It had been a while since the Market had been able to display any woodcraft for sale so it was a pleasure to welcome Mike Easton as a new producer back in March. Mike, an engineer by trade, spent his working life designing water pipe, heating, air-conditioning and alarm systems working from home in a wooden chalet in his garden.
After retirement he became a volunteer at Norbury Park Sawmill where he produces picnic tables, benches and signposts, mainly from oak, to use around the park, in schools and for the National Trust. There are about ten volunteers and Mike meets up with three regulars on Thursdays enjoying the camaraderie and banter while they work.
Mike’s wife is a keen National Trust and gardens visitor so he thought a home based hobby for himself perhaps based around his love of wood would be a good idea. Before embarking on his turning activities at home Mike attended a wood turners' course in Axminster where the required machinery is made. This was obviously for him,
so an investment in a lathe was made and bowls of all sizes were created, along with platters, candleholders, rolling pins and dog bones. The latter are made from beech, an especially hard wood, which doesn’t splinter. It is a time consuming process, which involves turning, sanding with five grades of sandpaper, sealing and finally polishing with a food safe polish. This can take up to a day to complete, so it’s a real labour of love.
His work includes the use of pyrography or pokerwork, which is a method of decoration where the pattern is applied by burning with a soldering iron, useful for plant labels, house signs and adding the type of wood and date for added interest to bowls. However as with many hobbies the stage comes when you must decide what to do with the products you create. There were enough bowls for home use so Mike thought it would be a good idea to sell his creations at the Market, donating any profits made to the charities RNLI and the Air Ambulance. When last we met he was busy discussing creating a candleholder with a customer who had an interesting piece of wood for processing.
Why not come along any Friday morning to The Old Barn Hall between 10.00-11.30am and see Mike’s latest productions, see what else the Market has to offer and treat yourself to a coffee and homemade cake in the Coffee Shop?