Tree Craft

Almost everyone can step outside and find twigs and branches that have broken off trees and bushes. These scraps of wood are mainly an annoyance for people who like to keep their gardens tidy, but for craftsman Chris Lubkemann these bits of wooden detritus are treasured raw materials for projects such as jewellery, desk accessories, kitchen implements, games and functional home decorative pieces. The book reveals how to transform twisted, gnarled and knotty sticks and branches into rustically-appealing articles for the home without overworking the wood. The bark is left on his candlestick or bud vases and he uses a clear varnish instead of opaque paint when a finish is applied. His coat hooks and racks accentuate the pleasing organic shapes of plant growth and the projects in Tree Craft are all easy enough for a beginner to tackle with a bare minimum of tools. Start off with a key chain or pendant, then work your way up to a large coat-tree rack and you will never regard a fallen branch in quite the same way again.-bg