Gallery
All of my creations are made with love and intention. I try to make my creations functional.
The process is basically the same for all my creations:
The gourd must be cut open and the interior of the gourd must be cleaned and sanded first before I start decorating the surface. (Gourds are dried intact, therefore the seeds and pulp dry in the gourd.) A small jigsaw is used to cut the gourd open. A sanding ball is attached to a drill to sand the interior walls of the gourd. This process of cutting and sanding can take a couple of hours depending on the size and shape of the gourd.
The design is then pyroengraved onto the surface of the gourd. The design is usually hand drawn but I have on occasion used tracing carbon if I wish the same design on different sections of the gourd. Painting and carving take place at this stage. Again depending on the details in the pattern, this process can take approximately in total 1 –2 days. However, I do not work one piece for hours on end as I find that I get tired and my thought processes start to wane!
I prefer to use ink and transparent acrylic paints, made especially for gourds; however, I have also worked with and applied gold leaf, metallic inks and pastes, watercolours, and other textures to the outside of the gourd. I have used inlace products and also embellished the gourd with stone, gems and bead inlays. This process can take several days and sometimes up to several weeks.
Most of my work utilizes some form of carving as I really enjoy using a rotary carver as part of the design on the gourd. I am drawn to all types of patterns and more specifically to the Celtic designs. Celtic designs require a lot of accuracy and detail and so I do not produce many Celtic carvings.