I am now in the most tedious part of making reliquaries of wood... making the turned samples of various hardwoods. I used a dowel forming bit on the drill press to form the tenons on each one, but still fitting tight, they need the touch of a skew and sanding block to allow them to fit with some ease into their spots in the box.

Then to give them human like form, completing the connection with the old Sunday school finger rhyme, I use the skew to shape heads on each piece.

They resemble the kinds of "people" one might find in a set of Legos or blocks. I'm using my old Shopsmith as a lathe to turn the small pieces and a Super Nova Chuck to hold them in the lathe. What we're learning about trees is that they live in cooperative communities and communicate in ways we never even dreamed. And so to place them in a sacred setting may help others to find reason to cherish the trees and forests that we've taken for granted.

The Shopsmith (a model 10 E) is a multipurpose machine that my Dad gave me for my 14th birthday.

Make, fix and create...