What do you get when you combine two-hyper creative miniaturists, one VERY patient and talented husband, dozens upon dozens of miniature wood turnings, hundreds of tiny LED lightbulbs and 10 days???

Read on to find out!!!

 

It all started with an article in the Miniature Collector showing a fabulous pottery shop that another miniaturist had made. What intrigued me the most was that she had somehow managed to light all of the various cubby holes in her shelving displays.

I sent the photo to my friend Moonyeen, who said, wouldn't a shop be great for my turnings collection?? OF course she meant HER turnings collection.. I had never purchased a turning in my life...... Yes, great idea, I mumbled, a bit green with envy....

Less than two weeks later, a fabulous COLLECTION of simply beautiful turnings came up for sale on Ebay, with a wonderful buy it now price. After a quick yell to my husband that "I'm spending Money here". I hit the buy button.

I had not idea until the package arrived just how wonderful the turnings were. They were all by name artists, and all had their documentation. It was a fabulous "quick start" to an instant collection.

 

My next phone call to Moonyeen was an invitation for her to come and stay for a couple of weeks so we could build our turnings shops together.

We juggled schedules and she was able to come and stay. By the time she arrived, dozens of emails had gone back and forth with the "Bones" of the project. She would use dollhouse LED lights in her shop. I would take the less expensive route and use LED lights from a model railroad source.

Her turnings shop was to be very upscale, sophisticated and big city.

Mine was to be something more woodsy, like you would find in Carmel or Big Sur. If you are not in California, you probably don't have a clue what I'm talking about. Suffice to say lovely forested coastline communities with lovely shops and galleries... all with a natural feel.

One element we both agreed on was an elaborate laser cut, and inlaid border for the floor. We choose a pattern with a leaf look to it, and patiently sanded stained and placed each piece before laying the field strips of cherry hardwood.

 

 

The shelves were to be made from wood, and each section was to have an inset LED light. The front face of the shelves was painted with a really wonderful special effects paint that Moonyeen found. The charcoal metallic on the very dark background reminded me of bark, and it was a rich, but non competitive color, I choose a green and gold combination from our neighborhood restaurant that had just been redecorated. Every time we went there, I would think.. I LOVE these colors, I have to use them on something.. when the turning shop came around, they were just the thing.

Larrell designed, cut assembled and wired all of the shelving units for my box. He managed to do this in addition to about a zillion other "Honey Dos" that were coming at him from all directions for the two week run...... he has the patience of a saint.... two women, each working on their own very large projects, with a deadline thrown in just to make it interesting....... whew!!

 

While Larrell worked on shelves and a million tiny wires, I worked on less difficult tasks like decor.. painting, engraving a piece of our old Mimosa tree into a floor sign, and making the wallpaper border that runs around the top of the room. It reads "One good turn deserves another... and another...and another... " Over and over around the room

In addition to the shelf lighting, the roombox has three spotlights from the ceiling and 6 inset can lights, as well as a bar of flourette lights across the front for general illumination. All those lights in addition to my photo floods have some of these photos looking much brighter than the roombox really is.

It is enclosed in the front with glass and a heavy wood frame.

The turning shop would be nothing without the turnings.

Of course, the 54 original pieces that i purchased in that initial collection were not enough to fill the shop, so again, the hunt was on, and I had loads of fun filling the empty spaces. You might notice that turnings have already spilled out onto the floor and up onto the top shelf.. so I guess I'm really hooked. Following are photos of each shelving section and display so you can appreciate the beauty and fine craftsmanship of these wonderful turned pieces.

 

#1 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Dymondwood Hollow Vase with Blackwood Top

#2 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Turquoise Maple Burl hollow vase

#3 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Green Black Ash Burl hollow vase with Blackwood Lid

#4 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Rosewood Hollow Lidded Container

#5 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Granite Gum Burl Vase

#6 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Woody Pear, Bookmatched Lacebark Pot

#7 By Mike Rowe
Dyed and Stabilized Box Elder Burl, Gabon Ebony lid

#8 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Pearl white and violet/blue acrylic hollow vase

#9 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Australian Red Box Burl Pot

#10 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Cottonwood Vase

#11 By Roundwood Studios
Cocobolo Vase

#12 By Roundwood Studios
Wenge Footed Bowl

#13 By MTent Miniatures
Turned acrylic apocathary jar

#14 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Maple, Wenge and Blackwood segmented hollow vase

#15 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Rata Wood Bottle

#16 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Acacia Lidded Bowl

#17 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Australian Corkwood Pot

#18 Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Material Unknown

#19 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Plum Lidded Container

#20 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Carnival Colored Acrylic Vase

#21 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Ngaio Lidded Container

#22 Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Australian Slender Mallee Burl Bowl with Maple and Dyed Black Veneer stripes and African Bubinga Foot and Rim

#23 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Lacewood, Maple and Dyed Black Veneers set in a Pink Carob Seedpot

#24 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisian
Trustone malachite Lidded Jar

#25 By The Wooden Nichol
Jackpine Cone and Acryluster Resin Vase

#26 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Turquoise Dymondwood Box with 18K Gold Plating

#27 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Pink Ivory bowl

#28 Robin Brown, Canada
Acrylic Vase

#29 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Lacey Sheoak Box w/ African Blackwood

#30 Maker Unknown
Elaborate Segmented Platter

#31 By Jeff Spera
Red Box Elder Egyptian Vase

#32 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Red Jasper Trustone and Black Acrylic Hollow Vase

#90 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Smoke Bush Hollow Vase

#91 By Jacob Wenzel
Material Unknown

#92 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Yew Wood Bowl

#93 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Rosewood Burl Hollow vase with African Blackwood lid

#94 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Desert ironwood Vase

#95 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Sankewood Box with African Blackwood Base/Lid

#96 By Douglas Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Aspen Burl Bowl with Maple and Black Walnut foot and rim

#97 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Western Myall Hollow Vase

#98 By Douglas A Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Padauk and Maple randomly segmented with Anigre and Dyed black Veneers base/neck, Asutralian Ecor Burl

 

 #99 By Robin Brown, Canada
Jadite Acrylic

#100 By Robin Brown, Canada
Jadite Arylic

#101 By Roundwood Studios
Olive, Ebny and Maple Burl Vessel

#102 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Black Maire Bowl

#103 Maker Unknown
Material Unknown

#104 By Roundwood Studios
Maple Burl Vase

#105 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Florida Tamarind, Maple and Tulipwood with Australian Dead Finish Top

#106 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Black Maire Lidded Container

107 By Jacob Wenzel
Material Unknown

#108 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Beefwood, Macadamia Nut Holllow Vase

#109 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Leucadendron, Silky Oak Vase

#110 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Celebes Island Macassar Ebony Box with African Blackwood stopper

#111 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Australian Ecor Burl Segmented with Maple, top/bottom Australian Banksia


#112 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Australian Fiddleback Jarrah Vase w/ African Blackwood Base

#113 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Material Unknown

#114 By Robert Wayne DePriest
Laotian Cobrawood Art Deco Vase

#115 By Brian A. Hart - Hartwood Turnings
Blue/Green acrylic hollow vase

#116 By Roundwood Studios
Maple Burl Vase

#117 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Spalted Hackberry Vase w/ composite bronze and 18K gold inlaid base

#118 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Pistachio Tree Wood Vase

#119 By Bill Hlemer, IGMA Artisan
Deer Antler and Pink Ivory Box

#120 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Pink Ivory Lidded Container

#125 By Bill Hlemer, IGMA Artisan
Baltic Amber and Ancient Mammoth Ivory Box

#126 By William Maranville
White Marble Bowl

#127 Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Amboyna Burl, Ebony Footed Bowl

#128 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Zebrawood and Ebony Pedestal Box

#129 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Custom Dual-Color Dymondwood Box w/Eccentric Bois d'Arc

#130 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Double Diamond Quilted Box Elder w/ Pink Ivory

#131 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Spalted BEB Box w/Aussie Chocolate Mulga Lid

#132 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Double Diamond Quilted Box Elder Bowl w/ Pink Ivory and 18K Gold Leaf

#121 By Roundwood Studios
African Bubinga Vase

#122 Maker Unknown
Acrylic

#123 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Dakota Burl Box w/ Dymondwood Lid

#124 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
TruStone Turquoise Jar w/ African Blackwood Lid

#139 By Douglas A. Crawforth, The Dustmaker
Australian Black Box Burl Pot

#133 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Black Ash Burl Vase

#134 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Australian Banksia Seed Pod Box with African Gaboon Ebony Finial

#135 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Trustone Banded Malachite w/Dymondwood

#136 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Rainbow Colorwood

#137 By William Maranville
Rose Soapstone Hollow Vase

#138 - By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Miniature Mistletoe Burr Bowl

 

#33 By Douglas A. Crawforth, The Dustmaker
Segmented Nogal, Chakte Koke, Maple and Tigerwood. Top /bottom Nogal

#34 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Purple Katalox body, Maple Stripe, Neck of Pink Ivory wood.

#35 By Hartwood Turnings
African Blackwood hollow vase with Orange BE burl top

#36 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Hawaiian Manila Palm nut and Elephant Ivory lidded box

#37 By Mike Rowe
Betelnut Box with Ebony finial and Redheart foot

#38 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Alexander Palm Box with Gidgee

#39 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Manila Palm Nut with African Blackwood

#41 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Carnauba Palm Nut Box w/ Cocobolo Rosewood lid

#42 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Red Palm Box w/African Blackwood

#43 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Alaskan Prehistoric Mammoth Ivory Box with Genuine 14K and 10K Gold inlays and African Blackwood Stopper

#44 By Roundwood Studios
Osage Orange Bowl

#45 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Mediterranean Olive and Gidgee Hollow Form Vase

#46 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Zebrawood, Walnut, and Maple top

#47 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Materials Unknown

#48 By Robert Wayne DePriest
Eucalyptus Burl and Ebony Vase


#49 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Materials Unknown

#50 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Acrylic Lidded Box

#51 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Elephant Ivory and Ebony Box

#52 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Siberian mammoth Ivory Pedestal Box w/African Blackwood Base/Lid

#53 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Elephant Ivory and Ebony Box
#53 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Elephant Ivory and Ebony Box

#54 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Material Unknown

#55 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Blue Box Elder Gold Vase

#56 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Dyed & Stabilized Blue Corn Cob & Cocobolo Rosewood

#57 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Blue and Gold Box Elder Burl w/ Indigo Dymondwood

#58 By Randy Rhine, Boring, Oregon
Pink Ivory and Ebony Lidded Bowl

#59 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Material Unknown

#60 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Alaskan Staghorn Antler box with Dymondwood

#61 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Purple and Gold Box Elder Burl w. Gidgee

#62 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Material Unknown

#63 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Man Made Environ "Vermilion" Vase

#64 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Australian Bulloak segmented with Maple, foot and rim are African Gaboon Ebony

#65 Maker Unknown
Material Unknown

#66 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Black and White Trustone Vessel

#67 By Jeff Spera - Sword in the Stone
Montana Dendritic Talc stone garden pot

#68 Robin Brown, Canada
Acrylic Vase

#69 Robin Brown, Canada
Acrylic Bowl

#70 By Roundwood Studio
Blackwood and Cocobolo Jar

#71 By Douglas A. Crawforth, The Dustmaker
Brazilian Satinwood, and Asian Boxwood Highlighted by slices of Dyed Black Veneer

#72 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Randomly segmented Rhodedendron Burl and Walnut between Banksia wood

#73 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Ceanothus, Leucadendron and Olive Birch with layers of dyed Veneers

#74 By Bill Helmer, IGMA Artisan
Polar Ice Acrylic Jar

#75 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Material Unknown

#76 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Black, Claro and Hinds Walnut Pal Dao segmented with Oak. Base/rim Rose Myrtle Burl

#77 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Blue "Mini OSB" with Dymondwood and Bronze and 18KGold composite Inlays in Voids

#78 By Douglas A, Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Randomly Segmented Vase of Vasticola, Black Morrell, Coolibah, Corrugata and Tasmanian Eucalyptus burls, with Makore, Maple and Dyed black veneers

79 By Debi Bouey - Gallery B Turnings
Hollowed Australian Mystery Burl Vase

#80 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Wh. Birch, Bl. Veneer randomly segmented with Indonesian Rosewood foot/lid

#81 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Randomly segmented Purple Heart and Chakte Viga with top and bottom of Alaskan Birch Burl

#82 Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Brazilian Curly Ipe segmented with natural and dyed veneers, top and bottom Alaskan Birch Burl

#83 By Douglas A. Crawforth - The Dustmaker
Swampy Yate body, striped with Rosewood and Makore, neck Balsamo Redheart

#84 By Douglas A Crawforth, The Dustmaker
Poplar Burl Hollow Vase

#85 Maker Unknown
Material Unknown

#86 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Wenge Wood Lidded Container

#87 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Wenge Wood Bowl

#88 By Michael Hunt, New Zealand
Matai Wood Turned Bottle

#89 By Graham Simpkin, England
Bowl from English Bog Oak found in Methwold Fenn, Kings Lynn, Norfolk

 

 

 

 
I hope you have enjoyed your visit to the One Good Turn Gallery, and enjoyed seeing the wonderful artistry contained there. Just in case you are curious, Here are the final "specs"

Interior Dimensions
19" wide x 12 " deep x 13" high

Handcrafted display cabinets feature
64 individual LED lights.

Cherry Hardwood floor features
hand laid inlay border comprised of over 350 individual pieces.

"One Good Turn" gallery contains 138 individual turnings crafted from fine and exotic woods in dozens of species,ivory,
marble, soapstone and more. These turnings represent the work of the top miniature turners from the US, Canada, England,and New Zealand, and range in size from 1/4" to 3" in height.

One more thing!!!!

Remember the Challenge? Two roomboxes, 14 days?? Well I have to give you a peek at the other half of the project results!!

This is a photo of Moonyeen's gallery. As you can see, we had some similar ideas, but each of our projects turned out very different. She used lots of rich white and strong dramatic lighting, and dark formal fixtures for her displays, giving it a very upscale big city gallery. The working title for our boxes for a while was Big City and Big Sur. I think it is really interesting to see how two people can visualize and complete the same project in such different ways, especially working side by side.

Many thanks to all who contributed their artistry to this project. I am so very proud to own and showcase such a wonderful body of work, and to have such an exquisite place to show this collection. Thanks to Moonyeen and Larrell! Let's do it again soon!!!

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