Wood turning is the art of using a wood lathe with hand-held tools to cut shapes that are symmetrical around the axis of rotation.
The wood lathe can be used to create many beautiful forms, including hollowed out cylindrical wooden boxes, needle cases and urns etc.
Before the industrial revolution in England, wood turnery was a difficult skill to master, because the turning mechanisms used were primitive. This is why turnery at that time became known as 'the misterie'!
The wood lathe can be used to create many beautiful forms, including hollowed out cylindrical wooden boxes, needle cases and urns etc.
Before the industrial revolution in England, wood turnery was a difficult skill to master, because the turning mechanisms used were primitive. This is why turnery at that time became known as 'the misterie'!
Wood Turned Box With Lift-Off Lid
However, once mastered, wood turning is a great way of transforming small pieces of wood into beautifully crafted objects, using creativity and skill.
Most woods, including alder and linden wood can be used to make turned boxes, although a fine-grained hardwood is probably the very best wood to use.
Irrespective of the choice of wood, it's essential that it's properly cured and seasoned, to avoid any moisture movement which could lead to warping issues.
Wood turned boxes may be created as stand-alone artwork, or as functional and economical storage containers, with or without lift-off lids!
They are usually small and round, due to the lathe-turning process and so their lithe appearance differs quite significantly from square or rectangular boxes
Lids may be designed in a variety of ways, including ...
1: Sitting loosely on the base.
2: There is some resistance between the lid and the base but any sharp movement will dislodge the lid.
3: The lid is retained on the base securely and will not fall off if the wooden box is overturned!
In the case of 1 and 2 above, lid restraint can be easily improved by the use of tiny, flush mounted, lid magnets, if required
Beautiful turned boxes may be made from single pieces of wood, laminated woods and even segmented woods and despite the special skills needed, they can be very economical to produce.
They can be decorated with stunning natural wood and colour stains
and clear lacquer finishes, to bring out the natural warmth and beauty
of wood.
For more exotic finishes they can also be embellished with metal, or hardwood inlays and hand carved decorations.
Whatever the style or finish chosen, the only limit on the design of wood turned boxes is your imagination!
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