Beachcombing, a few years back, my friend found a piece of driftwood that looked exactly like three horses’ heads rising from the waves. Very cool. But that’s nothing compared to the driftwood horses of artists Matt Torrens, Heather Jansch, and Deborah Butterfield.

The differences between the artists’ interpretations of “driftwood horse” are striking, but all have achieved a remarkable combination of driftwood’s naturally weathered graceful lines with the powerful majesty of the equine form.

Matt Torrens

Born and raised in Calgary, Alberta (“Cow Town”) and now living in southern California, the horse rendered in driftwood is a natural subject for sculptor Matt Torrens.

“Spirit,” the driftwood horse head sculpture by Matt Torrens shown here, was exhibited at the California State Fair in Sacramento, August/September 2008. Photograph by laura.bell.

“Each piece of Manzanita driftwood, with its contours and veins, helps bring my otherwise dead-wood sculptures back to life. I strategically select each piece of driftwood based upon its size and character. Naturally occurring notches on the wood help the animals take shape; flaws provide definition and contour; while other pieces are used for their muscle and bone-like appearance. Each sculpture is a unique, one-of-a-kind, work of art.”

Heather Jansch

Driftwood horse by Heather Jansch at Eden Project in Cornwall, UK, January 2007. Photograph by Ennor.

Many more photographs of Heather Jansch’s horses in driftwood, bronze and mixed media can be enjoyed courtesy of the Flickr community, and on HeatherJansch.com.

Deborah Butterfield

Born on the day of the 75th running of the Kentucky Derby, in San Diego, California, it’s perhaps not surprising that Deborah Butterfield felt an early affinity for the equine world and chose to establish her art studio in Montana. Her one-of-a-kind original driftwood sculptures, cast in bronze, bring something of the horse’s own strength and endurance to the graceful and fragile driftwood pieces, making them suitable for outdoor installations.

“Cabin Creek,” 1999, Bronze: Deborah Butterfield. Photograph by Cliff.

In the following brief excerpts from a 19-minute video documentary produced for the Denver Art Museum, Deborah Butterfield: A Dialogue with the Artist, we see the artist actually creating some of her driftwood horse sculptures while she talks about “the creative process, her relationship with horses, and her philosophy of living. Filmed on location at her studio in Montana, an art foundry in the state of Washington, and the installation in Denver, this is a vivid and insightful portrait of a remarkable artist.”

“It’s more like I’m discovering the personality of the horse that I’m working on. I can’t really preconcieve what it is that will work, and so it’s just trying to see as many things as you can and to incorporate them.”

Perhaps one of Butterfield’s best-known works, the bronze driftwood horse “Monekana” resides at the Smithsonian Institution‘s American Art Museum/National Portrait Gallery complex in Washington, DC. Photographs of the piece are by Thomas Guest, top photo, and catface3, below:

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If you’re a fan of craft artist Vincent Thomas Leman’s “abstract traditional” style — the heart of the practical yet whimsical Dust Furniture — you won’t want to miss the Etsy outlet for handcrafted “prototypes, web exclusives, extras and sometimes, mistakes…”

Right now, the online shop is showing four gracefully curved tables, three funky clocks, and this fascinating two-part cabinet called “Crook and Cranny”:

This cabinet is comprised of two sections, a taller bookcase portion with shelves for storage or display, and a smaller cabinet section with a door and one interior shelf. The pieces interact with each other in an interesting way, with the taller section resting on the shorter section. The two parts are permanently secured together.

For a look at the fun-loving furniture pieces in regular production, and a list of boutiques and galleries where they’re available, visit www.dustfurniture.com.

When I spotted this set of Elvis Presley Russian nesting dolls — you know, where you open the wooden doll shape to reveal a smaller one; open it and there’s a smaller one yet; and so on — it sparked all sorts of ideas!

Decoupage, my friends!

See, I knew you could get blank (unpainted) sets of Russian nesting dolls (Amazon’s got them in the $10-$16 range, depending on how fancy you want to get, and who the vendor is), but I’ve always been a bit intimidated by the idea of trying to do a good enough painting job to justify the purchase. You know, the whole charm of the Russian dolls depends on the decoration…

Then I saw Elvis.

And after I finished laughing, this idea came along:

You could make your own Elvis set of nesting dolls by applying cut-out pictures of The King with decoupage glue onto the blank wooden dolls.

Or, of course, you could make a set of dolls for whatever celebrity you have a not-so-secret passion for… or more than one. The members of AC/DC, maybe, or all the actors who have played James Bond?

Or never mind a celebrity — what about Russian nesting dolls to represent your family?

Take photographs of the members of your family, and decoupage them onto nesting dolls in order of age and size. If you’ve got a small family and run out of people before you run out of dolls (I believe most sets have 5 figures), then make the smallest ones into your dog and cat — heck, do a favourite houseplant, for that matter! An awesome gift for a grandparent, don’t you think?

“One natural product deserves another,” say the folks at Rocky-Brook Fine Woodcrafts, recommending their wooden knitting needles for real wool yarn, although “of course, they work just as well with synthetic fibres.”

My sister (a genius knitter) just sent me the tip on these, and I strongly suspect she was sending a hint for Christmas! Rocky-Brook wooden knitting needles are crafted by a family-owned company that’s located (more or less) in this neck of the woods, too — another reason to like ‘em!

Lightweight yet strong, the smooth wax-rubbed wooden knitting needles are naturally warm to the touch, which is said to make them ideal for knitters who are troubled by arthritis — or, I suggest, for those who just love the feel of smooth wood?

There’s no lacquer finish to wear away and cause rough spots that might snag your yarn. The finish on Rocky-Brook needles can be easily renewed just by rubbing them with a piece of waxed paper!

And did I mention, environmentally friendly?

Our needles are not only a pleasure to use but they are also one of the most environmentally friendly knitting products on the market. We are very proud to say we maintain less than a 4% waste factor during the crafting of our needles.

Oh, and if your compulsion to knit your way through the evening TV fare is driving your roommates to distraction, there’s another reason to consider the wooden needle.

They don’t make that incredibly annoying click-click click-click click-click sound that lots of metal and plastic knitting needles make — that sound that reminds me of the metronome that ticked away on the top of the piano, during those long long hours of childhood torture when I was forced to practice the minor scales…

But I digress.

We’re talking about a clever, original and relatively frugal gift idea here for the keen knitter in your life!

Think about it…

Package up a pair or foursome of lovely birch needles, say, with a skein or two of wool from one of the many fine indie spinners on Etsy, and perhaps a free knitting pattern from Tahki Stacy Charles that you’ve printed out on nice paper — and voila! You’ve got a unique gift on a knitting theme!

Rocky-Brook Needles come in straight or double-pointed styles, in fifteen different sizes, crafted in birch, walnut, cherry and maple woods by nice folks in rural Beechwood, New Brunswick, Canada. The website has a list of places that sell their needles, or you can contact Rocky-Brook directly for more information.

I’ll probably never get over craving an Andy Sanchez vanity top, or Shawn Lovell’s metal-sculpture bed where the term “forest canopy” is almost literal… but there’s an endless supply of tree-inspired objets of home decor to snag our attention — and here’s a selection of recent finds:

Clockwise from upper left:

• Yellow Gocco Tree and Tissue Paper Note Cards by bubbledog on Etsy.
• Forest Leaf Collection twig-inspired silverware by Michael Aram [via stuff-i-like]
• Jelly Beans’ bright watercolour painting, The Turning evokes the spirit of autumn. [via Morrgan's Creatures]
• Gum tree jewellery stand by Polli can double as a tabletop screen.
• Woodwright’s oval tree pendant is handcrafted in birch wood.
• Red tree notecards by tamar say “I love you” inside.
• The Alberto clotheshorse — Casamania by Frezza — is actually inspired by coral plants, but it reminds me of the stark shape of a dead tree against the distant skyline, very elegant and sculptural.

Wilbur Woodpecker is so simple, and yet somehow just fascinating for children and adults alike.

How does it work? Truly, it is simple — just slide the wooden bird up to the top of the 18″ pole, and watch him peck his way back down.

Slide up, watch the bird…
Slide up, watch the bird…
Repeat as needed, until the magic of childhood steals back into the jaded adult soul…

My oldest uncle used to make these traditional children’s toys in his spare time (to work off the stress of his job as an air traffic controller, I suspect, looking back at it now), and didn’t we kids love to see what he’d bring out of his workshop next! It was just like having Santa Claus in the extended family!

This version of the old-fashioned woodpecker toy, lovingly handcrafted of cherry and birch hardwoods in Rhode Island, USA, is the work of Etsy vendor stumppondtoy — “86 years old and still kicking”!


Technorati Tags: Etsy, woodworking, toys

What could be more appropriate for a piece of art work created from found objects or recycled materials, than the figure of an caretaking angel?

Some of these angels will help to feed a hungry family in a developing country.

Some will help to care for helpless animals.

Some will bring a smile, or inspire an afternoon of laughter and family crafts.

And all of these angels make good and beautiful use of materials that would otherwise be wasted.

 
 
With each lovely blue Recycled Glass Angel purchased, The Animal Rescue Site will fund 14 bowls of food for animals living in shelters. Each angel is unique, created by a recycled glass cooperative and fair-trade imported from Guatemala.

Arncraft projects from Creative Kids at Home give ideas and instructions to challenge you to create new items from recycled materials, like this CD angel, created from an unwanted compact disc.

Disabled artisans at theBombolulu Workshop near Mombasa, Kenya, are employed, housed, and educated for their work in making jewelry, like this cheerful angel pin, from recycled materials.

“Each year we dedicate a week in December to Christmas crafts and baking, says Cheri, the TNfarmgirl. “This is a time for the boys to express themselves in a variety of ways, create handcrafted presents for family and friends and learn new cooking skills.”

Through the year, the family will collects items with crafty recycling potential, then pull them out for a big family craft bash. One year, they made lightbulb angels like this little cutie. You can leave her without the self-standing feet and hook her halo onto the Christmas tree, if you prefer a hanging ornament.

Recycled metal and wood pieces, together with found objects, take a turn as the hippest of folk art in these mixed-media angels. On the left, Angel Red Lace is by Tricia Courtney of Lemon Oak Studio. On the right is Tattoo, one of Elzabeth Frank’s Tin Can Angels series in carved wood, recycled tin, acrylic, and wax.

In my travels, I’ve seen some remarkable garden-art angels made from rusty angle-iron pieces that you’d never think could look so lovely… and a mosiac stepping stone with an angel motif, made from broken bits of patterned china… and years ago, the nursery school did something with toilet paper rolls and the coloured comic pages from the newspaper…

What recycled angels have you seen and admired — or made yourself?
Tell us about it in the comments, and do feel free to leave a link if you want to share a picture!

Do you remember stacking up a pile of little wooden blocks in various shapes, as a child, and pretending you were building a fantasy castle?

And all the time you were learning a whole range of skills, from problem-solving techniques to small-motor skills, not to mention the exercise of creative imagination!

All that, from little blocks of wood…

Just tell me why they didn’t make building blocks like Haba‘s “international and architectural” toy blocks when I was a wee tot! The Russian building blocks are particularly gorgeous — $39.95 at GummyLump.

With this unique set your child can construct the buildings of Moscow and St. Petersburg. This beautiful set contains the domes and arches that Russian Czars and religious leaders used in constructing buildings in Russia. Let your child create his own amazing structures with 55 Maplewood blocks in 17 shapes.

[H/T to Jen, the Reading Goddess, for her pointer to Gummylump toys.]

The search for little boxes continues…

Tonight, a fleeting heart-shaped hint on Etsy’s front page — I caught it by the merest of lucky accidents! — leads to an artist who’s new to me, Paula Manning-Lewis…

Voila!
Two lovely light-hearted boxes in acrylic paints on papier mache, as well as the stash-sized Red and Brown Heart Spiral trinket box in oil paints on wood. (I really like the way the lines of paint almost suggest a fantasy wood grain, counterpoint to the wood itself.)

PaulaM‘s work has a free and easy southwest feel to it, at least to me from my northern perspective — is it the flowing line, or the palette of warm clear sunrise/sunset colours?

About the artist:

I currently work mainly in watercolor, but I have worked with a variety of mediums. I like to paint a fairly large variety of subject matter but stick mainly to southwest landscapes, portraits and my newest fascination, abstract expressionism! Recently, my main theme has been peace.

PaulaM lives and creates in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she co-founded the Seventh Mountain Artists group.

Bored with your floor?

Easier to put down than traditional hardwood plank flooring, they say, this unusual flooring comes in the shape of giant jigsaw puzzle pieces. What a terrific idea for a child’s bedroom, especially with games and toys as a decorating theme!

Puzzle Floor comes in a dozen different looks from Black Walnut to a striking wine-colored Cabernet to a fresh light Classic hardwood look — the bold decorator might even consider a little mix-and-match, setting in the occasional piece in a contrasting color. Hmmm, the possibilities…