maple box (or bowls)

This is the perfect box for little treasures,... or could be used as ramekins in the kitchen.

depending on your screen resolution, the picture may be very close to actual size!

Rock maple, 3 inches in diameter, 1 5/8th tall when the box is closed. Yep it’s pretty small, but it’s my first turned box and two bowls. Isn’t it cute?

I’d never done any faceplate turning before, and decided to take a break from my week long run of pens and bottle stoppers and make a tool for the garden. One of those things for making little seed starting pots out of newspaper strips.

I thought I’d take one of the railings I salvaged and make up a bunch of them.
There were plans in a woodturning magazine, the base – about 3” in diameter is recessed to accept the top piece. I used a piece of 4/4 maple I had left over, and turned that pretty easily. Finding something 2.5 inches in diameter, that wasn’t split, cracked, checked (or laminated oak) was another matter. (oh, yeah, the railing was way too skinny to make a serviceable paper pot maker),.. more on that project in a future post…. but for now, the point I’m taking the long way around to get to—I was pretty encouraged to make a small dish or box of some type.

The maple worked well, so I grabbed a piece of 4/4 cut it into two squares (roughly 3”) – Then, between centers, and with the 4 jaw chuck I’d managed to turn both sides of a bowl.

Being a Lumberjock, it just wouldn’t do to make such a small bowl for my first stab at something new, now would it? So, with calipers at the ready, I mounted the other piece and got to making a lid. Worst case, I’d have to toss it on the fire, and still have a nice bowl. But my intention was to make a lidded container.

As the turning progressed, It occurred to me that these would make great little kitchen bowls, for getting everything all pre-measured out (mise-en-place in chef speak. Thanks, Food Network).

So there you have it, a cute little set of bowls, or a nice little box. Or both. Never would have thought to make bowls from a small piece of 1” stock. At least I know it’s really stable and isn’t going to split.

I had only intended to work between centers for the duration of my 30 days project, so as you can imagine I’m thrilled and excited to see where my dedicated time in the shop this month has taken me and my skills. I’ve done more in a week than I have to date. I’m really encouraged from this to try a few more ambitious and creative box ideas. Maybe there really will be a couple of bowls under various Christmas trees.

This is the 8th item in my 30 day project/challenge
& auction.

-- I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso -- http://blanchardcreative.etsy.com -- http://snbcreative.wordpress.com/