I started carving vases a few years ago as a means of getting some more color into my display at shows and exhibitions. Fresh flowers bring a lot to the party and are a fabulous compliment to my natural forms. It was a perfect solution to carve vases to serve this display need and an equally great solution to find a use for some of the beautiful wood cut-offs that were really too beautiful to throw away. Since then I have begun to use the process of creating these small pieces of sculpture as a warm-up exercise for my larger pieces. Much like sketching this is a means of exploring line and form while getting my head in the place it needs to be for carving my larger scale work. So here's a peek at some things from my latest sketch book. 

And now that I'm in the groove it's time to move on to the big dogs.

Here's a photo journal of some steps involved in the creation of a wooden vessel. I will use few words and many pictures.
The first step is acquiring a log from a locally fallen tree. In this instance it's a Boxelder log that I located at the Fergus Falls' landfill's wood pile (more on that later).

Rip the log down the middle.

Trim the edges.

Begin carving the vessel's containment area.

Top side/containment area complete.

Remove excess mass from underside and mark feet locations.

Carving completed.

_Fast forward through drying; final sanding and shaping; dying of the underside; applying oil; waxing;and...Ta Da, finished piece!

All done. I got the steel backs finished and applied a great patina. The patina is relatively unpredictable so it's a great thing when it comes out as nice as this did. The set is waxed, wrapped and packed. Tuesday morning they're off to Florida with me.