The finished squarpent

The Squarpent was completed just before Christmas and looks rather good in my opinion. Finished with several coats of lacquer, it came up well. It is made from flooded gum, blue gum and a little pine.

It will be freighted over to Mandy in WA as it was her idea in the first place to make one. Belonging to a Medieval Society she should be the only person in Australia that owns one. Fortunately she can play brass instruments so should be able to get some good sounds out of it.

On to another project now....

Cheers

The Serpent - another instrument

This is Matt's latest project. An actual "Serpent" version of the medieval "Serpent" wind instrument. He has made it from wood strips laminated together to form a tube then wrapped it in cloth and covered it with resin to harden it.

He has given it an initial coat of paint and has started to draw scales on the green part of the body. The snake's head and fangs were cut from some pine and glued on afterwards. Of course it is not finished yet but it is looking pretty scary at the moment.

A chocolate box now a jewellery box

I made this altered chocolate box for my friemd Caroline whom I worked with at Marion Rose & Co, solicitors in Cowra for her birthday.

I still have a couple of empty chocolate boxes which I plan to do up in a similar way. Pity the chocolates have long ago been consumed.

The Kitchen Bench - the first project

When we moved into the Ebor house we realised there was a real lack of bench space in the kitchen and the kitchen was quite a large room. Matt decided to make me a bench with plenty of storage space and this is the result.

The top is made from strips of hardwood that he pattern matched some of the wood grain so that it looks really nice.

The half round shelves were made from an old plank we found in the shed in Cowra and once the old paint was sanded off, it revealed a lovely grained timber.

After a couple of weeks inside the house with the fire going, the wood on the top of the bench started to shrink a little and small gaps appeared between the planks. Not good when you are using the surface for food preparation so Matt removed the top, took it to the shed, sanded it down the filled all the cracks, lacquered it again and reattached it.

It weighs a tonne - well it feels like it - and it has been a life saver in the kitchen.

The pirate chest

Matt made this pirate chest as a wood box but once it was finished, it was a little too big for the space beside the fire place. So, it is now sitting under the loungeroom window and we are still figuring out what to use it for.

He made the top with a compartment which was intended for the firelighters and bits and pieces used to start the fire.

Then the whole lid lifts up to reveal the storage part for the wood.

I think if I lined it with some fabric I could turn it into a blanket box.

The pirate chest is a bit rustic in construction but after all it was intended to be used as a wood box and would be getting some rough treatment.

I love it anyway.

Renovations to Appletree Cottage

When we moved into Appletree Cottage at the end of January 2010, the whole house was painted a salmon pink. In the loungeroom it was more like smoked salmon on account of the previous owners being chronic heavy smokers.

Needless to say I wanted to change the colours and chose bright colours because after all, it is our house and we own it outright and rather than paint with the idea of resale, I made the decision to paint for ME.

The bedroom is 2 shades of purple with green velvet curtains. Very restful, and the patchwork quilt covers I made 9 years ago from curtain fabric samples picked up at a sale. Matt's bed on the left and mine on the right.

Notice the "caravan cupboards" on either wall which were designed and made by Matthew. They are very handy for extra light storage and break up the large expanse of the walls.

Here is the larger of the two wardrobes which were also designed and built by Matt. One either side of the door. There were no cupboards or wardrobes in the house except for the few in the kitchen. Now we have custom built ones that look like they were always there.

Here is the pantry Matt made. It is made from strips of masonite that have been tapered each side to resemble lining boards.

I am very lucky to have married this very talented man. He loves his woodwork now that he has each day to himself and he can do as he pleases.

Oh and by the way, he did most of the painting too. I did the odd door and window frames and skirting boards.

He also did all the loading of trailers and driving and unloading when we did our big move; over 7,000km Cowra-Lismore-Ebor, but that is another story.

He maintains our lawn and gardens and the lawn in the vacant house next door. All the more remarkable because.......

Matthew has had Parkinson's Disease for the last 5 years. That is why he retired early. He treats it more as an inconvenience than a disease. He is managed well on medication and his artistic endeavours just have to be good for his condition. Keeps the brain active and helps keeps his motor skills functioning at their best. There is no cure at present but we donate regularly to the cause. See... you CAN do anything you put your mind to.

Cheers

The neigh-bours

Here is a digital layout of two of my next door neigh-bours - lol. There are two other older horses in this paddock plus a pet sheep.

Pony is a nice little shetland but suffers from "small horse syndrome" because every time I take a carrot or apple out to feed them, she shoos all the others away by kicking her back legs at them. She can be quite bossy.

Shay on the other hand is not quite 2 years old and was recently brought out of the bush into civilisation. She is a bit wary of people and traffic but has had her first taste of carrot and apple from me. She now lets me pat her and she is a darling.

The two horses that are missing from this photo are Major, a 15 year old gelding who is quite tall and gentle. Then there is "Hey You" - well that is the only name she is known by as she is now over 30 and never had a name. In order to get her attention, the new owner had to chase her around the paddock yelling (you guessed it) Hey You!

*sigh* I love living in the country.

Cheers

The Cowra House

This is the model of our old house in Cowra. Matt has gone into quite a bit of detail including the Tv antenna.

The "iron" roof is made from cardboard run through a crimper. The "bricks" were googled and printed on A4 paper.

The roof lifts off to reveal the inside of the house and all the various rooms.

Buildings for model railway layout

Before getting into woodwork, Matt was into model trains and in Cowra he had a big layout in his shed. He built several buildings to go on the layout and this is the church.

Made mostly from craftwood, toothpicks and cardboard the detail is quite remarkable.

The "stone" walls were googled and then printed on A4 paper. The shingles on the roof were hand cut in strips and glued on painstakingly one at a time.

He then hand painted some acetate to make stained glass windows.

Now this photo shows Matt putting the finishing touches to a row of terrace houses for his train layout. They were made in a similar manner to the church from craftwood and other bits and pieces.

He has made several other models which I will have to photograph for this site including a model of our Cowra house and one of his parents house in Mudgee. Lots of detail and they all took lots of time to make.

Whose a clever boy then?

The work Christmas party

1983 was a good year for me. I had a job that I loved with a legal firm that was full of great people. I found these photos recently, scanned them into the computer and decided to make this layout. That's me in the yellow get-up by the way.

In fact Nancy (in the pink dress with the blue trim) gave me my first job as a secretary. Neville (in the cream suit) was a clever man who used to write little ditties about the staff and present them as a show each Christmas. 1983 was the year that I wrote one about him much to the amusement of the rest of the staff. It was a fun time.

Anyway, after I created the layout, through the wonders of modern technology, I found Neville and Nancy at their current places of employment and emailed them a copy. Talk about a trip down memory lane. I have not seen or spoken to either of them in 27 years. Has it really been that long? I got a nice email back from Nancy but have yet to hear from Neville. You gotta love the internet.

Loretta's Chair

This is a swing back chair made especially for Matt's sister Loretta. The hyeroglyphics say "Loretta loves cats". Matt has drawn and painted them on a gold background.

Although you can't see it in this photo, there is an Egyptian style cat statue on the side of both front legs. The base front legs have been carved to resemble the cat's feet.

The seat features inlays of various types of woods including blue gum, pine, hardwood and Australian cedar.

This is the second chair he has made and it is very comfortable to sit on too.

The "Squarpent"

What is a Squarpent? It is a wooden version of a Medieval brass instrument called a "Serpent" and here is the one Matt is making at present.

It is only rough at the moment and will look a million dollars once it has been sanded smooth, decorated and lacquered.

This is the mouthpiece which has been turned from Australian cedar. It is similar to a trombone mouthpiece.

This might be arguably the first Squarpent in Australia.

Digital Scrapbooking pages

Ok, we all have them. Favourite actors that make us swoon every time their faces appear on the TV or in a movie. Here are 6 of my favourites.

Unfortunately 4 of them have gone to God but I don't care. Thank goodness for reruns of the old shows so I can still stare starry eyed at the screen and wonder what it would have been like to meet one or all of them.

If I had to pick a favourite, it would be George Peppard. Now that channel 7mate is screening the A-Team every day at 5pm I have been tuning in religiously to drool over George.

Pssst... don't tell anybody......

Greeting cards for all occasions

Here are a small selection of my greeting cards. For sale at a modest $2 each plus postage, you will be getting an original work of art at a bargain price and the recipient is sure to be delighted.

Special occasions cards created upon request, just contact me with details.

Linda

The back door

Our back door as created by Matthew. This was a regular old fashioned timber door that was between the kitchen and hallway. It was in the way of the pantry every time I wanted to open it so he removed it and replaced the existing back door with this wonderful creation.

He wanted a Medieval style door and achieved this by cutting shaping and painting pieces of craft wood for the hinges and borders. He used squares of hardwood painted silver for the "studs".

The handle is also a Matt invention and he says it makes the door much easier to open. He has one of those handles on the bathroom door a well.

Now, on the inside of the door Matt has painted a scene as if you were looking out from a stone tower window down to the village and on to the harbour.

There is only a little left to do and the scene is complete.

Not to be out done, I decided to paint a similar scene on the toilet door but with a slight difference. I have gone for the Greek Island theme but still using the same stone arched window that you are looking out of.

I just have the bit near the door handle to finish off and a little more detail generally and it will be finished.

Now that summer is here and the weather is warming up, it will be easier to spend time on the verandah to finish the painting, after all painting is not a lot of fun when it is so cold.

Until next time, ciao.

The stage coach

Here is Matt's wild west stage coach. He made everything from scratch including the wagon wheels which have toothpicks for the spokes. He even made traces for the horses but they are not visible in the photo. The detail is quite good and he even has the carriage sitting on "leather" springs.

Cheers

Two Guitars

Here ladies and gentlemen, we have an acoustic bass guitar (left) and a steel string guitar made with love by Matthew.

Each is signed and numbered. The fronts were made from Australian Cedar and he has used seasoned hardwood and blue gum for the rest. In fact the blue gum (which is featured on the neck and the head of the smaller guitar) was part of a load of firewood we picked up in winter.

They both have a nice sound and good tone. Not bad for his first go at a musical instrument. Now all we need is some guitar legend to drop in and show us just how good they really sound.

Ricky Turner, where the bloody hell are you??? Or Dez and Karen Williams, you guys would make them sound great.

Over and out for today. Linda

Some of my stuff

These are 4 of my bookmarks which were created in photoshop with some awesome digital scrabooking kits I have purchased.

They are for sale at the modest cost of $3 each plus $1 postage. I have dozens more which I will also be happy to sell. They are mounted on co-ordinating cardstock and finished with a lovely plush tassel. They make an ideal gift for the readers amongst you.

Now I must figure out how to get some customers........ thinking cap on and watch this space..........

Linda

In the beginning......

This blog was created so that I can share the wonderful woodwork pieces that my husband Matthew is making together with some of the art and craft that I make. He has always been a handyman thanks to spending a lot of time with his motor mechanic father when he was growing up. So once he had completed building some wardrobes, a pantry and several other cupboards in the little house that we purchased January 2010, he has turned his hand to making furniture, models and musical instruments.

We are a retired couple in our 50s and we live in the small village of Ebor on the Waterfall Way between Armidale and Coffs Harbour. We moved here at the beginning of this year and we just love the fresh clean air, sparkling clear water and the quite life.

Matthew has only been woodworking seriously this year and this coffee table was his first project. He has used hardwood with inlays of Australian Cedar. The legs were made to resemble elephant feet. The table top lifts off to reveal a small secret compartment. He has also made 2 slim trays that slide under the table top. It weighs a tonne but I love it.

His next projects included a couple of model farm wagons, some cedar coasters and some cute containers with lids that remind me of my Grandfather's tobacco jar.

Since he retired he has discovered his artistic side. He always spent so much time working that there was little time left over to explore this hidden talent so now he spends a good part of each day in the shed working on his hobby.

I on the other hand, have been scrapbooking for around 10 years now and since I retired 2 years ago, I have been able to spend as much time as I like doing it.

Anyway, more about me later.

I am loving my life. I hope you are loving yours.

Cheers

Linda