twisted juniper and other gnarly woods

Very interesting. A lot of those pieces look much larger than any Juniper I have ever seen. They could have come from Eastern Red Cedar trees. The two are closely related and by looking at the wood alone most people couldn't tell one from the other.
From the looks of his furniture, I believe he gathered driftwood from a lake. Making things from driftwood is so popular that, in our area, the Corps of Engineers grants gathering permits for certain sections of the shoreline. And, woe to the person caught gathering wood from the permit holders beach. :eek:
One local guy makes clock frames, animal trophy mounts and chandeliers from driftwood and sells to Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's. Take his wood and he will put a hurt on you.
If you want to emulate this guys work, I suggest you find a lake, gather the driftwood and start making stuff. I wouldn't be too concerned with the kind of wood you find.
 
Frank, I've seen juniper that size and shape, and like Cynthia, I don't think I've seen any driftwood with that kind of color. :huh:

Also, Eastern Red Cedar is more than related to the junipers, it is one. ;)
 
some gnarley slabs can be had from independant woodworkers and there are also commercial places to get them Hearn Hardwoods is one such place but they arent cheap. as for the color in the piece you showed us threw the video, i would say it was harvested from live trees and then handled just for this purpose.. could be reclaimed lumber or wood in general and just made a new use of it..
 
yes, junipers and cedars naturally grow twisty like that. In particular, twisted trunks help the trees withstand sustained high winds.
 
Cynthia the Tigh-Na-Mara resort in parksville has similar furniture in some of their lounges. Not beds but couches,chairs and tables all made from drift wood a fellow in Duncan does it. The place is expensive. Here is the link.

http://www.tigh-na-mara.com/cms.asp?wpID=2

Also check out Coombs ( goats on the roof).

Lots of wood like that just washes up on the beach around here. Just have to pull back the bark and clean them up to find the beauty of the wood
 
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Thanks Bruce and Drew. Well that explains that--they grow like that. I think that stuff is beautiful.

Drew, yeah, I've been to that place when we were first trying to decide where to settle on the Island. And yes, I saw the goats on the roof. Went to Tofino for my honeymoon.

I'm going to have to put my thinking cap on and figure out how to get my hands on some of that stuff. WOW. :thumb:
 
I have been to the store in Mackinaw City, Mich. that sells the beds and other rustic pieces of furniture, if you get a chance to visit the store I would recommend it, they have some really cool things there.

Richard
 
...Lots of wood like that just washes up on the beach around here. Just have to pull back the bark and clean them up to find the beauty of the wood

Looks like Frank's record remains unblemished. :D Sounds like "newer" driftwood if it still has the bark on it. That would explain why the colors are still so strong.

I can only imagine how hard it much be to peel the bark off some of those twisty pieces.
 
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