September 2013 – PRAIRIE BENCH

Cedar Scrying Bowl Trial

by Prairie BenchSeptember 14, 2013November 29, 20150

As it is Friday the thirteenth, we agreed tonight would be a wonderful time to test out our cedar scrying bowl and see if we could catch a glimpse of the future.

Click here to see how we put it together.

There was a half moon tonight and we got some reflection photos with the bowl filled with water. That wee white light is the moon through our dusty shop camera. And yes you could see stars in the scrying bowl. Also, an interesting phenomenon happens: Once you catch a star’s reflection in the bowl, slowly move away and the image appears to magnify. As our distance from the bowl increased, the reflection grew visibly larger. The basin depth is quite shallow, yet it held almost a liter of water before trickling over the edge. With the surface so polished, the water held together like mercury. Candle light illuminated the meniscus (the surface edge where water meets solid) with a striking red tone.

Did we see the future? If so, the future looked a lot like the now. It was a very interesting trial of an ancient wooden invention. Nostradamus should have published a manual. Now we need to find a home for the scrying bowl, or somewhere to be enjoyed. Maybe in a forest glade?

prairie_bench_scrying_bowl 6 — A solitary moon’s reflection in the scrying bowl

Happy Friday the thirteenth!

Wolf Throne

by Prairie BenchSeptember 11, 2013November 29, 20158

Continuing with the Elk and Wolf Dining Project, the frames for the two thrones are complete. Each uses hazelnut posts with balsam fir supports. The backboard and seat are Sitka Spruce. The dowels are hazelnut and hemlock. No screws or nails are used, just glue and pressure. The posts were measured to fit then hand chiseled to fit the interlocking fir supports. No stain was used, just clear finish and some charcoal was sanded into the joints.

The hazelnut posts are grown onsite and have a muscular, sinew look with a slight purple hue. The spruce backboard is from an old log claimed from the Fraser river by a local tug operator. The arms have carved paws and there a some roughed meadow leaves and branches on the edges and seat. When sitting, the wolf appears to be looking over your shoulder, a bit scary and intimidating for your subjects. That’s the look we wanted!

The seat had a natural band that seems to create a scene with a knot moon in the background. Wood contains it’s own art, but it was fun to add our carving of a wolf. So much fun, we made a spruce shield to indicate when the Wolf King or Queen was in town. If the shield is hanging on the throne, the wolf is around.

Check back to see the Elk throne. It’s almost done.

Cedar Coffee Table

by Prairie BenchSeptember 11, 2013November 29, 20150

A client asked for a cedar coffee table. They brought us a large cedar plank, approximately 7 feet long, two feet wide x 4 inches thick, that was still quite wet. We decided to make it right away and the slab can dry on their patio. There was a nice knot on the cut side of the slab, so this became the center point for the design. We chopped the ends at ten degrees on the big miter saw using special rollers to handle the weight. Then we re-cut the ends of the slab from the opposite direction at twenty degrees. These two angles, one half of the other, make the design symmetrical and balanced. Because of the weight of the legs, four inch aggressive screws were used with glue to lock the wood together from below. We didn’t want dowels interrupting the beautiful grain on this specimen. Cedar has long strands and will crack and split with time and that’s part of the look. Because the wood is still carrying a lot of water, we only applied finish to the top and ends of the wood. The underside and inside legs can stay open for evaporation. A table this size will drink up lots of finish over the years.

Size: 51″ long x 22″wide x 20″ tall. Slab is 4″ thick. Image: the table was just glued together and is sitting on blocks. Wood Source: hawleyscape.com

Crooked Willow Tree

by Prairie BenchSeptember 3, 2013November 29, 20150

On a recent road trip, we spied a wonderful tree. The property owner confirmed it is a Crooked Willow. In lore, the willow is sometimes known as a ‘wys’ tree and has significance to people who study ancient lore. The original term wicker, or to weave sticks, may have originated with this species of tree.

The owners, Bob and Tracy were gracious enough to give us a sample for our collection. We selected a branch that had already broken free as the tree was advanced in age. We’ll polish the sample in rosewood oil and post some pics. It should make an interesting magic staff for a friend.