Amethyst Flavored Ash HF

[Steve Schlumpf]

I turned this really nice piece of Black Ash a couple of months ago and decided to experiment on it with gild crème. I had gotten an email from Terry Scott (fabulous turner from NZ) suggesting I give Baroque Gilders Paste a try. It is turpentine based, so once it dries you can put a finish over it. Terry uses it on a lot of his turnings and it does create some very interesting layered colors!

I dyed the HF purple and wire brushed the piece to open up the grain a little. I applied some silver colored gild crème and rubbed it into the grain. The idea was to have a distinct contrast between the purple and the silver… what I created was a sparking mud! It was my fault for not thinking things through but I was mixing things that were not meant to be used together. Example – the RIT dye used will move with water, the Baroque crème will move with mineral spirits and even though things looked good before I applied the clear topcoat… everything got messed up once it was applied.

The first time I did this, I applied some wipe-on poly and it just smeared the gild crème around instead of leaving it in the grain as planned. So, using mineral spirits, I removed all the gild crème, let things dry and then reapplied the crème. WOP didn’t work, so a water-based poly should! Nope, crème sat there just fine but the purple dye smeared all over creating another – but this time – purple – mess!

I cleaned everything up once again, applied more dye and the crème… and then tried sealing it with some spray shellac. Well, once again I should have known better than to try and spray something in a shop that was 55*! So after the globs of shellac dried, I sanded the piece down and set it aside…. for many weeks!!!

This past weekend I managed to get in some shop time because of all the rain we were getting and decided to either try and salvage the Black Ash HF… or toss it!

Sanded the form back to bare wood, dyed it with RIT purple dye and after the wood was dry, used a brass BBQ grill brush and scrubbed the heck out of the grain! I wanted to create multiple colors and also offer a variety of textures… I think it worked. The purple looks amazing in person and the gold highlights were caused by using oil based wipe-on poly.

Black Ash, 7.75” in diameter x 6.25” high.

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As always, your opinions, critiques and comments are welcomed!

Sorry for such a lengthy description - thanks for looking!

[charlie knighton]

very nice Steve, if at first you don't sucede........

[Quinn McCarthy]

That is so cool Steve.

Keep up the good work.

Q

[Tim Rinehart]

I like it Steve. I wish I had the memory reserves for all the cool stuff I see you and others constantly coming up with. The purple and gold go together very well.
I chuckled on the part where you used a BBQ brush!

[Jeremy Leasure]

Love the amethyst color and grain in this. Jealous of you guys doing the hollow forms.

Amethyst is one of my favorite stones, I only wish I could work it into some of the repair work I do with bug holes and knots. However it's so much harder than malachite, turquoise etc. Maybe one day I'll invest in some diamond abrasives.

[Ted Calver]

Nice!! Looks like purple heart.

[David DeCristoforo]

This is a great "classic Steve S." form. I'm not a hundred percent on the combination of the gold tone with the amethyst color but the effect is dramatic. It really brings the grain in the ash to the forefront.

[Jeff Myroup]

Looks good Steve. You can get the same effect using johnson paste wax and pearl x powder. Once you rub it on, use steel wool to remove the excess. Once the wax dries you can lacquer over it. Bob Bergstrom has been doing it for a while with great results. It is a lot cheaper than rub and buff or gild wax. If you have any questions, send him a message.

[Bob Bergstrom]

Jeff and I are always trying to experiment with dyes, color and patenation. I've used Transtint, Peral Ex, and glitter to enhance the grain of open pore wood. The Pearl Ex and glitter will mix redly with paste wax. It depends on the openness of the grain you are working with. Walnut will be subtle. Elm or Ash will be more pronounced. For wax filled pores I usually rub it back with 0000 steel wool. I let the wax dry for a couple days and spray a light coat of lacquer over the top. The lacquer will have problems if it is applied too heavily or if the wax has not had time to dry. Pearl Ex comes in many metallic and dichromic varieties. You can make some very interesting wax fillers with it mix in wax. It is also sprayable through and airbrush so the combinations with dye become endless. I was supposed to do a demo about it at the club, but Jeff hogged the whole time with his great presentation of chemical coloring on metal leaf that I got bumped to a date to be determined. LOL. His was well worth being pushed back to a latter date.

[Roger Chandler]

Nice form as always Steve. Love the purple color and the grain lines filled.........I think if the silver had kept it's color it would have been better than the gold.

What strikes me most is your grain orientation. This sets the turning off in my opinion ..........you got the opening centered well and the cathedral grain on top just looks terrific and as it winds around the form the wavy look is just nice. Looks like you got the form pretty thin as well.........I would love to hold it in my hands to get a sense of its "lightness." How thin were you able to go on the sides? Any plans for a finial?

[Jim Burr]

That is way to much effort Steve!!! But I'm glad you did it! Good experience to pass on. This is something that has been on my mind with ash bowls to add a level of visual complexity.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Well worth the effort Steve. That is a incrediable piece.

[John Keeton]

Steve, it was certainly worth the redux!!! Looks great - beautiful color and the highlights really make it pop. As always, great form, too.

[Dennis Ford]

Beautiful form and the coloring looks great. It sounds like you went the long way around on this piece but the destination was nice.

[Rick Markham]

I like it! Very cool!!!

[Scott Hackler]

Great piece Steve! I really like the combination of colors.

[Kathy Marshall]

Very nice Steve! I like the color and the combo with the gold and how it accentuates the grain.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Thanks for the kind words everyone - I do appreciate it! It was definitely a lot of work but there was something about the wood and the form that made me want to stick with it. Glad it is finally finished!!

Roger - the HF is around 1/8" thick... maybe 3/16" on the lower portion. It does feel fairly light but balanced when you hold it. Neat about it is the texture of the grain - you notice that right off!

[Greg Just]

Looks like another winner! Love the form and color combo. Nice one Steve.

[Michelle Rich]

I would never have had the nerve to dye black ash..it's funny color to start with..kinda grey & black..amazed it came out as well as it did.

[Steve bellinger]

Steve now this is the kind of stuff i've come to love. Great job man.