks on it…..

I also need to invest in a bandclamp instead of the 90 degree clamp I tried to use to keep everything square.

Maple background with I’m not sure what else for all the other bits, it was in an unlabeled assorted lot. I wish I knew what the burl the bellies were made out of was, I have more of it I want to use. The frame is Western Red Cedar, and the substrate is 1/4 plywood. Finish is about 6 mornings worth of hand rubbed shellac.

Edit – Added what I hope was a much better picture.