Ron Headon
Ron Headon
This is the gallery of your esteemed webmaster! This is just to prove that after all the exacting fingerwork on the keyboard there's still enough brute force and ignorance left in me to create one or two things in the workshop.
Fruit Bowls
|
|
Let's start with a nice, simple bowl with a medium-sized rim (left). It's made of Beech and is meant for use rather than for ornamental purposes. |
|
Next up shows you what happens when you let beech hang around in the garden and rot for a while! This one is made from Spalted Beech. Spalting is a natural process involving a fungal infection which produces the lovely inky-black lines which mark the different coloured areas of the bowl. Don't be put off by the term "fungal infection". It sounds rather nasty and unwholesome but I've never yet had a bowl which has sprouted mushrooms! |
|
|
|
This one's a bit more exotic. It's made from Padauk. When first turned the bowl is a bright russet/orange colour but, like many timbers, it settles down to a brown colour after a number of months. |
|
And now we have . . . Teak. I took a shot of the side view just so you could have a better idea of the overall shape. |
|
Pot Pourri Bowls
Pot pourri bowls are quite fun to make - the metal inserts are pewter and bought from a craft supplier. The opening in the top of the bowl is then made to fit the insert.
These two (left) are made from purpleheart. Shortly after they're turned the wood takes on a beautiul purple colour which gradually fades to brown after a few months. The time this takes depends on how much the bowl is left in the sun. Now the timber on this one is a bit special. It's made from Zebrano (sometimes called Zebrawood). Terrific figure on this piece. This bowl is made from Sycamore - one of my favourite woods for turning. Sycamore was traditionally used in England for utilitarian/food related items. It turns well, takes a good finish and is also a good wood to use if you want to add a coloured finish or decorate using a pyrography iron. Unfortunately it doesn't always have the visual appeal of some of the more highly figured timbers.
Lidded Boxes
I always enjoy making these. I love the intricacy, the size and also the challenge of trying to make the lid fit properly. I've shown them with lids on and lids off just to prove I'm not cheating!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
And here's a close-up of the lighter coloured one which is made from Pau Amarello. |
A Christmas Ornament - 2007
Here's a Christmas tree ornament I made for Christmas 2007. It's made from beech with a pyrographed motif painted with watercolours. |
Lace Bobbins
This all started when a friend who is a member of a local lacemaking group asked if I would be prepared to make the group a few bobbins. . .
|
|
These look a bit shorter than they actually are - the picture seems to have foreshortened them. They're made from all different timbers. The two-tone one fourth from the left is made from maple and purpleheart laminated together. |
|
This picture gives you a better idea of the proportions - pity it's a little blurred. Sorry about that. I must have had some dirt in my eye when I took the photo. They all have a spiral groove running up their body into which I've inlaid brass-coloured wire. Tiny holes were also drilled into the bodies at regular intervals which were filled with paint. |
|
|
|
These are known among the lacemaking fraternity as "Prickers". I've done that laminating trick again here (this time third from the left). There's a piece of purpleheart sandwiched between two slices of maple. |
|
Some more "Prickers". Those lacemakers sure seem to do a lot of pricking. |
|
