Turned and dye tulip. What do you think? (just turned this today)

[curtis rosche]

heres the tulip i turned, the dye didnt saok in for some reason, it also got very dark on the endgrains. the wood i used is maple, but it was a little soft i guess, it had a lot of tear out, probably not the best choice of wood. hows the form? does it look like a tulip? i know the stem is alittle thin but i didnt want the wood to snap.

[curtis rosche]

so, should i take that as a no and try to make a better one?

[Matt Hutchinson]

I think it's a good idea Curtis. It appears to be a challenging project from the dying standpoint. I like the color of the flower, but you might try a lighter green or thin down what you have been using. Also, you might try washing a test piece with an extremely diluted sealer, then dye it. I think an awesome addition would be to try to give the tulip even more flower-like shape with some carving. What inspired you to make this(these) project(s)? Can't wait to see what kind of flower comes next.

Hutch

[Allen Neighbors]

Curtis, Maple is notorious for being hard to stain (or dye), because of the way it's grain pattern takes the color. Matt's suggestion about the extremely diluted sealer is a good one. Also, Minwax makes a product called Wood Conditioner, that you can get at good lumber yards. You paint it on, wait about 5 to 10 minutes, and then stain. It works very well.
For a similar sealer, I use a 35/65 lacquer wash... 35%Lacquer/65%Thinner.... it also works.
I like the representation of the tulip. l also think it would look really different if you added a little more exaggeration of the actual tulip shape.

[Jim Becker]

Curtis, on the dye, it's absorbtion is dependent upon the particular wood you're working with and maple, with it's very close pore structure takes more work to get it done. Dye doesn't "soak in" very deep anyway, so it may take multiple applications to get what you want. Some have suggested conditioners'sealers, but those are not as effective with a dye as they are with a pigment stain. You're coloring the conditioner/sealer rather than the wood, then. But don't be so concerned with variation in color. Look at a real tulip...it's not exactly the same color throughout the flower. ;)

On the turning, I like the idea. But this is an opportunity for you to work toward a more delicate and thinner piece to better represent what you are calling this. It will also lend itself to a little carving/cutting at the rim to give some hints to the petals that would be in a real tulip.

[Geoff Hanha]

Hi curtis, have you tryed getting a pic of a tulip and put it on the lathe. As the stem comes to the flower you are very sharpe it needs to flow/curve more into the stem. When i stain wood for turning i use an airbrush a cheap one is fine, i use acrylic artist paints you can dilute them right down, you can then build the coats fast and to the deapth of colour you want, also food colour, small bottles that used for cake ice colouring most markets sell them. Both these items are cheap and easy to use and i have great sucsess. Geoff

[curtis rosche]

what would be the best way to carve to top? i dont tink i can carve a clean line very well, i will try the picture on the lathe, or maybe just put an actual tulip in a block of clear plastic and turn it