Patrick McKendry, Remnants (RECYCLED & RESCUED 2023)

Country:

United States of America

Once at the lumberyard, the man helping me load-up noticed all of the random scrap pieces I had stored up in the trunk. He laughed, "Any woodworker knows that those will all be good for something." When I started in the craft, I thought I was alone in my obsession with finding value in scrap wood, but now realize just how core it is to the woodworking psyche. This hanging shelf represents wood from two sources. The first is red oak from a tree felled in my yard due to root rot. The service company moved up my appointment last minute and, having never milled a tree before, I was caught wildly unprepared. I asked that they save as many cookies and stump sections from the landfill as they could. With a little bit of sweat and chainsaw work later on, I got to the raw materials which feed in to this piece. The second is walnut “scrap” from another project. The side runners are laminate, but the showstopper and namesake is the textured drawer front. The remnants have humble beginnings - they were the remaining material between kerfs as I cleared out the underside of a trestle table leg base on the cross-cut saw. As I started removing the remaining wood with a chisel, I felt that so many unique pieces would have a chance to shine on some thing at some time. Somewhere between visual intrigue and an unbelievably bulky handle, I think they have had that chance. The construction of the piece is simple, creating ample space for the character of the materials to shine, but brings a bit of flair with the dovetail joinery on the floating drawer. Finished with oil and wax.

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