I turned this bottle stopper from the highly figured, lightly spalted, beautiful piece of maple burl that has some traces of previously larvae occupation. This piece goes to my friend, George, as my “thank you” for giving me an opportunity to work with such beautiful wood pieces.

Natural Edge Woodturning Project

It was a challenge to keep the natural wood surface undamaged during turning. You may see the natural burl surface on top of the bottle stopper and the side of the stand ring.

Bottle Stopper Stand

Bottle Stopper Holder

Finishing with oil was another major challenge –- needed to add just enough oil to highlight the wood grain but not over-saturate it. The piece turned out very well so you may see a nice balance between white and brown strokes and all shades in between.

I drew the vine branch freehand, burned the lines and painted it with color markers. I glued small cork plugs to the turned ring from another piece of maple burl to arrange the stand. Overall I enjoyed working on this project and I proud sharing it with you.

Bottle Stopper