But then I realized that, although there are no true "original" ideas, you can make a piece unique and put your own original twist on it. It is how you treat the material or how you execute the idea and design that make it unique to you. Just as a song will never ever be played the same way twice, even by the same musician, making something by hand that is the same or similar will always have its own different characteristics. And it is these small differences that make that item special and interesting.
I find that the best and most exciting inspiration comes from my materials. That is why I love so much to take salvaged items and bring them back to life. They have their own personality that often inspires me to use them in a certain way.
I found a slice of wood on the boardwalk one day... once again while running which tends to be a great way for me to find things! The city was taking down several trees that were old and diseased and they had obviously made two cuts to fell the tree and this little wedge was left over.
So I carried it home with me while running...yes I looked ridiculous....and let it dry in the basement for several months.
I sanded it down, which took quite a while because it was so roughly cut, and then put a coat of oil on it. Because I knew I wanted to perhaps serve food on it I used a lemon oil based product that is safe to use in the kitchen.
I bought this at Restoration Hardware several years ago and it is fantastic.
I left the bark on the outside which is referred to as "live edge". The end result is a really beautiful and unique board for serving cheese on, displaying candles, serving a cake on....you get the idea. I will definitely use this over the holidays when we are entertaining.
Happy Holidays!! And Happy Entertaining!!
