English Ivy Hedgerow basket

My second attempt at a basket yielded much better results. I attached a loop for hanging on the wall. English Ivy is a pain to process but i love the look!

Experiment with Freehanding using a Heat stylus

tried my hand at freehanding Thor's hammer and a less than authentic Yggdrasil pendant! XD Will celtic knots be far behind? Of course there will be knotwork!

I have decided to try my hand at hardwood carving. I have a nice block of oak begging to become a panpipe! next we will be covering the art of celtic knot-style work, with a focus on animals!

Wood burner!

I got a wood burner tool today! I decided to put the wolf mascot from NEO Viking on my Jorvik Pan Pipes!

you can see how i made this panpipe here http://magicmeadgoat.blogspot.com/2013/02/recreating-viking-jorvik-pan-pipes.html

Recreating Viking Jorvik Pan Pipes!

Thanks to this handy guide at http://www.panflutejedi.com/viking-pan-flute-tutorial.html I made a Jorvik Pan Flute!

We started with a block of wood, preferably hardwood like oak. a good hardwood makes for a much clearer sound. Because I had no drill press a bit larger than Instructed, (11x7.5cm) for a more forgiving gap. ^ ^;

I drew a center line, marked the dots and punched a starter divot with an awl or nail to guide the bit. Using a small bit I bored the first lead holes.

Then i took the hole size up one extra stage with a 3/16" bit to make a nice straight bore, careful not to reach the actual intended depths.

Using a marked dowel to determine depth, I carefully bored the varying depths to make the different pitches. 

Bit size 5/16"

in CM from low to high:
5.85 6.75 7.75 8.35 9.1

I used my 3/16" bit to bore a small hole in the high pitch corner for a strap. I used the 5/16" to bore a small divot to curve it in a bit.

Sand sand sand! The smoother you make it inside and out, the clearer your sound will be! Experiment with the depths using drops of beeswax to adjust the pitch.

And that's it! paint or seal with your preferred finish tie on a strap and have fun!

Hedgerow basket!

Today I wove a simple basket.

While the Vines were still wet, I started the basket. I made a crisscross of grape vine sections and wound the vine around it to create a base.

Then I bent the vines into a rough form of the basket base.

The fun party was experimenting with different weaves. I began to get something that looked like a fancy bird's nest!

When I was satisfied with the depth of my "nest" I bent the grape vines down and tucked them into the weave.

Then i wove vines around the top into a fun wrap to hide and secure the Grapevines

and Voila! a tiny basket that looks rather like a nest. next time we will use Blackberry brambles and try our hands at a big basket with a handle!

Hedgerow Basketry Day 2

After Soaking the Vines overnight, we stripped the bark by drawing it between 2 nails in a board. This way they turn out a lovely smooth white. Then it is coiled and ready for use!

Hedgerow basketry

This time We are focusing on hedgerow Basketry! Hedgerow baskets are made of the vines and brambles found in common hedgerows.

This basket we are weaving is made of grape vines and English Ivy!
I found a big patch growing on the side of a friend's house.
We uprooted it and stripped all the leaves. Now we are soaking them in water overnight. More to come!

glazes smoke firing and pit firing

I found a couple lovely sites on pit firing and smoke firing.
http://vickihardin.com/articles/pit-fire-ceramics.html
http://wildclay.ca/tech.html

As we are building up our backlog of works, I will be documenting various (if any are successful) Burnishing technique, Pine resin recipes and their results.
I am aiming for a strong epoxy, a semi flexible sealant and a lacquer finish.

The Resin for the Season

The first step I need to take (to make pine pitch) is collecting pine resin. This can be harvested from any pine tree where a branch was broken or bark has been scratched away. It builds up into big old crystals and sap. Sticky fingers woo!

Lucky for me i have a good leaky tree by my window!
I've collected about 2/3 of a soup can's worth so far. Attempting to use the wedge method for collecting more. I cut a triangle in the side of the tree and wedged a piece of wood below so that the sap builds up on the peg.





Step 2 will be determining what kind of filler i want to use for hardening it. The filler determines the flexibility or hardness of the pitch. First I will be trying Powdered stone as I -hope- to use it to repair my busted potter's wheel!

It begins...

I am on a mission to learn the basics of viking crafts from the lowest of low forms on up, much like the old days. Through trial and error maybe it will make something new and spiffy!

First mission is pottery and pitch! I started by making a hand powered wheel based off an ancient potter's wheel design.

I worked great! Until a tragic Drunken Pottery accident that broke the frame. Clearly I need heavier materials.

So now I must work with coil and pinch pot methods while glue dries on things.

The lamps are based on artifacts from or pre-dating the viking era. The vikings did not use glazes. So I am burnishing these guys inside and out.
Lamps in the old days were simple disposable light sources. often a simple unglazed saucer with a pinch at the end for the wick.

They are NOT oil lamps however! I will be using animal fat like the old days. I'm pretty sure if you used oil in these lamps they'd just explode lol.

The clay is from natural deposits found in a cliff face by the lake.


While I build additional wheels, I will be learning how to make pine pitch using shells to cook it down. If I do it right, I can repair my wheel with Pitch epoxy! That will show it.

To the river I go for stone to grind into powder!