A pair of creepies photographed out in the wild at Dirleton Primary School’s Rainbow Orchard. One made from olive ash and the other made from elm. The first creepie is 100% Scottish olive ash. All of the wood is from the same tree and all of the colouring that you see is completely natural. The dark browns are caused by the wood being attacked by fungus and is an early stage of rot. The process is known as spalting and sometimes the wood can have a bad smell. In this case it definitely had a stink which was noticeable when it was being worked – but once sealed with a…
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Yew and Walnut Creepie (#20)
A creepie made from Scottish yew and walnut. Walnut pegs in the side skirts. Simple cut-out to the base of the legs to make some ‘feet’. Dimensions: H 277 x W 460 x D 243 mm.
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Another Eider Sofa Table (#6) (and more)
A nice wee job at the start of the year was to make another of my Eider sofa tables. My favourite combination of timber for these tables is oak for the table top and base and walnut for the legs. This was requested in a slightly taller size (540 mm) and slightly wider (270 mm) too. To further vary the design I turned a spindle for the stretcher between the two legs and it was fastened in place with walnut wedges. The oak used was my own Scottish oak from Dumfriesshire and it is full of character. And here it is the Eider table in it’s new home – tucked…
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Olive Ash and Walnut Creepie (#19)
Another fantastic piece of olive ash makes up the top of this creepie, with ripples, streaks and crazy grain patterning. I had been holding on to this piece for a while and needed to make sure it was completely dry given that the grain direction is all over the place. The top has been flanked with simple, straight, walnut sides with a single peg at each corner. The legs are ‘white’ ash and olive ash with the traditional key motif cut-out. The weather was so good I took a few creepies for a photo shoot on a wall looking onto Tantallon Castle, the Bass Rock and the Isle of May.…
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More “Corncrakes”
My clients were undertaking an extensive refurbishment of their home in North Berwick prior to relocating there. A new kitchen was part of the refurbishment and they commissioned me to make them a "Corncrake" table with matching stools and chairs.
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In the Gallery
I am somewhat amazed (and delighted) to tell you that my creepies are now available from The Perthshire Gallery in Pitlochry. They have six of my creepies for sale this winter - including this most recently completed one (#18) in Scottish olive ash and elm
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Bench (Creepie, #17)
This is not another creepie!! (But I have still given it the number 17 because it is in my creepie-style). It is actually a bench...
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“Chaffinch” Bedside Cabinet (#2)
I first made a "Chaffinch" cabinet about 3 years ago, so it was nice to revisit the design and make some alterations for a new bedside cabinet. What changed?
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Wedding Creepie (#16)
In the summer I had a lovely wee commission to make a creepie to be gifted as a wedding present. The customer had been on holiday to Orkney and had come across creepies there. Then, having returned to the mainland, they came across my website and asked me to make a custom creepie.
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Desk with Octagonal Legs
Moving on quickly from the Character Oak Chest of Drawers completed in the first half of August, the next piece I had been asked to make was this lovely desk in oak. First task was to make the octagonal legs. I laminated oak to make the leg stock which improves stability and also means that thinner boards of oak can be used. To make the octagons the edges were routed using a large 45 degree chamfer bit – with the key being to ensure that the depth of cut was precisely the right amount to give 8 faces that were all the same size. Next up was the grooved detail…
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Character Oak Chest of Drawers
A short wee post to talk about this chest of drawers that I was asked to make at the start of August. I have only got this one photo so I'll just describe it for you.
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Walnut July
In both 2023 and 2024 my July’s were ruined by sciatic episodes where I could not walk. So for July 2025 to be free of sciatica and back pain was a very welcome relief. July had a trio of projects that used walnut. The first was a desktop for a standing desk that was to replace the existing well-used original top. I made the top from multiple staves of walnut of varying width and the edges were folded under to give the top some greater thickness and this also allowed the desk mechanism to be hidden underneath in the recess. A stand was required for two monitors and would allow…
