Stitchers' Delights

Rick does make beautiful things of wood that make people happy. I'm Terry, his wife and partner, and Rick never fails in making things that I, a quilter, absolutely love. And so it stands to reason that other quilters or stitchers of other talents will also love these. Take a look at some of the special work he is doing on stitchers' behalf.

Rick's quilt racks are made of his favorite wood for furniture: Eastern White Pine, select quality. His choice of planks have few knots visible; sometimes, though, customers want a knotty-pine look, and he will choose wood that has visible knots. As you can see in the picture, the racks have five rods: three at the top are one inch diameter dowels, and two lower rods are a three-quarter inch size. The racks shown stand thirty-one inches tall, twenty-nine and a half long, and eighteen inches deep. 

Originally, the intent of the lower rods was to 'tuck in' the bulk of the quilts hung over the upper rods. I choose to use the lower rods to hold small baby quilts or matching pillow covers. Because some stitchers make or collect crazy quilts with lace embellishments, Rick also offers to cover one or more of the rods with white pvc piping. Although he carefully sands and smooths the dowels, varying humidity levels in homes can tend, over time, to raise the grain slightly; in turn, that wood grain might snag an aged fabric or delicate trim. 

Rick enjoys making special pieces of furniture for special people. He also has a whimsical side and likes to make plaques that appeal to different artists, professions, services and more. We shared the disability awareness plaques with you in an earlier post. 

But these plaques are what I call a "stitchers' delight" as they make use of many familiar sayings that quilters and other needleworkers can relate to. "Any day spent sewing is a good day," is one that most of us can say is true.

"May your bobbin always be full!" is a way of leaving a stitcher with good thoughts in mind, and optimistically a needle and fabric in hand. "Sew much fabric Sew little time" is a sweet play on words that stitichers will appreciate.



I think my favorite, and the truest one that fits my lifestyle, is the one that reads "When I learned to sew I forgot how to cook." Rick is the chief cook and bottlewasher in our house; he may have to make a small plaque that holds that saying as well.

These plaques are all scroll-saw cut from one eighth inch Baltic Birch Plywood and hand-filed and then sanded to a smooth natural beauty. They can be hung as ornaments in sewing corners, windows, doorways or on trees. As with all of Rick's creations, they are left without stain or paint. They measure three and a half by five inches; they can also be mounted in a plexiglas-sealed frame, like the disability-awareness butterflies, if customers want.

Visit our webstore (www.woodentoyandgift.net) to order online, or come by our shop to see these sweet, delicate plaques that pay homage to the stitcher in your life. Or email us at woodenoyandgift@comcast.net to special order a framed plaque. Let us know what color fabric (or natural wood) you would want in the background. 

Rocking Motorcycle made of Eastern White Pine, gentle to the touch

A board of Pinus strobus (eastern white pine) having a dovetailed joint cut in it. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Newsletter # 3:

People are always curious about what kinds of wood we use in our products. We use a variety of woods, enjoying the contrasting colors when pieces are made of more than one type.

Many of our pieces are made of Eastern White Pine. But not all Eastern White Pine planks are equal. Our wood must be carefully viewed and pass the test of 'select' wood ... that means that there are few knots, widely spaced, and the planks are straight.

If you have ever gone into a lumber yard and watched people choosing boards for their D.I.Y. (do it yourself) projects, you may see some setting a pile of good lumber to one side, and of 'rejects' to the other. At first glance, you may not recognize the flaws in the 'reject' pile ... but a woodworker would quickly show you how to hold a board and look down its length for a straight line indicating that the board has not warped or twisted since being cut, and then to turn it over scanning the back, edges and front for loose knots that would cause a saw to jump, or be in the way for positioning joints such as the dovetail joint in the photo above.

The Rocking Motorcycle made here in our shop is made of select Eastern White Pine; the body has to be 'built' by joining several lengths and thicknesses of pine planks with glue. The body pieces are then shaped with sanding, resulting in a very smooth, gentle-to-the-skin touch. Each wheel is made of more than twenty separate pieces of pine. The wheels do spin on their axles.

Its rockers are made of Hard Maple. Hard Maple is often cut from Sugar Maple trees (the ones that people tap in late winter/early spring to gather maple syrup.) You can tell the difference between a board of hard maple and a board of soft maple by finding a smooth edge of the wood and firmly pressing your fingernail against it. If you can leave a mark, it's soft maple. If you can't, it's hard. The rockers will get a lot of wear and tear, and so the wood needs to be hard to hold its arc shape.

Even though the motorcycle has three times the quantity of pine in comparison to the quanitity of maple in the rockers, that smaller amount of maple will cost more than the larger amount of pine. But it is worth it for the life of the rocking motorcycle. This piece of 'furniture' will last for decades and will become a family heirloom to be shared from generation to generation. That is said with this caveat: even though it is a toy, it must be cared for like a piece of furniture. Leaving it outside in the rain will age the pine, may warp the wood, and weaken the joints. Lifting its full weight by the handlebars to move it from place to place will also strain the wood along the grain. But given the right care and treatment, this rocking motorcycle will delight many for years to come. It is an investment for your family, and has been made with a loving labor.


Remember, you can see images of the rocking motorcycle at our website. It is also currently being featured on eBay. See the right side margin for links our webstore and Etsy and eBay. Or drop by the shop, if you're local. If you're coming a distance, call us at 978-352-2676 and leave your name and number or email and we'll set up an appointment for you.

And one last thing - if you want to receive an email each time we update this news, just 'follow' us at the links in the margin.  Thanks!

Wooden Turtle Puzzle

Today’s featured item is our Wooden Turtle Puzzle.  Made of high quality Cherry and Ash, the turtle’s exterior measures 4” x 6” x ½” and weighs less than a pound. The inner pieces that form the shell are small and vary in size; they would be a swallowing hazard for children under four, and so we advertise this puzzle for ages 8 to adult (though some talented youngsters age 6 will solve it before the adults will!) The wood is sanded and polished to a smooth, natural finish, with no paint or stain, leaving it non-toxic. 

Although our primary sale point is our shop in Georgetown, we also work with PayPal to accept online orders at our web store (www.woodentoyandgift.net.)

More recently, we’ve decided to try Ebay and Etsy, two online sites that encourage sellers and buyers to use the auction option. We’ve begun by posting the turtle at Ebay. We also posted a dump truck at Etsy, but I’ll give you those details in our next newsletter.

Thank you again for allowing us to share our information. Please share it forward with folks who have children or grandchildren. They would enjoy these old fashioned, wooden toys that take imagination, not batteries. 

Keeping it short ~ look to the right to follow this blog ~ we appreciate your support in spreading the word. We'll stay in touch! 

Visit Wooden Toy and Gift at Etsy

Visit Wooden Toy and Gift  at Ebay