It's too cold for the garage/workshop!

I know, I'm behind. Again.

But this is a really good reason... it's too darn cold in the garage to work on the kayak. Just after Christmas, after all the family departed for their respective homes, school and work, Alex and I got back to work on my kayak. Since he still had a couple of days left of his vacation, we decided to proceed to finish up the sanding and get the fiberglass on, which will stabilize the hull, so we will be able to move the whole thing into our basement. And get my car into the garage ;-)

It is impossible to get pictures of the kayak during the fiberglassing session. I do not want my camera lens permanently stuck in one position - or the chutter release button permanently stuck down either. So after we got the fiberglass epoxied in place, I did snap a couple of shots...

cutting off excess and remembering to take some pictures

Ooey, gooey and sticky

The staple holes are noticable, and at this point so is the fiberglass

The wood sure looks pretty all saturated with epoxy though

I checked just the other day, and there are still a few tacky spots on the kayak. I guess there's a big difference in curing temperatures. I don't think the 40F weather is warm enough to cure epoxy.

In the interim between coats of epoxy, I have been working on some cutting boards. I like the way they have turned out so far... but they are a bear to photograph!

I don't suppose you will be happy just to know that the first one is from a slab of 100 year old reclaimed submerged river birch, and the second one is from a slab of  fiddleback figured maple?

Okay...

River birch board - it reminds me of a thunderstorm approaching over a cove in Maine.

Sorry, this one belongs to Alex.

Highly figured fiddleback maple board - it actually is very pretty, but it looks rather crazy in this picture - so much going on. Just can't get the lighting right for this piece of wood. The figure of the wood reflects the light in several directions... 

I like working with wood. It's quiet (sometimes) and a good workout (planing, rasping, sanding). I love that you can make wood smooth and shiny. These cutting boards feel silky smooth. Alex says I like to play with the wood as much as work with it. I have to admit he is right.

Got any interesting chunks of wood?