November 2025 Turning Challenge: Wall Hanging!

[Michael Anderson]

Hi everyone!

This month's turning challenge will focus on wall hangings. This is purposefully vague, as just about anything can be made to hang on a wall (hopefully that opens up the field to quite a few entries). Wall hangings are often more practical than normal 3D pieces, as folks generally have a lot of wall space regardless of the size of their homes. From a sales perspective, this also translates to a wider buyer base and potentially high selling prices. Wall hangings can be big or small, symmetrical or not, natural or embellished, etc. Application is wide, and creativity is limitless. The challenge is "how" to safely and securely mount your piece on a wall, especially if it is larger/heavier. There are plenty of solutions--I won't spoil the learning process (but I will also allow logistical discussions in the forums, of course).

Here are a few pieces for inspiration, made from some of our forum members (@Craig Kassan, @Steve Doerr, and @Dan Stevenson, respectively):





Here are the challenge rules, as determined by AAW Forum legal counsel Dewey, Cheatum, and Howe:

• Entries must be posted in this thread by 12 AM Coordinated Universal Time on Friday, November 28, 2025.
• You are required to post two photos of your piece in this thread--one showing the front, and the second showing the back with your mounting method. Please don't crop your images tightly (meaning, leave a bit of room in the image so I can add your name later).
• Your turning can be any size, and can be embellished or natural. There are plenty of opportunities to get creative here, so feel free. 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 November 3, 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. Your are allowed to solicit information on mounting strategies though.
• Voting will take place from November 29, 2025, through 3:59 am Coordinated Universal Time on December 1.
• Solicitation of votes will result in disqualification.

The winner might have to pass a lie detector test before collecting the grand prize: this month is a mystery miniature turning blank that is covered in mold--but the subsurface is nearly guaranteed to be beautiful!.

Good luck, have fun, make shavings, and let the chips fall where they may!!

 

[John K Jordan]

NOT AN ENTRY

As for "purposefully vague, as just about anything can be made to hang on a wall", I offer this "off the wall" example. I saw this proudly displayed in a hotel lobby in Denver. I was entertained.

Looking close, I see evidence of turning. Could be done with minimal skill and tools. The piths are way off-center on some. NIce butterfly insets on some cracks. The "rings" appear to be grooves cut with tools. I'll bet it was quick to make but brought BIG $$$s.

Someone with access to logs (yikes) might make and sell these to other hotels, to corporations, under contract with high-end interior decorators.



JKJ

 

[Lou Jacobs]

My walnut clock is about 8” square and 5/8” thick with a 1/4” raised bead. The hour dots are pigmented epoxy in predrilled holes and then turned flush.

 

[Jon Rista]

My walnut clock is about 8” square and 5/8” thick with a 1/4” raised bead. The hour dots are pigmented epoxy in predrilled holes and then turned flush.


View attachment 81295View attachment 81296

Always wanted to make some clocks! This inspires me to try again here. I like the handmade hands!

 

[Lou Jacobs]

I like the handmade hands!

Thanks Jon! It’s actually due to my oversight. I thought the clock mechanism came with hands. The description was apparently describing the recommended size of hands, not included hands. I wasn’t satisfied with any I saw when I perused Amazon yesterday, so said (to myself) “For heaven’s sake, you’re a woodworker. Make hands!”

 

[Webb Willmott]

NOT AN ENTRY

As for "purposefully vague, as just about anything can be made to hang on a wall", I offer this "off the wall" example. I saw this proudly displayed in a hotel lobby in Denver. I was entertained.

Looking close, I see evidence of turning. Could be done with minimal skill and tools. The piths are way off-center on some. NIce butterfly insets on some cracks. The "rings" appear to be grooves cut with tools. I'll bet it was quick to make but brought BIG $$$s.

Someone with access to logs (yikes) might make and sell these to other hotels, to corporations, under contract with high-end interior decorators.

View attachment 81166

JKJ

John, you have inspired those with bowl failures to retrieve those failures from the burn pile and create a $10,000 piece of wall art.

 

[Phil Hamel]

My try at art!
3D winters night
Made the moon from a mappa blank. Turned and hollowed on the lathe.

Made the bushes from one piece of maple and then split in half with the band saw. (forgot to grab a pic)
The tree is a random branch I found on the ground.

 

[WH Seelinger]

Escher Inspired wall hanging / Charcuterie Board / Serving tray

The piece is made from Cherry, White Oak, and Walnut. It is approximately 19 inches point to point, and 7/8 inch maximum Thickness. It is finished with a food safe, hard wax finish, so it can be used as needed, displayed when not.

The attachment for wall hanging is very simple, a 1/4" hole hung on a small screw or nail. The piece weighs 1 lb. 14 oz. so it does not require anything special to hang. There are three hanging points so you can pick if you want the walnut, oak, or cherry at the top.

Thanks,
WH

 

[Mark Hepburn]

Outstanding piece!!

 

[John K Jordan]

The attachment for wall hanging is very simple, a 1/4" hole hung on a small screw or nail.

Well done, very nice!

Oh, one think I forgot to mention when these wall hanigiings came up - I use a special router bit that cuts a shallow slot wider on the bottom than at the surface, made for slipping the wood over a screw in the wall. Very secure! You probably know about these but some don't. (Might keep the wall hanging hanging even in a earthquake! )

These are widely available, from amazon and elsewhere.
Here's one, not the one I have but they are all about the same, some have different screw/bolt head diameters:

Amazon.com

JKJ

 

[David Bartell]

This is a slice of a gnarly mesquite trunk. I did chip out the bark but otherwise did not alter the natural shape. Turned to add the embellishment. 19 inches from top to bottom, 15 inches wide and 1.5 inches thick. The back is painted to accent the outline of the piece and the hangar bar is inset slightly with a cavity routed behind and below the bar to accept a screw head. The piece will sit flush with the wall. Finished with 6 coats of waterlox.

 

[Miguel Balaguero]

Hi All,
I made this three legged cherry bowl originally, but it cracked. Too good to burn and thought I’d make a clock. Stands 11-1/4” tall and is 3-1/2” deep. Milk paint interior, beeswax on bare cherry, letters are 12 or 14 ga. copper wire. Nice way to reuse something that I thought was no good. Thanks,
Miguel

 

[Darryn Achall]

The shallow wood discs in this wall hanging were turned from a fig tree branch that has been drying in the wood pile for several years. I "turned" the cabochons on basic lapidary equipment using rocks found at a local estate sale. The copper is hand-woven using scrap copper. I would never have thought of doing a piece like this so thanks for the "November Turning Challenge" inspiration. You can see the method used for hanging from the frontal image, but I included the rear image as requested in the rules.