In keeping with the Year of the Wooden Horse, a new shield woodcut of a medieval horse.
Approximately 32″ tall and 20″ wide, the Stallion Woodcut is fashioned from reclaimed spruce and hand chiseled. The edges are slightly rounded to give the design a barrel shape. The finish is water-based Prairie Bench Storybook with additional light sanding inside the cut border. A polished black onyx stone adds a nice shine for the eye.
#271-BL-02-14
32″x20″ with 5% curve
reclaimed Spruce
It’s big.
The piece:
Local Hemlock slab 3″ thick 60″x 20″ live edge
Local rough cut Fir timbers 4″ thick hand chiseled
Hazelnut dowels on frame
Hemlock dowels to moor slab
42″ tall
Rubber skid pads
Finished in polyurethane for easy polishing and durability
The hemlock slab was our work bench until we flipped it over and saw it had nice grain. So we polished it up with a hand planer and some high grit sand paper, and the result was stunning.
This piece is a fine example of West Coast Hemlock, and very strong. It is a soft wood, an evergreen, so the surface may get nicked and bumped—but that’s part of its story. We even left some of the original mill saw marks, and there is a compression mark from early in the tree’s history. It’s a wain cut so the slab does have a slight twist, compensated by the custom frame. Belly up to the bar, we estimate the load bearing for this unit to be about eight tons, however we only recommend the table for lattes and a few brews.
One side has a nice arc that invites patrons to sit around the server and bartender side has a convenient knot hole for tips. Each post of the fir frame is hand chiseled and joins in a locking pattern on three sides, then pinned with sturdy hazelnut hardwood dowels. Sanded smooth, the blunt dowels and over cut edges give the piece a sturdy wild west look and in the category Country Collection.
For matching chairs, we’ll shop for some nice iron ones to complement the piece.
Size: 42″ tall x 60″ long x 20″ wide
Finished in polyurethane
#270-BL-02-14
r, beware the dragon road sign. Someone took the time to carve a warning, so consider a different route.
This crest style sign is handmade with a rough wood cut of a dragon. It’s smaller than our regular shields with a doweled wood bracket that slides over a hanger on a sign post. The entire piece is made with reclaimed spruce and Prairie Bench Storybook finish.
259-BL-2-14Approx. size: 15″x28″
Spruce with hardwood dowel
We’re still having fun chiseling medieval crests and now—battle weary shields from long ago. These are designed to look used and come with tell tale signs of conflict.
256-bl-1-14 Wooden Horse: this shield is in a traditional heraldic shape with notched top edge for resting your lance. The design is a heraldic rearing stallion. The knots in the wood aligned with features of the horse almost like a constellation. This is the fun in woodwork; when characteristics of wood mirror the project it’s a bit magical. Approx dimensions: 32″x20″ with 5% curve. Made of spruce and ‘aged’ iron handle with sisal wrap. All bolts are custom ground. Stained with Prairie Bench Storybook and finished in polyurethane to preserve the shield in its current state without need for future oiling.
257-bl-1-14 Phoenix: this is a tribute to a heraldic design on the web which we modified with a crown. A splash of crimson was added in the staining process. This shield is well used with 13 X’s scratched into the shield reverse. Approx dimensions: 32″x20″ with 5% curve. Made of spruce and ‘aged’ iron handle with sisal wrap. All bolts are custom ground. Stained with Prairie Bench Storybook and finished in polyurethane.
258-bl-1-14 Aradian battle shield: Where is Aradia? We’re not sure. However they must have had a skirmish or two, because this shield is well used with signs of swords and axes successfully deflected. The handle on this shield is made of hazelnut and includes a leather strap. The front is adorned with eight custom ground clavos. Those are the fancy iron bolts medieval carpenters added to shields and doors to dull the blades of attacking forces. This is a light, defensive piece ideal for close combat. Approx dimensions: 32″x20″ with 5% curve. Made of spruce and ‘aged’ iron handle with sisal wrap. All bolts are custom ground. Stained with Prairie Bench Storybook and finished in polyurethane.
In the heraldic tradition, we’ve completed a family crest in a wood cut design on spruce. Read more here…
This is not a shield, as the armor version would include iron strapping and bolts, as well as hand grip and sleeve. Check back for that one soon.
After the edges were flamed, the design had a brisk resand with 100 grit to blur any soot and scuff up the chisel marks. The finish is a mix of Prairie Bench Storybook with a lot of mineral spirits, 3 to 1. This gives a dirty, aged colour and brings out the grey tones.
A diluted mix of International Red was painted on the lion and the rear flag. Then the crest received several coats of poly, but not too much because the dry look adds to the age.
A heavy gauge picture wire is connected to a bracket then screwed to the rear for hanging .
#255-bl-1-14
Approx size: 32″x21″ with 5% curve. Spruce finished in polyurethane.
