I’m continuing on with the Christmas presents. It’s getting hard to figure out what to make for old friends. I’ve pretty much made them all the little stuff over the years. Little boxes and bowls are always fun to give but coming up with something new is getting to be a challenge. I’ve given them all the ice cream scoops and pizza cutters. This year I found some interesting stuff at Niles. They are mostly known for their bottle stoppers but I also found bottle and tab openers. I asked a few people if they thought having a tab opener would be of value and several thought it was a great idea so I ordered up a few. I glued up the blanks last night and turned the first one today. 
Paul

 

 

 

Great idea! Some neat items from Niles Stoppers.

 

Boy, I'm like you- I've completely run out of ideas. 

My gifts this years will be spiral bowls but it does seem the selection is getting more difficult.

 

 

Nice idea and looking good too.  I'm doing lidded bowls and some small games.

The last two for now ( I only ordered 3). These two are zebrawood, ebony and the main shafts from Koa. 

Fantastic!

I started a bowl today as a slightly larger gift. I scrounged through the wood pile for any black walnut scraps and then put a jig together on the sliding table saw sled to cut the very small pieces into segments. I have a scrap of sheesham I am going to try and use for the top. 
Paul

That's gonna be a beauty, Paul!

It’s getting there. Today I flattened the rings and glued them up. I have a jig I made years ago for the Shopsmith that really flattens rings nicely. Tomorrow I’ll round it out on the lathe enough to put the top piece of sheesham on. 
Paul

Sweet looking jig!

I made the jig originally out of necessity. I used to use a drum sander but the accuracy of the sanded piece was not good enough for a project I was tasked with. I needed dead on layers. It was 13-14 layers I think. I will try and find a picture. It was a gift for a very dear couple that are Indian and we’re getting married. This jig gave me .001 accuracy which is what I needed. I’ve been using it ever since. 
Paul

Finished the glue up on the bowl today. I cut the sheesham ring with the Shaper Origin. At a later date I think I will try and doing a turning out of just rings cut on the SO. Tomorrow it’s finally time to turn this thing. 
Paul

I finished the bowl this morning and one coat of finish. It will take several more coats to gloss up. 
Paul

Nice!  I do like the contrasting rim.

Gorgeous!

Great look and what is the finish

Watco

Awesome, Paul.