#26 Spalted Holly and Blackwood

[John Keeton]

This is from a piece of the spalted holly from Mike Smith. The finial is African Blackwood. 5.25" wide x 8" tall, including the 3 3/8" finial. The finial is just shy of 3/32" in the neck. Walls are 3/16".

The finial was sanded to 2000 and beeswax applied. Probably should have used Carnuba - still learning! The form has a couple coats of brush on lacquer, but it will get another one tomorrow!

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Other than playing with a piece of cocobolo when I first started turning, this was my first piece of exotic wood. It is dense, turns very well and holds very crisp details.


When I opened up the holly the moisture content was a little higher than expected - hard to tell with holly as it so light in weight. As a result, I got a slight bit of warp that is not noticeable except that the lid does not sit good and flat.

It also had powder filled holes in it - too large for powder post beetle, and I am not sure what insect gets in holly. I dug out and filled some of the larger ones with coffee grounds and CA, but I really didn't care for the look. You can see these in pic 4. On the lid, I just applied CA and left them. I guess one takes the wood as found!!:o Were I to do this over again, I probably would have just used the CA and left them all.

I know you all have to be getting tired of looking at these things, but feel free to comment.

[Roland Martin]

John, we are all here for the same reason you are, to learn to turn. A tremdous part of that is viewing other creeker's work, reading about how you went about turning a particular piece, along with the joys and trials. IMO, you are a very talented turner and I enjoy everything you post, you should never feel that you post too many turnings.
I would put this turning on the top rung of the ladder. I absolutely love the form of this HF, the holly is great, and the finial, IMO, is your best to date. Excellent work John. "I look forward to #27"

[Donny Lawson]

I wish I learned as well as you. GREAT PIECE of Art.
Donny

[brian watts]

WOW . really like this one for sure..thank you for posting it

[Fred Perreault]

John,
You may be paying good money for the canvas for your artwork, but by cracky, you make the most of it. The stuff you turn out is utterly fabulous. I don't know how you do it, what with all the time it takes to open your packages of wooden blanks, and then all that time you spend on the Creek forums.... you are a champ.
I get up every morning with great anticipation for seeing something new from "Keeton's Korner".

[charlie knighton]

very nice, thanks for sharing

[Baxter Smith]

Very nice John. The shape of the hollow form appeals to me more than any other one you have done. It flows from top to bottom without a glitch. The finial looks good to my untrained eye by itself but maybe is a little heavy where it swells. Great work!

[Michael Short]

John,

I like this one the best. If this is #26 I can't wait to see 100. Thanks for sharing.

[Ted Calver]

John..This one's great. I like the form and the finial...and the fact that it is also functional (you could actually put something inside it) gets extra points from me. The only thing that would make it more appealing to me would be if you eliminated the last holly segment before the finial, lowered the finial and sculpted the top to meet the finial base. It seems like the finial sits a little too high on the form. Just a thought.

[Michael E. Thompson]

John,

I have been following your projects and I have to say you have such a good eye for this hobby. I wish I had your talent. Keep 'em coming!

Mike

[David E Keller]

It's a really nice looking piece and such beautiful wood. To my untrained eye, there is a bit of an angle in the lid that seems to raise the overall height of the lid/finial... Not sure if that was intentional, but I think that's part of what Ted is talking about.

It looks like somebody only ordered 25 medallions for their turnings.:D You underestimated the vortex, huh?:eek::D

[Bernie Weishapl]

John absolutely beautiful. I love the holly and the finial looks great.

[Maylon Harvey]

Year 2187
Overheard between 2 patrons at the art gallery,
"That's one of Keetons early works before he quit his day job to devote full time to turning"

[Steve Schlumpf]

Excellent work John! Love the finial! Surprising how subtle little changes (finial neck at 3/32") can alter the entire look of a piece!

Nice work! Looking forward to #27!

[Mark Hubl]

John,

Excellent piece. I really like this one, think it is one of your best. The shape is great, love the top and the finial rocks. Good job, as usual. Thanks for posting.

[Toney Robertson]

I think I like this one the best out of all 27.

Great wood, nice form and superb execution.

Toney

[Doug W Swanson]

John,

You turned another fine piece. Nice form.

Doug

[gary Zimmel]

Excellent work again John.
Your really raising the bar with pieces like this...

[Norm Zax]

Fine piece, as always. As to the finish, I do prefer an extra coat, as you say you plan to. Wax - skip the bee products. Way too soft. Either tough carnauba or microcrystalline (such as Renaissance). Finally, what happened to the wood plugs?
keep em coming (but not more than one a day)!
Norm

[Roger Bullock]

John, I like the form and color contrast of this piece. Nice job. I have to agree with you on the coffee/CA in the worm holes, just doesn't quite go with the flow of the other black areas of the piece, thankfully it is on the back side.
I have had problems with some finishes wanting to bond to oily exotics so I would be more to your thinking of a hard wax for the finial.

[Mike Golka]

That's a beauty John, I like the form and wood.

[dean griffith]

Awsome job John, looks fantastic.

[Rob Cunningham]

Fantastic HF John. The Holly and Blackwood are a nice combo and the form is great.

[Keith Burns]

John, everything about this works for me. Great work !

[Dave Haughs]

I know you all have to be getting tired of looking at these things, but feel free to comment.


Not at all. I love seeing your turnings.

[Frank Van Atta]

Excellent piece. I agree with you about the coffee grounds; sometimes you never know how something will look until it's done - then it's too late to do anything about it.

[Jon McElwain]

Well proportioned and smooth pleasing curves! The finial makes the piece! Agreed with others and yourself on the coffee/CA filler on the base. Oh, and if it weren't for the looking, I don't think I'd have been lurking around here for the last year or so! Thanks for the post!

[Brian Effinger]

Gorgeous hollow form John, and you're really getting thin with the finial. You really nailed the shape. I do agree with you on the holes - it probably would have been better to leave them filled with sawdust, or clean them out and leave them empty. That is minor, however, compared to the rest of the piece.

Really well done. Hey, it looks like you've run out of medallions too.

[steven carter]

John,

Very nice hollow form! I like the shape and the finial is much better than earlier ones. I agree that the coffee grounds maybe wasn't the best choice, but understand about you wanting to fill the holes. I've seen where some people have used ground chalk to fill holes, though haven't tried it yet. Some brown chalk that more closely resembled the spalting color may have worked better. I have started to collect dust of different colors when final sanding to see if I can blend light and dark dust together to get a better color match. In regards to the wax, I recommend the renaissance wax, it doesn't show fingerprints like carnuba, and if you happen to get any moisture on it, it won't spot like carnuba, and a little bit goes a long way. I bought the large can a couple years ago and have not used 1/4th of it yet.

Steve

[John Keeton]

And, yet again, I truly appreciate everyone taking the time to look, and to actually comment on the pros and cons of the piece. This is still (and I presume will always be) a learning experience for me, so without honest input, it is difficult to improve.


I get up every morning with great anticipation for seeing something new from "Keeton's Korner".Fred, with the views and wonderful surroundings you have there on the Cape, you have much more deserving things to greet you in the mornings, but I am humbled by your comments!:o


The finial looks good to my untrained eye by itself but maybe is a little heavy where it swells. Great work!Baxter, in my yet inexperienced attempts at this, I try to visually draw a sweeping curve from the outermost edge of the form, through the top of the lid or form, and through the finial to see if it would touch all outer edges without contorting the curve. In this piece, beginning at the shoulder of the form, would the curve touch the edge of the lid, the outer projection of the top of the lid, the bulbous portion of the finial, and continue out to the tip without a great deal of deviation from the fair curve. I probably way overthink that, and it may not even be the right method. :confused: I am open to a better approach.:)

There are so many great pieces exhibited here by so many artists. I have studied them to the point of obsession in hope of emulating many of the design elements - altered to my taste. One of those is that while I agree on the slender neck, I actually like a larger "bulb" on a finial - so long as it doesn't disrupt that curve.

I don't know if it worked on this piece, but that was the intent.


The only thing that would make it more appealing to me would be if you eliminated the last holly segment before the finial, lowered the finial and sculpted the top to meet the finial base. It seems like the finial sits a little too high on the form. Just a thought.Ted, that is an excellent thought. And, David picked up on the same thought as noted in his quote below.

As I was visualizing this piece, in my mind, I needed more height to have the "fair curve" mentioned above. Again, this whole approach may be wrong. I am REALLY new at this, so all comments are worthwhile to me and appreciated.


It's a really nice looking piece and such beautiful wood. To my untrained eye, there is a bit of an angle in the lid that seems to raise the overall height of the lid/finial... Not sure if that was intentional, but I think that's part of what Ted is talking about.

It looks like somebody only ordered 25 medallions for their turnings.:D You underestimated the vortex, huh?:eek::DGot plenty left!!:D On these very thin HFs, I don't have the thickness in the base (or don't want the thickness) that it takes to inset the medallion. When there is virtually no foot, and I create a slightly concave base, I don't have the extra 5/32" for the medallion - or, at least, I don't want to risk a funnel!!:eek: The walls and floor of this one are 3/16", and the math won't work on that!


John, everything about this works for me. Great work !Keith, you really just do not realize how much a compliment like this, from you, means to me at this point in my woodturning! Thank you.


Hey, it looks like you've run out of medallions too.Brian, you guys pick up pretty quickly on the "missing medallion!!" ;)

[Gary Chester]

John, I really like this one! Great form and colors. At first I wasn't sure about the size of the collar section but I've changed my mind. With that size of an opening do you consider it a box or a hollowform?

[Richard Dooling]

Ummmm, and you have been turning how long??????

I've seen you tackle dovetails and turnings with great success. You are a quick study! This is really fine work.


.

[Baxter Smith]

Baxter, in my yet inexperienced attempts at this, I try to visually draw a sweeping curve from the outermost edge of the form, through the top of the lid or form, and through the finial to see if it would touch all outer edges without contorting the curve. In this piece, beginning at the shoulder of the form, would the curve touch the edge of the lid, the outer projection of the top of the lid, the bulbous portion of the finial, and continue out to the tip without a great deal of deviation from the fair curve.

Thanks John. I appreciate you taking the time to explain your thinking on the design. Had to go back and study the pictures to clearly see what you were refering to. Seems very reasonable!:) Will try and remember that for future reference and possible use.;)

[John Tomasello jr]

Another excellent job John great form & finish. Love that spalted holly, have to get me some

[Jeff Nicol]

John, Not much for me to add to the size of you expanding head.......Just kidding!! You are a natural and the addiction is great for the soul too. Keep up the great work it gives me something to steal ideas and things from!

Next please,

Jeff

[Gary Conklin]

John, you really make me want to go back and start all over again! Your turnings are aweome!!!

[Curt Fuller]

Just about every nice thing that can be said about this has already been said. So I'll just echo it all. That's really interesting wood. Holly is one of the woods I've never worked with. But I have had similar bug holes in lots of other different kinds of wood. So I would guess there are many larva that do the same thing. Most of my turnings are more natural and much less "elegant" in style than yours so the holes usually add to the natural look. But I can see what you mean about wishing they weren't there on this piece. Another beauty John!