| Project by Mark A. DeCou | posted 164 days ago | 327 views | 0 times favorited | 4 comments | ![]() |
This walking cane is for sale, please email me for more info:
Cane Serial Number #2008-08
Height: 32.375”
mark@decoustudio.com
- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -—- – - – - – - – - – - – - – -
This walking cane has a Red Oak shaft that has been black lacquered, Kansas Black Walnut handle, and rings of synthetic ivory and burled walnut.
The handle features a piece of synthetic ivory with a hand-scratched Scrimshaw picture that I did of a Cone Flower. The artwork is my original design.
These flowers naturally grow in the pastures and hills around where I live, and have become my favorite feature to find in the Flinthills. I have completely failed in gathering seeds and getting any of them to grow where I want them, but I keep trying.






- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -
Here is a photo from the ditch of the road that leads to my house. Few places can sustain a natural population of these purple cone flowers, and the Kansas Flinthill prairie is one of them.

—- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - -
If you like Walking Sticks & Canes, here are few more posted at lumberjocks:
Folk Art Face Carved Canes- Sculpted Wood Spirit Face Cane
- Folk Art Mountain Man Face Cane
- Shamrock Wood Spirit Irish-Theme Face Cane
- Walnut Wood Spirit Face Cane with Antler & Turquoise
- Collection of Face Carved Canes
- Moses-Inspired Face Carved Cane w/ Antler & Turquoise
- Folk Art Native American Face Cane Set
- Apache Chief Cochise Folk-Art Face Cane
- Folk Art Carved Cane of Shoshone Chief
- Indian Guides Chief Big-Red-Cloud Hiking Stick
- Apache Chief Cochise #2 Folk-Art Face Cane
- Amazing Grace Music Notes Carved Cane
- A Lady’s Elegant Red Long-Stem Rose Carved Cane
- Prairie Fire Hand-Carved Hiking Thumb Sticks
- A Folk-Art Carved Albatross Head & Snake Walnut Cane
- Carved Folk-Art Walking Cane; 'The Greatest Story Ever Told' Story Stick with Scrimshaw Artwork
- Walnut & Curly Maple Cane with Scrimshaw
- Scrimshaw Art Walnut Cane
- Fancy Barley Twist with Scrimshaw Cane
- Lady's Dress Cane, Red Oak, Walnut, Black Lacquer, & Scrimshaw Artwork of a Purple Cone Flower
What’s Scrimshaw Artwork?:
A Scrimshaw Art Journey: What it is & How to Do it; Five Simple Steps to Success
- Naturally Twisted Tree Sapling Cane
- Naturally Twisted Tree Sapling Walking Stick
- Shepherd's Crook Hiking Stick
- White Oak Barley Twist Cane
- Osage Orange Barley Twist Cane
- Walnut & Figured Maple Barley Twist cane
- Black Walnut and Spalted Sycamore Barley Twist
- Red Oak Barley Twist with Black Lacquer
- Red Oak Barley Twist with Walnut Handle
- Bryan's Cane, The Start of my Cane Journey
- Fancy Walking Cane, Camphor Burl, Maple, Bubinga, Whitetail Deer Antler, Inlays & Silver End Caps
- Custom Dress-Up Walking Cane, Walnut shaft with a Camphor Burl Handle
- Walnut & Buffalo Horn Twisted Cane
- White Birch & Buffalo Horn Twisted Cane
- Walnut Bamboo-Style Cane with Chrome Ball Top
- Walnut & Buffalo Horn Dress Cane
- Bird's Eye Maple Cane
- Spalted Sycamore Walking Cane
- Walnut Tall Knob Top Opera Cane
- Zebrawood & Walnut Knob Top Opera Cane
- Dress Cane Set, with several Material Options Shown
- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -
I have a few canes in stock at:- Hatman Jack’s Wichita Hat Works in Wichita, KS
- Hutchinson Art Center in Hutchinson, KS
- Cottonwood Mercantile in Cottonwood Falls, KS
You can contact these gallery stores directly and see what they still have in stock. They will ship to you if you buy something. If you prefer, you can also email me, as I keep fairly current on what is “unsold.”
- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -
Background: My Cane Making Story:
I enjoy sculpting walking canes. Some folks call them Folk-Art Canes, while others call them Artisan Canes, some call them Carved Canes, while others call them Walking Sticks. There is quite a bit of argument about whether something should be called Sculpture or Carving. They could be considered Functional-Art, which is the type of work that I am usually drawn to. No matter what these canes are called, they seem to bring joy to the owners, and I have been asked to make quite a few of them in the past 5-6 years.
I started making canes on the request of a nice married couple I met on a church-building short-term mission trip to Mexico City in the early 1990’s. Several years after our trip, their son-in-law was diagnosed with bone cancer, and so they wanted to get him a specially made cane that he would enjoy using. They had heard from others that I had quit my corporate office job and started doing woodworking full-time. So, they contacted me to make his cane.
Sadly, I also built him a casket, another first for me, about a year later
Since the time I did that first Cane for Bryan, I have enjoyed the work on the canes that I have been able to make, but more importantly, the people that I have been able to meet and help along the journey. I do make a bunch of unique items and furniture, but without a doubt, I receive more correspondence and thank-you cards from cane customers than any of the other items I make, combined. So, they are fun for me to build, and I look forward to each new person and situation.
To keep a handle on all of the memories, I engrave a small serial number on each brass cane tip, and then I keep a detailed database log of each cane, customer, and situation. The list always brings me warm memories each time I scan it and remember the folks that have supported my work over the years, and vice versa.
- – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – -
(This text, all photos, project design, and anything else you want to steal, is protected by copyright 2008, M.A.DeCou, all rights reserved and protected, ask permission first! Weblinks to this page are permitted)
-- Mark DeCou - Kansas Flint Hill's Artisan
Your Online Shop - Your Support Is Greatly Appreciated - Your Woodworking Showcase - 3 Ways To Help, Financially - Your Woodworking Community


























4 comments so far
Bradford
home | projects | blog
647 posts in 309 days
posted 164 days ago
beautiful canes and a touching story. thanks for posting.
-- so much wood, so little time. Bradford.
Scott Bryan
home | projects | blog
9104 posts in 308 days
posted 164 days ago
Mark,
You have created another beautiful piece here. The coneflower carving is a nice detail.
Thanks for the post.
-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.
Les Hastings
home | projects | blog
461 posts in 259 days
posted 163 days ago
Another nice cane Mark! What kind of adhesive do you use to to put the ivory on with? Maybe you could blog the process of making one of these sometime.
-- Les, Wichita, Ks. (I'd rather be covered in saw dust!)
darryl
home | projects | blog
855 posts in 812 days
posted 163 days ago
I like the rings you’ve added just under the handle on this cane, especially the small amount od scrimshaw on the top ring. it came out very nice.
-- ~ www.darrylmasterson.com ~ www.woodworkingdungeon.blogspot.com ~