Tom Studwell's Anniversary Album

March 2005:

As I mentioned on the news page, for our 25th Wedding anniversary, I gave Kerry an album to contain poems and other things that I have written over the years. Here is an excerpt from my gift letter to Kerry:

After several sleepless nights, I finally realized what my gift should be. I want to give you a living portfolio, a record of my feelings toward you that I have experienced throughout the years behind us and in the years ahead of us. To me, I can best convey these feelings and thoughts through poetry and, hence, I am giving you this expandable album that I have started to fill with my poems that express my feelings toward you. I will, over time, add to these as I think back over the years and as new experiences need to be expressed and recorded in this living dialog.

So here, finally, almost exactly five months later, is the album. It is constructed Quilted Maple on the front and back covers and Cherry on the spine. The hinges are integral to each piece and enhance the beauty of the wood. The spine is adorned with a Celtic knot I designed and call "Entwined". The knot signifies the relationship between Kerry and me. The knot has two independent sections, representing Kerry and me, but these two blend into an intertwined knot representing our lives together, our children, and all of those we interact with. The knot was laser-engraved into the wooden spine.

The two covers are sliced from the same piece of wood so the grain is virtually identical front to back and becomes mirrored when the album is opened.

The piece was finished in pure tung oil (no varnish added) with a beeswax/carnauba wax applied after the oil was hardened and buffed. The Cherry was easy to finish but the Quilted Maple kept soaking up the oil and it took a long time to harden enough to fill the surface. I am quite happy with the results. The iridescent appearance is hypnotizing and the feel is exquisite.

Click on the photo or here to see the full sized photos of the album.