Captain Jack

I don't think it's clear from the picture, but the slot goes all the way around to the hole, forming a kind of "J" shaped opening in the side of the bowl. It makes it faster to change the yarn, because you just have to flip the end through the hook shaped hole instead of threading it. That way, if you're knotting or crocheting something with multiple colors, you can quick-change and keep the needles clacking.

It is, six layers plus the base. I sketched the bowl from a side view on graph paper, then drew straight lines where the curves intersected horizontal lines every half inch to get an idea of what the lines looked liked. I glued the paper to card stock with spray adhesive, then cut out the side with the straight edges. Then I held the card up to the scroll saw and adjusted the cut angle for each ring by lining it up with the card. I used a compass to get the diameter right. Once I glued the bowl up, it was pretty rough, so I used a rasp to the get curves fair and smooth, before sanding the bejabbers out of it.

Yup... I sketched the outside curve on graph paper, then cut a series of rings adjusting the outside angle to match to give it a bowl shape. It was a lot of sanding... I kept dropping squares of sandpaper as my hands cramped up. Probably won't make another one this way.

I know this is a little off the beaten path... I made this yarn bowl (holds a ball of yarn for knitting and feeds it through a hook in the side) by cutting rings of 1/2" thick cherry wood at the scroll saw, with different outside angles. The rings were glued together, and some work with a rasp (well, okay, a lot of work with a rasp!) to smooth it over. Amber shellac and beeswax gave it a nice finish.

This Christmas ornament is made with black walnut, aspen, canarywood, and zebrawood. Overall, the piece is about 4 inches (10 cm) high. The eye is from a taxidermy supplier, which I thought added an interesting touch. This will be a gift for my wife, who loves puffins.

This was my Christmas present to my wife. Bananas are her favorite snack, and she loves the minions characters from Despicable Me (who also like bananas quite a bit ). The stand is from a free plan I found on the 'net (http://www.startwoodworking.com/plans/build-countertop-banana-stand). I cut the arm on the scroll saw using an Olson thick wood blade and patience. I drew the character on paper, scanned it, cleaned up the edges in Photoshop, and cut out the pieces from various woods (yellow heart, purple heart, mahogany, wenge, and ebony) then layered them together with epoxy. I used my wood burner for the mouth. I found that a hemostat worked great as a clamp for cutting the various small parts and not losing them through the blade opening in the scroll saw.

Thanks very much, everyone... I'm still pretty green when it comes to scrolling, and I really appreciate the encouragement. Cheers!

I made this box as an anniversary gift for my wife. I made the scroll saw pattern in Photoshop. The inlay I had to do with the drill press and a plug cutter, as the dots are only about 1/4 inch. Each dot is a separate species of wood, each commonly found in important places she's lived in her life: Germany, England, Hawaii, Utah, Michigan, and Indiana (the heart itself).