Texas Christmas Ornaments
 These light-weight Christmas ornaments are small-scale wood turnings, hand-made of local woods on my lathe. I make them in several different types, including: Truly Texas Christmas ornaments - each one is crafted here in Texas primarily using local woods - primarily Honey Mesquite, Texas Ebony, Huisache, Live Oak and spalted Pecan and Sycamore. Most of this Texas wood has been harvested (usually by me) from the margins of the Katy Prairie, usually from downed trees or those that would be removed for reasons other than just my woodworking. Each ornament is generally finished with glossy lacquer, although I sometimes use an initial coat of Danish oil to enhance the woods grain. These ornaments are handmade individually and each is unique - no two are alike. While I do employ the same types of wood, in similar basic styles and using similar figurines, the final shape depends on my mood and what I see in the wood as it is being turned. I hope you like them. |
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Mistletoe Mesquite hollow-globe 11-1 This is a fairly large and attractive ornament with a flattened-oval Texas Honey Mesquite globe. This type of Mesquite is fairly novel in that it is known as "Mistletoe Mesquite" - a portion of a Mesquite limb that once hosted a large clump of Mistletoe. The "roots" of the Mistletoe plant penetrated the bark, sapwood and the outer heartwood to produce those darker brown vertical lines and unusual grain pattern. The globe has been hollowed to produce a fairly light-weight ornament. The icicle and capping finial were turned from Texas Honey Mesquite heartwood. This ornament is 6-3/4" tall and 2-1/2" wide. It was sanded to 1000 grit and finished with multiple coats of lacquer. I believe that it turned out to be very attractive.
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