And now to wait for the parcel to arrive!

I have ordered a small scorp and a set of tapered mortise cutters. So I'm on my way to having the tools I need to make stools and bowls.


Why do I do this? It's not all about recreating furniture from the past. In fact it is less about that than you might think. The SCA certainly gives context to what I do by providing an environment where the objects I create are appreciated.
 What I really get from this type of woodworking is a massive sense of enjoyment. I really get a kick out of being able to look back and see the pictures of my work when it was a log.
 In this day and age it feels like a subversive act to split, carry, shape, cut etc all by hand. And all from a log of timber from an introduced tree species which had been left to rot.
It's delightfully ludicrous. The excitement of learning this craft s still with me, I have learned so much, and so often by doing things the hard way. But the joy of it all is still there. I am not seeking perfection, I am not seeking mastery, I am having fun!

Some links relating to my current and upcoming projects.
The Lund stool
A viking Table

And

 Daegrad Tools, a UK  reenactment tool supplier!

Stools and Bowls

 I will have all of the tools I need for upcoming projects within the next week, so It's time to get busy! 

I wish it wasn't raining, I would be able to split some timber for bowls and maybe stools. Half of the Billets I brought back for legs developed splits.

My 1st attempt at a an English horse

In other news, I think it is time to revisit the English Horse.

Shaving horse Canberra wood show

Together with my Dumb-head Horse, I think this will give me a versatile workspace and allow me to have helpers, coworkers and students.

And Just because I can here is the sequence of work in making the stools!

........,.

 " I screamed in frustration at the sea, but it just waved and kept coming ashore." 

 

Reenactors home gardens!

This is just a short partial answer to a question !

What to plant, Plant things you know you will use, plant things you need for recipes you wish to try and plant them all where they can be easily picked.

Leeks: more of a winter plant

Spinach: Originating in the middle east Spinach Spinacia oleracea Did not reach England until the 16th century. However, Silverbeet (or chard) Beta vulgaris var cicla and Orach Atriplex hotensis were used in the same way.

Beans: The common garden green bean Phaseolus sp, was a very late arrival in Europe and I would question it's use in any recipe before Columbus. However It is a really important and tasty summer garden crop. Broad beans Vicia faba and some beans belonging to the genus Vigna, which includes the cow pea, black eyed pea and snake bean were available during the SCA time period.

  Stay tuned for more

The Air is restless Tonight

 

 

 I could be floating on an ocean of wind. 

I remember standing in a tall forest, seashell wave sounds came to me as the wind crested the trees. Like some small creature of the kelp forest I gazed up at the branches, the sense of a world above them was strong.

Tonight I feel I am ashore, perhaps in a fibro shack behind the dunes. Or could I be high on a grassy hill. The world has shrunken to my own four walls and the sounds of the ocean of wind.

Raising Capital

 Kick-starting

 Bowls and stools. I want to do a couple of things to earn a bit of extra cash. More importantly I want to improve my skills and practice techniques. To do this I need Some new tools. I have been largely unsuccessful in making these myself.  I have managed to create tools which work to some degree, but have been unable to fine tune them enough that they work consistantly. Essentially I now  understand the theory and application of these tools and would eventually like to make my own. Right now though I'm not achieving this and without the tools I require I am not happy with the safety and quality of the items I am creating.

So I need to purchase three items.  I could potentially buy only

this $47 Scorp and this Reamer for $50 . But it would make sense to buy this set of Tenon Taperers for $35 .
 Currently I do not have the money to spare. I was wondering about a Kick starter style capital raising experiment to see if people were interested in helping me out! This is an odd feeling, it's not really like begging or is it? However it may just make this possible.

Options could range from a short term no interest loan, or an advance payment for a bowl.
  These are just ideas of course!

Hope is like a finding a rock in the ocean.

Our hopes can be something we grasp and cling to, but which will ultimately drown us.

Or they can be an island amidst the vast ocean.