A Cutting Board for Mary

[Dan Larson]

Since there have been a few cutting boards posted here recently, I thought I might show one of mine.
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This one I made for my mother-in-law who is fascinated by exotic woods... I used sheuda, panga-panga, and ebony for this project. I experimented for quite a while with scrap wood to find the right finish to use. Every oil based finish that I tried turned the sheuda into a lifeless black mess. A tip from a fellow woodworker got me to look into wax finishes. I ended up going with just a good coat of plain old beeswax. Thanks for looking.

Dan

[Frank Fusco]

Great looking item of woodcrafting. :thumb: I don't understand the thingamawhatizit on the side. :huh:
Instead of finishing, since it is a cutting board, you might consider leaving plain or just rubbing with oil. Many like mineral oil, my preference is olive.

[Matt Guyrd]

Wow! Way to bring it to the next level, Dan! Outstanding! Love the book matched sequence.

I used dometic wood and they took the mineral oil as expected. Interesting that the oil reacted poorly with the exotics. I also finish my boards with a coat of melted pure beeswax, then buffed. Adds a little more protection by sealing the grain.

I'm curious how much maintenace the exotics will require.

Any idea how long a typical beeswax finish would last?

Again...nice job! :thumb:

Matt

[Vaughn McMillan]

Very nice, Dan. The main body of the board is very cool, and I like the "handle" detail.

I'm another mineral oil proponent. I prefer it over olive oil (or any of the food oils) since it won't go rancid over time. In my dry climate, olive oil gets stanky within about a month or so of exposure to air.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Wow now that is a nice cutting board. Nicely done. I like either mineral oil or walnut oil. I have did several bowls we use in the kitchen with walnut oil and it is holding up nicely.

[Don Taylor]

That's really nice Dan. I don't think I'd be able to put a knife to that one. It's to purdy. :thumb:

Don

[Dan Larson]

Thanks so much for the kind words. Realistically, I don't expect that this cutting board will see much use... my mother-in-law tends to "save" things that she likes. It probably will be displayed somewhere on a shelf. Although it would have been nice to see it get used for its intended purpose, I guess the important thing is that the gift made her happy.

[Jay Lock]

Dan

That is fantastic! Could you give a few details on how the handle is attached?

Jay

[Rennie Heuer]

Dan,

Very nicely done. Would I be correct in assuming some Greene and Greene influence on the spline ends?