Thuya Clamshell Vase

In my album is a photo of the original burl from which this came, and I am going to post the story of this in the Family Talks section. At some point I plan on doing on whole document on the burl and the outcome of it. At any rate, this clamshell vase, or split vase, is about 14" in diameter and is designed to stand on its own or have an arrangement in it. When I had it displayed at a recent show I had silk flowers in it just to show how it might be used. A photo of it in our house is in the comments. This side has a slight inclusion that adds some interest, I think. The opposite side is exactly the same, but flawless. I like this side better - like a beautiful face with a tiny mole. Cutting into the 80 pound burl was one of the hardest things I have ever done. The short story, I first saw this burl in 1987, and after I bought it, it sat around for years until I decided if I did nothing with it, someone else would have fun with it after I was gone. With the help of five friends to stand around and harass me I finally cut it up. The base is textured and dyed walnut, and it is held on with three black steel pins. The piece sold quickly, and the buyer left the flowers behind. He said his wife had her own plans for it. I should note, there were two shallow cores from each side of the clam. Can't waste this wood. One of the cores is the moon on the wall hanging I also posted.

- Herman de Vries