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Birdhouse ornament ?

P

Perry Hilbert

Joined
Sep 27, 2017
Messages
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Location
Windsor, Pennsylvania
Here and elsewhere, I see pictures of bird house ornaments. They are mentioned in posts, Some are plain, some have fancy finials that I would give eyeteeth to be able to duplicate. I had never heard of such a thing, until I started frequenting turning forums. (I never heard of a Christmas pickle until I watched the movie Bad Santa. ) Is this some region tradition, or just a "turner's thing" Last year, just tinkering around with my lathe, I made one, complete with perch and hollow inside. Put a hook on it and put it on the tree, Mrs. almost laughed until tears, Who ever heard of a bird house ornament, So please enlighten me..
 
I never heard of a Christmas pickle either, till we got one as a gift. I love birdhouse ornaments and give away a few every Xmas as small tokens of appreciation, although finding the right size birds are hit or miss. One year I gave one to a "birder" and was informed that the bird I had on the perch does not nest in birdhouses... I said she was flying south for the winter and it was just temporary housing.
Mark St.Leger demoed for us and made a "Fly house", here is my rendition...
MSL fly house.jpg

As to why? They're fun to turn, besides who wants to turn a pickle? :D
 
Bird house ornaments are fun to make. I have some that hang on my lattice around part of my deck. No real birds, yet :D. Just those little cute ones you get at the craft store :). This reminds me I need to turn more to fill my lattice. Those outdoor ones are more rustic than the indoor ones I have made and given away.
 
I've turned Christmas ornaments for years. Every year before the tree is thrown out, a piece is cut off the base of the tree and an ornament is turned for the next years tree addition and dated. Our oldest tree ornament is dated 1991 and every year since has a dated ornament added. Everyone in the family, young and old, gets an ornament for Christmas with their name and year on it. Right now I'm in the process of filling a 25 different ornaments order. I walk the dog after Christmas with a saw in hand, when the trees are put out for recycling and cut a piece off of the trees in the neighbourhood and each house gets an ornament from their tree in return, just before next Christmas. The youngest person in the house gets the ornament with their name on it and the year. So folks, get started as Christmas is only 4 months away!!
 
I have been making ornaments since April. Donate them to a charity for sale and the proceeds help the blind. Have about 100 right now. Nothing as fancy as most, but easy to make so they can sell reasonable. Ordered some 3/4 inch plain wood and I am going to try some inside out ornaments. I use to make ornaments from pieces of the trunk of the prior year's tree. My First wife decided that she needed all brand new hand blown ornaments from the Czeck republic or someplace. She threw out all the hand made ornaments including the ones the kids made in school. What a dumb .......
 
We used to make a bunch from cedar every year for a November arts show we did.
We did not sand or finish them and could make 40 in a couple of hours.
People loved them
Sold them for $15 a piece and always sold out
 
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