Scroll Saw Village

My wife hates it when I spray finish my projects indoors.  She doesn’t like the smell and she worries about what’s floating around in the air.  Most of the time, I have to wait for her to go shopping.  Then I bolt downstairs with my spray can in one hand and an arm full of projects in the other and hope the smell dissapears before she gets home.

It would be great if I could find a way to finish my projects indoors without anybody being the wiser?  If I only had a spray booth.   Well Paul Adamson from Military Modeling has a great tutorial on how to make a small spraybooth out of materials you can find off the shelf.  Best of all, its small enough to store out of sight when you don’t need it.  He includes a detailed description of the process, along with several photographs.  Check it out.  It might be the next tool you need in your arsonal (and keep you out of the doghouse too).

Allison of Wood Alley is an intarsia artist who is always in the need of ebony. Unfortunately the price tag attached to ebony is a bit steep. . .OK, a lot steep. When she came across an article on how to ebonize wood with vinegar and steel wool, she thought she’d try her hand at it. She wrote a wonderful article about her results. She has also included several pictures and a link to the original article. I’m sure someday you’re going to need some ebony for a project. And when your lumber supplier tells you how much it is, you’ll be glad you read this article!

From time to time, we want to add a little color to our projects. But not just a little color; a lot of color. The kind that stands out and says “Look At Me!” But as woodworkers, it breaks our heart to cover up the beautiful grain of the wood. What are we to do? Use leather dyes! Leather dye has incredible vibrancy that can’t be found in traditional wood stain. It is one of the favorite coloring techniques of Sue Chrestensen of Chrestensen Burghout Designs. She has written a great article on how she uses leather dyes to really punch up her designs. Check it out. While you are there, check out the patterns they have to offer. Their patterns are fantastic and many of the examples use this technique. Very cool.

Finishing trivets is a bit tricky. You are putting hot plates on the wood and you don’t want to discolor or melt the finish. There is a great thread on Absolutely Free Scroll Saw Patterns about finishing trivets. People discuss their personal preferences about finishing trivets as well as providing a few product links. Definitely worth checking out if a trivet design is in your future.