Thursday

New Medieval Norse Nalbinding Needles


These three fossil mammoth ivory nalbinding needles have been added to our Etsy shop.  The lengths are 2 1/2 inches, 3 3/4 inches and 4 3/4 inches.

Wednesday

Holly and Walnut Top Whorl Drop Spindle with Pyrography

Dave has crafted the 2 3/8 inch diameter notched whorl of this top whorl drop spindle from holly, and the 10 inch shaft from walnut. A brass hook has been added to the top, and the whorl has been adorned with a floral motif.   The weight of this beautiful handspinning tool is 0.7 ounces.  Additional photos can be found at our Etsy shop listing for this spindle.

Saturday

Embroidery Stilettos/Laying Tools


We just listed these five embroidery stilettos, or laying tools, in our Etsy shop.  The woods used by Dave for these beautiful fiber art tools are ebony, Honduras rosewood, osage orange, cocobolo and buffalo bone.  Be sure and visit our Etsy shop to see additional photos of each of these tools.

Wednesday

New Phang Support Spindles



Jatoba was the wood used by Dave to craft the beautiful phang support spindle shown on the left.  Fossil mammoth ivory has been inlayed around this beautiful handspinning tool.  The phang on the right was crafted from ash.  Dave chose turquoise as the inlay material for this spindle.

Sunday

Eucalyptus Burl and Cocobolo Mini Top Whorl Drop Spindle


Dave has crafted the 1 7/8 inch diameter notched whorl of this mini top whorl drop spindle from eucalyptus burl, and the 7 3/4 inch shaft from cocobolo. A brass hook has been added to the top. Brass inlay has been added to some of the voids in the burl. The weight of this beautiful handspinning tool is 0.8 ounces.  Additional photos can be seen in our Etsy shop.



New Andean/Peruvian Reproduction Bottom Whorl Drop Spindles


Three new Andean reproduction bottom whorl drop spindles were listed in our Etsy shop today.  These beautiful handspinning tools were crafted from colorwood and birch.



Monday

The Giraffe Maple and Ash Top Whorl Drop Spindle


Introducing, "The Giraffe" top whorl drop spindle!

Dave has adorned this beautiful handspinning tool with an exotic giraffe pattern. The 2 1/4" diameter notched whorl was crafted from maple, and the 10 1/2" shaft is ash. The weight of this spindle is 0.9 ounces. The hook of this spindle was crafted from brass.  An additional photo can be seen in our Etsy shop.



Sunday

New Mini Top Whorl Drop Spindles


Dave has been busy in the studio for the past several days!  These beautiful mini top whorl drop spindles are the result of his hard work.  You can find all of these little beauties in our Etsy shop.

Wednesday

Lace Making Pattern Pricker Pin Vises



Dave has crafted these beautiful pattern prickers from wood and acrylic.  The ergonomic design fits comfortably in your hand, and the steel chuck allows you to easily remove or replace the needle.  The needle shown is included with your order.  Additional photos can be found in our Grizzly Mountain Arts Etsy shop.

Monday

4 Pin Exotic Hawaiian Golden Pheasant Wood French Spool Knitter with Loop Lifter


This beautiful French spool knitter was crafted by Dave from exotic Hawaiian golden pheasant wood. He has inset four brass pins into the top. The overall height of this spool knitter is 3 1/4 inches and the inner barrel measures 5/8 of an inch in diameter. The matching loop lifter was also crafted from Hawaiian golden pheasant wood and brass.

Travel Size Support Spinning Bowls


These four ceramic travel size support spinning bowls were listed in our Etsy shop today.  Each little bowl comes with a zippered pouch.

New Mini Russian Style Support Spindle and Bowl Travel Sets

Four new mini Russian style support spindle and bowl travel sets were listed in our Etsy shop today.  The woods used in these handspinning tools are cocobolo, pau ferro, cherry and birdseye maple.

Friday

Book of Kells Sacred Salmon Ceramic Bowl




It is believed that the Book of Kells was written at the end of the eighth century at the monastery of Iona.  Its purpose was to serve as an illuminated liturgical Gospel to be displayed on an altar, and as such, was beautifully illustrated with elaborate drawings.  On the Chi Rho page, animals representing the air (birds and moths), of the sea (fish and otters) and of the land, cats and mice, can be seen.  

To the Celts, the fish symbolized knowledge, wisdom, the gift of prophecy and inspiration.  The Salmon of Wisdom were keepers of all knowledge. Mythology tells us that this knowledge was attained by eating the nuts of the sacred hazel tree.

This beautiful dark chili pepper red ceramic bowl, that we created by hand, is perfect for so many things--rings, pins, votive candles or even as a small prep dish. This dish measures 3 1/4 inches in diameter and 1/2 inch tall. As with all of our ceramic pieces, the glaze is lead free.

Small Ceramic Prep Bowl Set



These sweet little earthenware clay prep bowls measure 3 1/2 inches in diameter and 1 inch deep. They are perfect for so many things like tapas bowls, sauces, nuts, candies or even small soaps and jewelry. I made these without the benefit of a wheel, so their slight irregularities make them truly one of a kind pieces. Lead free purple glaze was used to finish the bowls making them food safe.

Mini Russian Support Spindle Travel Sets



This is a new item for Grizzly Mountain Arts!  We are excited to introduce our "Mini Russian Support Spindle Travel Set".  The mini Russian spindle included with each set is the same size as our previous hair stick spindles but these are crafted from heavier woods.  The weight of each spindle can be varied by removing the two glass beaded rings.  Also included with each set is a mini ceramic spinning bowl that travels securely in it's zippered pouch.

Saturday

French Spool Knitters

Four new spool knitters were listed in our Etsy shop today.  The woods are birdseye maple, apricot, tiger maple and white ash.  Each spool knitter comes with a matching loop lifter.

The basic shape of most knitters is always a tube or spool shape with a hole in the center and different numbers of pins around the top to serve as a mini loom. While Dave has made a variety of different knitter shapes, he most commonly uses the basic shape that comes from a duck or goose call. Millions of duck hunters can’t be wrong! He has used these calls himself while hunting waterfowl and during his game warden days he checked hundreds of hunters with the calls hanging around their necks on lanyards. He doesn’t know when the basic shape of the duck call first came about but it has been round for over a hundred years and is the best design for hand holding.


When he was turning a few different game calls he noted how similar the shape was to the original “Knitting Nancy” spool knitters so he adapted the basic shape of the lower part of the game calls to be the primary shape of his spool knitters. Like duck calls, they can be carved, inlayed, burn etched or embellished in many different ways.