Original Contemporary Asian Style Hand Turned Wooden Wine Coaster

Description

I spent most of my life in Kyoto, Japan studying Zen, calligraphy, wood-carving and various other traditional arts and crafts, … more I spent most of my life in Kyoto, Japan studying Zen, calligraphy, wood-carving and various other traditional arts and crafts, so some oriental -- particularly Japanese -- flavor seems to creep into most of my designs, such as this one. This item is hand-turned out of a solid piece of Philippine bayong wood. Bayong is an extremely dense wood with a dark red- brown color with black streaks and a rich metallic luster. I decided to add accents consisting of copper rings and escutcheon plates on either side and a copper disc in the inside center. The escutcheon plate design is what is called "hanabishi" (flower diamond, 花菱) in Japan. Each is individually embossed rather than stamped out or cast. All copper parts have been treated with the traditional Japanese technique called "suaka" (素赤) to provide them with a stable red- brown color tinged with rainbow hues. The "legs" were turned as far as possible on the lathe and then hand carved into their final shape. The wood is finished with a durable hand-rubbed linseed oil and varnish finish. The diameter is 4 inches and overall height is 1 3/4 inches. The thickness of the sides is about 1/8 inch and the bottom 1/4 inch. These dimensions can accommodate almost any wine bottle on the market. less