My vessels are turned on a lathe from a solid piece of wood. The rough chunk of wood is mounted to the machine, and a hand held chisel shapes the spinning piece. Specialized hook-shaped tools are used to hollow out the interior of the vessel. Hollowing is a time consuming process of working by feel, checking frequently with calipers, and coaxing all of the wood chips out of the small opening. After the unseasoned (green) piece of wood is turned to it’s rough shape, it is dried until all of the tree sap in the cells has evaporated. I use a variety of drying techniques since each type of wood reacts differently during the drying process. The rough turned piece may be boiled for a couple of hours in a big pot of water, or dried slowly in a paper bag, before finishing the drying in a specially made kiln.
As the wood dries it shrinks, distorts, and sometimes cracks.
At this point some of the rough pieces don’t survive.

After it is completely dry, the vessel is remounted to the lathe, turned to it’s final shape, and sanded to a high polish. I finish the completed vessel with hand rubbed oil and wax for waterproof protection.

Because the wood is completely seasoned in Colorado’s dry climate, and the vessel is turned with a consistently thin wall, the piece should not crack or change its shape even if it is taken to live in a wetter or drier environment. It is not a good idea to expose these wooden vessels to excessive temperatures or direct sunlight,
and water should be wiped off immediately.

The thin walled vessels are also somewhat fragile.

They should be well padded for shipping, and will dent or scratch easily if dropped. 

My lidded containers are made using similar techniques as for the larger vessels, but with smaller tools. Usually a container will have the inside finished to the same high polish as the outside, requiring more care in the hollowing. The lid is cut from the same piece of wood, or from a contrasting species, and the finial, foot and decorative inlay rings are fitted to the body of the container with tight-fitting joinery such as is used in building furniture.

When creating a lidded container, I often will decorate the piece with precious metals, gemstones, or 23k gold leaf. The application of gold leaf is known as “gilding”, and has been used to decorate furniture, picture frames, signs, architectural components, religious artifacts, books, and other highly prized works since the middle ages.  I use a traditional gilding technique of applying a “gold size” varnish, which the gold leaf adheres to, and finish with a burnishing style referred to as “engine turning”. Since pure gold doesn’t tarnish, there is no protective coating over the gold to impair its brilliance.
The gilded surfaces will not withstand heavy use.

Despite my best efforts to control it, wood remains a living material
with its own personality! My pieces develop their own character as they age.