Hello my name is Paul, welcome to my Woodturning site, and thank you for taking the time to look at my work. I hope you enjoy looking at my turnings and other woodwork items. Please feel free to ask any questions by using my contact page and we can discuss your requirements further.
I have lived in Birmingham all my life and I have been working with wood since leaving school in the late seventies. This was mainly in the jewellery trade as a jewel case maker, situated in Birmingham’s world famous Jewellery Quarter. But since 2006, woodturning has become my passion in wood.
I love the way how a plain, ordinary, dull looking and sometimes decaying log can be turned into a beautiful looking piece of work, revealing the hidden beauty inside. In my work, I like to display the woods natural features. I feel leaving the natural bark inclusions give the piece an earthy, rustic feel that leaves a connection to it’s origins.
The process of producing a turned item can take several years. A piece of timber needs to dry out fully to a point where it is ready to work. I try to quicken this process up by turning a piece of wood to a rough form and storing it for three to five months which will speed up the drying process. It can then be returned to the lathe and turned dry.
Sometimes I just use green timber, which means that the wood is still wet, freshly felled. These pieces have to be turned with thin even walls. When finished and left to dry, they naturally distort, leaving an unusual but beautiful result. This method takes skill and care, as if it is not done correctly, the results can be disastrous.
I use a wide range of finishes, from high gloss to subtle matt, dependant on what the turned piece will be used for.
My preferred finish is an Oil, as I think Oil gives the wood a more natural feel when finished and can easily be re-applied to keep the piece looking it’s best. When items are intended for food use, I use an approved oil that is safe and non-toxic.
All the timbers I use are sustainable, native timbers mainly sourced from a local tree surgeon who I visit quite frequently to see if he has anything of interest in his yard for me. On occasion, I will use exotic timbers on request. But I think these precious resources should be used sparingly to protect their environment.
Hello and welcome to my Woodturning site, and thank you for taking the time to look at my work.
I hope you enjoy looking at my turnings and other woodwork items, and feel free to ask any questions.
I have been Woodturning seriously now since 2006, after working with wood since leaving school in the late seventies, mainly in the Jewellery trade as a Jewel Case Maker, but woodturning has now become my passion in wood.
I love the way how a plain and ordinary, dull looking, sometimes decaying log can be turned into a beautiful looking piece of work, revealing the hidden beauty inside.
I like to leave and show the woods natural features, Inclusions, showing where possible, which I feel still give the piece it’s own natural look, and feel.
The process of producing a turned item can take several years for a specific piece of timber to dry out fully, but I try and quicken this process up by doing part turned items and returning to them after just a couple of months when they are ready to be finished.
Sometimes I just use Green timber, which means that the wood is still wet, freshly felled, so when it is turned, to an even thin finished item, it will dry out naturally but gradually and start to distort.
This method of drying gives some very interesting effects as it is drying out.
This method can sometimes be successful but can also give disastrous results with it drying too quickly and causing the piece to split.
I use a wide range of finishes, dependant on what the turned piece will be used for, but my preferred finish is an Oil.
I think this gives the wood a more natural feel when finished.
I also use a Food Safe Oil when the bowl is to be used for food items.
All the timber I use is sustainable, native timbers mainly sourced from a local tree surgeon who I visit quite frequently to see if he has anything of interest in his yard for me.
He also displays some of my work in his organic farm shop.