Oak Burl Elf House in the making....

It starts with a huge old oak burl harvested from felled tree by the barn, the insides slashed with a chain saw, then the thing left out for a number of years where weathering broke down some of the wood. Next step: chiseling out the inside to create "living space" and to remove punky wood.

After it's been cleaned and inspected from every angle, the "noodling" process begins. "Who" would live there, how would "they" use the space, build where, and with what.... As this was the most ambitious structure I'd yet made, I worked by creating a master sketch of the burl as well as printing out images and sketching construction ideas & drawings over them.

I worked on this off and on for months. It was ambitious and satisfying, both. Working hearth/chimney, balcony and 'patio' with split bamboo flooring, kitchen window with pebble mosaic wide sill. Door of driftwood with custom frame. Even a hidden 'tunnel' and ladder to get to the patio from inside, though no one will ever see it. We know it's there, though.