"Elder Flower"

[Scott Hackler]

This has been consuming all of my turning time for weeks. I had this vision in my head and FINALLY it has come together. I am so glad to have this one complete. This is a multipart turning with several techniques and finishes.

The blossoms are Box Elder thinned to 1/16” or so. The finish on them is Jacobean stain on the natural edge rims, boiled linseed oil and 3 coats of lacquer.

The stems are turned out of Bur Oak down to 3/16” with a slight taper, thickening towards the base. The blades were cut from Bur Oak as well. Both of these elements were boiled in water for 2 ½ hours and bent on a form to achieve the desired curves. The blades were thinned and tapered to a point on the bench sander. Both of these elements were stained first with Cherrywood stain and then with Jacobean.

The mushrooms were turned from Black Walnut and finished with boiled linseed oil. Yes they are undercut and I treated the rims by cutting “notches” to simulate real mushrooms.

The base is a natural edge section of Box Elder, with Jacobean stain on the back and sides. I applied fine shavings at the glue points.

This piece is 15" tall and about 12" at the widest point.

It is my hardest project to date and the one that took the longest to complete. I hope you enjoy looking at it. I present to you “Elder Flower”.

Comments and critiques are welcome, as usual. Thanks!

http://members.cox.net/cabletech/elder1.jpg

http://members.cox.net/cabletech/elder2.jpg

http://members.cox.net/cabletech/elder3.jpg'

http://members.cox.net/cabletech/elder4.jpg

http://members.cox.net/cabletech/elder5.jpg

[Ted Calver]

Very cool!!

[Jon Prouty]

all I got is "wow"... which seems entirely inadequate. This is an amazing piece.

JP

[Ron Bontz]

Double wiz bang wow. :)

[John Beaver]

Really nice work Scott.
Creative, imaginative and well executed.

[Doug W Swanson]

How many hours do you have in that? That is one of the nicest turned things I've seen!

Excellent job!

[Brian Brown]

So, ummm... That's really cool.

[Michael James]

Very nice composite and a stretch for sure! The boiling and bending got you some very realistic shapes. Good eye and imagination, as well as the skill to pull it off. Impressive!

[John W Dixon]

Wow! I just keep coming back to this post to take another look. Really nice vision and execution on this one. Great work.

John

[Ken Hensley]

Wow. Really great, I will have to give that a try one day when my turning skills are up to that level.

Ken

[Tony Wheeler]

very nice job Scott I hope that I get to see it in person on SAT

[Ken Hill]

Incredible craftsmanship Scott!

[Philip Duffy]

Very well done! Philip

[Fred Perreault]

Far, far, out....

[Roger Chandler]

Scott,

I really does have the WOW factor! Much of it because of the effort and the technique as well as the creativity you had to put into it. One readily recognizes this work as one that is out of the ordinary in creativity, labor, and for the number of techniques required to pull it off.

Perhaps you are morphing from a turner into an "R-teeeeest! :D

Seriously, this is a super piece that shows off your creativity and your skill. If I had 3 thumbs :eek:, it would get 3 thumbs up! ;):D

[Roger Bullock]

Cool looking and great craftsmanship. Who knew you could have so much fun with a small chunck of wood :)

[Josh Bowman]

Wow! Scott, that very fine work. Great job.

[John Keeton]

Scott, this is a masterpiece turning!!! Incredible vision, and wonderful execution. Not only are the individual pieces beautifully done, but the way you have combined them into a natural setting is just perfect!

This is a show stopper!!

[Dennis Ford]

Agree with all that has been said, this is a fantastic piece of work.

[Harvey Ghesser]

Just beautiful, Scott!

[Ken Glass]

Scott,
This Gathering of turned pieces into a scene is simply put, Exceptional. Your creativity and turning skills are very evident here. You must have spent many many hours on it and it shows. The choices of color, size, form, position show you have real talent. Very Well Done.

[Faust M. Ruggiero]

Scott,
I'm bowled over. Simply fantastic!
faust

[Christopher K. Hartley]

WOW!!! You did a superior job on this. Excellant work!:eek::)

[Steve Vaughan]

I remember a thread some time back on art vs. craft, or something like that? Here's your definition of art right here in front of us! Very, very creative and well done. It's another one of those pieces that inspires. Thanks!

[Barry Elder]

Scott,

You have created a very elegant art turning. Your combination of talents and focus have resulted in a piece that would be welcomed anywhere in the entire world. Congratulations again and again.

[James Combs]

Ditto Everything that's been said and I will add that this is on a par with the musical instruments done by Ron Bufferman and I was blown away by them. http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=152509

[Robert McGowen]

Totally awesome. Don't know what else to say. :)

[Kevin Stanbary]

Outstanding! Well Done!

[mike marconi]

WOW Spectacular!!!

Did you make a different bending form for each stem and blade?

[Bill Bolen]

Gotta agree....wow was the first thought I had. Outstanding piece and a lot of though and work must have gone into this one. Beautiful!...Bill...

[Steve Schlumpf]

Excellent!!! Love the imagination! Seriously - very impressive work! Thanks for sharing!

[David DeCristoforo]

Little to add to what has been said. Awesome work Scott. My only issue is with the mushrooms. I can see where you were going with them but they tend to distract me from the flower cluster. Just me, I'm sure and no way a deal killer. My attraction to flower forms is obvious and these are spectacular. I have been thinking, on and off, about trying to bend pedestals like you have done here but my ideas have been much more "interpretive". These are much more realistic. Nice.

[Scott Hackler]

Thanks for all the nice comments. It was a long process but I am satisfied with the results and it gave me a possible idea for the next "big" thing.

For a few of the questions:

I have in excess of 12 hours involved not including the boil time, spead out over several weeks. I spent a lot of the time with trial and error with stains, the design and the implementation of making the stems and blades. As a matter of fact, I have 3 pine stems sitting in the shop that, after turning them and staining a pine sample, didnt make the "cut" for this project. So I did some stain test on bur oak and liked the results.

Each piece of the stems and blades were bent (after boiling for 2 1/2 hours) on a different form, different shape (even though minor). I wanted a very organic feel and not just 8 blades of the same shape or all three stems to look alike. It's hard to see in the pictures, but the closed flower's attachment point is actually a little off center to similuate the uniqueness found in nature.

Anyway, thanks again for the wonderful comments. It is greatly appreciated.

[Scott Hackler]

David, I stuggled with the inclusion of the mushrooms and in fact had them turned well before final assembly. After the blades and stems were epoxied together and placed in the base, I sat the mushrooms on the base and stepped back to "take it all in". I prefered the visual with them included, but I can see where your coming from. Thanks.

[alex carey]

beautiful!

[Willie Wax]

I am in awe, it is stunning.

[Greg Ketell]

That is truly amazing!! Beautiful work and great creativity!!!! Thank you for sharing and inspiring.

GK

[Baxter Smith]

Scott, that is not what I expected to see. It is much much more! :) The mushrooms are a great touch and make the setting more realistic/special.

[gary Zimmel]

One real amazing piece Scott..

[Ryan Baker]

That is absolutely fantastic! Very impressive!

And you only have 12 hours in it!!!! Are you sure you didn't drop a zero off the end?

[Bernie Weishapl]

Scott those are absolutely beautiful. All I can say is Wow.

[Curt Fuller]

Scott, that's a beautiful piece of art!

[Mike Cruz]

What, not a dozen?

That is beautiful, just beautiful...

[Joel Albert]

Scott,

I simply love this work--and I dont' say that very often. Its amazing to see what can be done in the hands of a Master. Sigh, also makes me realize how far I have to come..

Way to go!

Joel

[Michael Ginsberg]

Gallery material!!