Hi everyone,
July has been crazy--that's my vague excuse for being slightly delayed on getting this month's turning challenge posted. Anyway....
This month I want to present something that is wide open to creative exploration, but at the same time not hugely time consuming. The answer: multi-axis weed pots. Weed pots, aka twig pots, aka bud vases, are great ways to utilize small (or large) and/or funky pieces of wood that might otherwise be destined for the firepit. These are great in that they don't necessarily take much time to make (usually no hollowing is involved; instead, a drilled hole), and they serve a nice function: to hold and display dry flora (or other things). Of course, with the addition of a glass insert (or an epoxy coating) they can function as wet vases as well.
Given they are relatively quick to make (of course, this may not be true), I wanted to up the challenge a bit by requiring your entries to be turned on at least two axes. Still, only one hole is needed if that's your plan. There are so many different directions to take this challenge, and as usual your entries can be all natural and turned, or have varying degrees of embellishment added post-turning. For inspiration, here are a few nice examples (made by Tom Hale, Curt Fuller, and Brian Horais, respectively):
If you are new to multi-axis turning (or new to turning in general), here is a playlist of excellent @Mike Peace videos to help you get started: Multi-axis turning videos.
Whatever you end up making, be sure to have FUN. Challenge yourself to learn something new. Here are the challenge rules, as determined by AAW Forum legal counsel Dewey, Cheatum, and Howe:
July has been crazy--that's my vague excuse for being slightly delayed on getting this month's turning challenge posted. Anyway....
This month I want to present something that is wide open to creative exploration, but at the same time not hugely time consuming. The answer: multi-axis weed pots. Weed pots, aka twig pots, aka bud vases, are great ways to utilize small (or large) and/or funky pieces of wood that might otherwise be destined for the firepit. These are great in that they don't necessarily take much time to make (usually no hollowing is involved; instead, a drilled hole), and they serve a nice function: to hold and display dry flora (or other things). Of course, with the addition of a glass insert (or an epoxy coating) they can function as wet vases as well.
Given they are relatively quick to make (of course, this may not be true), I wanted to up the challenge a bit by requiring your entries to be turned on at least two axes. Still, only one hole is needed if that's your plan. There are so many different directions to take this challenge, and as usual your entries can be all natural and turned, or have varying degrees of embellishment added post-turning. For inspiration, here are a few nice examples (made by Tom Hale, Curt Fuller, and Brian Horais, respectively):
If you are new to multi-axis turning (or new to turning in general), here is a playlist of excellent @Mike Peace videos to help you get started: Multi-axis turning videos.
Whatever you end up making, be sure to have FUN. Challenge yourself to learn something new. Here are the challenge rules, as determined by AAW Forum legal counsel Dewey, Cheatum, and Howe:
- Entries must be posted in this thread by ~11:59 pm Eastern Standard Time (EST) on Monday, July 28, 2025.
- Feel free to post a maximum of two photos of your piece in this thread (I will use my favorite of the two when I create the voting thread). Please don't crop your images tightly (meaning, leave a bit of room in the image so I can add your name later).
- Your weed pot can be any size, embellished or natural, one piece or multiple. Include the dimensions in your entry post.
- As always, this is a turning contest, not a "moldy oldie" photo contest, so in fairness to everybody, make sure your work is something you have made since this challenge was issued on July 11, 2025.
- You may not post any photos of your entry in this month’s challenge in any other thread or in the gallery until the voting has ended and a winner has been declared.
- Voting will take place from July 29, 2025, through 11:59 pm EST on July 31, 2025.
- Solicitation of votes will result in disqualification.
- The winner might have to pass a lie detector test before collecting the grand prize: this month it is an unreliable center-finder. Good luck, have fun, make shavings, and let the chips fall where they may!!
