Acorn trophies and awards

Description of work

This batch of ten acorn trophies/awards were commissioned by UPM Tilhill - a large bio forestry company. They wanted something to reflect their area of work, and they also specified that the wood used should be timber native to the United Kingdom. The spalted beech and walnut fit the bill nicely.

It may have been more authentic to make acorns out of oak, but I happened on some nicely patterned spalted beech which the company liked. Making a batch like this does reveal how varied spalted wood can be, both in patterning and in hardness and texture. Some of the most patterned wood is also the softest and most liable to tear when turning. The walnut also varies quite considerably, from a pale to a deep brown - in some cases within the same piece. See below for a few examples.

The trophies are all finished with three coats of wax - first Tripoli wax, then white diamond, and finally carnauba wax, which is buffed to a high sheen.

The company, under the new name of Tilhill Forestry, ordered another 10 trophies in February 2016. These were made entirely in spalted beech. The wide variety of colouring in spalted beech is shown in the line up below.

Another customer spotted these trophies on the site and requested one to be given as an "Acorn Award". The resulting slight variation is in the middle picture below.

A gallery of similar items is available.

Some close ups and related work